Forest Resources and Conservation

Dr. Wendell P. Cropper, Professor

Wendell Cropper joined the School faculty in 2002 with teaching and research responsibilities in Biological Process Modeling. He has extensive experience developing computer simulation models of populations and physiological and ecosystem processes for southern pines and other Florida ecosystems.

Research:
Simulation modeling of plantation and natural forests at multiple scales. Matrix population modeling of tree and palm species. Mechanistic modeling of physiological and ecological processes. Modeling of nutrient uptake in roots and mycorrhizae. Landscape modeling of pine forests.

Applications of genetic algorithms for optimization, model calibration and inverse modeling. Applications of neural networks for prediction of complex ecological characteristics, such as pine Leaf Area Index.

Future Research: Development, testing, and application of computer simulation models that use mechanistic/physiological approaches for trees and forests, forest landscape models, and population models. Applications of biologically-inspired computing.

Degrees:
PhD, Emory University, 1980
MS, Emory University, 1977
BA, Cornell College, 1973

Graduate Students:

Douglas Shoemaker (M.S 2005, SFRC) Extraction of Leaf Area Index in Plantation Pine Forests from Satellite Imagery.

Louise Loudermilk (M.S. 2006, SFRC; co-advised by L. Arvanitis) Modeling Forest Succession and Fire Disturbance in a North-Central Florida Landscape.

Louise Loudermilk (Ph.D. 2010, SNRE) Multi-scale modeling of fire dynamics to assess longleaf pine regeneration success.

Jennifer Holm (M.S. 2008, SNRE) Population dynamics of the Amazonian palm Mauritia flexuosa: Model development and simulation analysis.

Sebastian Palmas (M.S., SFRC, 2013) Individual Growth and Comparison among Matrix and Integral Projection Models with Data from 18 Species of Tropical Trees at Los Tuxtlas, Mexico: Statistical and Simulation Analysis.

Todd Bertwell (M.S., 2016, SFRC; co-advised by K. Kainer) Are Brazil Nut Harvests Sustainable? Perspectives Informed by a Demographic Model Integrating 14 Years of Bertholletia excelsa Research.

Davut Atar (M.S., 2016, SFRC) Simulating the Transition from Even-Aged Longleaf Plantations to Old Growth Savannas with Harvest Management Using a Coupled Multiple Model Framework.

Mukhtar Ajaz Ahmed (M.S., 2016; co-advised by A. Abd-Elrahman) Identifying Significant Drivers for the Aboveground Biomass and Water Yield Ecosystem Services at the Watershed Level in the Southeastern USA.

Angga Yudaputra (M.S. 2018, SFRC). Habitat Suitability and Population Structure of an Endemic Palm Species (Pinanga arinasae) in Bali, Indonesia.

Austin Smith (M.S. 2018, SNRE; co-advised by M. Moulton) A Comparison of Machine Learning Methods to Classify Chukar Partidge (Alectoris chukar) Establishment Patterns in Washington State.

Mohamad Ridlo (M.S. 2018, SFRC) Land Use Planning with Respect to Ecosystem Services Trade-Offs and Palm Oil Expansion.

Non Thesis M.S. /M.F.R.C. graduates supervised (2013-2017): Helen Claudio, Karen Zillox Brown, Martin Jacob, Matthew Kennard, Ana Rodriguez, Brenda Thomas, Steven Miller