Roger W. Ruess

Professor of Biology
Institute of Arctic Biology
Department of Biology and Wildlife

RWR

University of Alaska Fairbanks
Fairbanks, Alaska 99775-0180
Phone: (907) 474-7153
email: rwruess@alaska.edu
FAX: (907) 474-6967

Education
Professional Experience
Publications
Research Projects

Programs for calculating fine root production and mortality

Graduate Students
 

Married: Diane E. Ruess , Assoc. Prof. Library Sci., UAF (email: ffder@uaf.edu); The girls

Other: Airborne 912XT

Education

Primary Research Interests

My research focuses broadly on controls over carbon and nitrogen cycling in boreal forests.  This has included studies on organic N cycling in soils, successional patterns of fine root production and decomposition dynamics, and the role of vertebrate herbivores in ecosystem function and landscape evolution.  I am also involved with groups exploring genomic approaches to bacterial and fungal community structure and function in boreal soils.  A current interest is the physiological ecology of alder-Frankia-mycorrhizal interactions, and the associated role of alder in boreal forest nutrient cycling dynamics.

Professional Experience

Professional Affiliations

Publications

Lovelock, C.E., R.W. Ruess, and I.C. Feller. 2011. CO2 efflux from cleared mangrove peat. PLoS ONE 6: 1-4. (pdf)

Nossov, D.R., T.N. Hollingsworth, R.W. Ruess, and K. Kielland. 2011. Development of Alnus tenuifolia stands on an Alaskan floodplain: temporal and spatial patterns of recruitment, disease and succession. Journal of Ecology 99: 621-633. (pdf)

Allen, M. F., E. B. Allen, J. L. Lansing, K. S. Pregitzer, R. L. Hendrick, R. W. Ruess, and S. L. Collins. 2010. Responses to chronic N fertilization of ectomycorrhizal pinon but not arbuscular mycorrhizal juniper in a pinon-juniper woodland. Journal of Arid Environments 74:1170-1176. (pdf)

Chapin, F. S., III, A. D. McGuire, R. W. Ruess, T. N. Hollingsworth, M. C. Mack, J. F. Johnstone, E. S. Kasischke, E. S. Euskirchen, J. B. Jones, M. T. Jorgenson, K. Kielland, G. P. Kofinas, M. R. Turetsky, J. Yarie, A. H. Lloyd, and D. L. Taylor. 2010. Resilience of Alaska's boreal forest to climatic change. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 40:1360-1370. (pdf)

Hollingsworth, T. N., A. H. Lloyd, D. Nossov, R. W. Ruess, B. A. Charlton, and K. Kielland. 2010. Twenty-five years of vegetation change along a putative successional chronosequence on the Tanana River, Alaska. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 40:1273-1287. (pdf)

McFarland, J.W., R.W. Ruess, K. Kielland, K.S. Pregitzer, R. Hendrick and M. Allen. 2010. Cross-ecosystem comparisons of in situ plant uptake of amino acid-N and NH4+. Ecosystems 11: 177-193. (pdf)

McFarland, J.W., R.W. Ruess, K. Kielland, R. Hendrick, and K.S. Pregitzer. 2010. In situ glycine mineralization is closely associated to soil carbon availability across six North American forest ecosystems. Biogeochemistry DOI 10.1007/s10533-009-9400-2. (pdf)

McGuire, A. D., F. S. Chapin, III, and R. W. Ruess. 2010. Foreword to the special issue: The dynamics of change in Alaska's boreal forests: resilience and vulnerability in response to climate warming. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 40:1195-1196. (pdf)

McGuire, A. D., R. W. Ruess, J. S. Clein, A. H. Lloyd, J. Yarie, and G. P. Juday. 2010. Vulnerability of white spruce tree growth in interior Alaska in response to climate variability: dendrochronological, demographic, and experimental perspectives. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 40:1197-1209. (pdf)

Nossov, D. R., R. W. Ruess, and T. N. Hollingsworth. 2010. Climate sensitivity of thinleaf alder growth on an interior Alaska floodplain. Ecoscience 17: 312-320. (pdf)

Schloss, P.D., H.K. Allen, A.K. Klimowicz, C. Mlot, J.A. Gross, S. Savengsuksa, J. McEllin, J. Clardy, R.W. Ruess, and J. Handelsman. 2010. Psychrotrophic strain of Janthinobacterium lividum from a cold Alaskan soil produces prodigiosin. DNA and Cell Biology 29: 533-541.

Sveinbjornsson, B., M. Smith, T. Traustason, R.W. Ruess, and P.F. Sullivan. 2010. Variation in sink-strength control of white spruce growth at forest and treeline sites along a gradient from south- to north-central Alaska. Oecologia

163: 833-843.

Tape, K., R. Lord, and R.W. Ruess. 2010. Snow-mediated ptarmigan browsing and shrub expansion in arctic Alaska. Ecoscience  17:186-193. (pdf)

Anderson, M.D., R.W. Ruess, D.D. Myrold, and D. L. Taylor. 2009. Host species and habitat affect nodulation by specific Frankia genotypes in two species of Alnus in interior Alaska. Oecologia 160: 619-630. (pdf)

Chapin, F.S., III., J.W. McFarland, A.D. McGuire, E.S. Euskirchen, R.W. Ruess, and K. Kielland. 2009. The changing global carbon cycle: linking local plant-soil processes to global consequences. Journal of Ecology 97: 840-850. (pdf)

Mitchell, J.S., and R.W. Ruess. 2009. Seasonal patterns of climate controls over nitrogen fixation by Alnus viridis spp. fruticosa in a secondary successional chronosequence in interior Alaska. Ecoscience 16: 341-351. (pdf)

Mitchell, J.S., and R.W. Ruess. 2009. N2 fixing alder (Alnus viridis spp. fruticosa) effects on soil properties across a secondary successional chronosequence in interior Alaska. Biogeochemistry 95: 215-229. (pdf)

Ruess, R.W., J.M. McFarland, L.M. Trummer, and J.K. Rohrs-Richey. 2009. Disease-mediated declines in N-fixation inputs by Alnus tenuifolia to early-successional floodplains in interior and south-central Alaska. Ecosystems (pdf).

Stewart, K.M., R.T. Bowyer, J.G. Kie, B.L. Dick, and R.W. Ruess. 2009. Population density of North American Elk: effects on plant diversity. Oecologia 161:303-312. (pdf)

Ely, C.R., J.M. Pearce, and R.W. Ruess. 2008. Nesting biology of lesser Canada geese, Branta canadensis parvipes, along the Tanana River, Alaska. The Canadian Field Naturalist 122: 29-33.

Vogel, J.G., B.P. Bond-Lamberty, E.A.G. Schuur, S.T. Gower, M.C. Mack, K.E.B. O’Connell, D.W. Valentine, and R.W. Ruess. 2008. Carbon allocation in boreal black spruce across regions varying in soil temperature and precipitation. Global Change Biology 14: 1503-1516. (pdf)

Kielland, K, J.W. McFarland, R.W. Ruess, and K. Olson. 2007. Rapid cycling of organic nitrogen in taiga forest soils. Ecosystems 10:360-368. (pdf)

Brenner, R.E., J.B. Jones, R.D. Boone, K. Lajtha, and R.W. Ruess. 2006. Successional and physical controls on the retention of nitrogen in an undisturbed boreal forest ecosystem. Oecologia 148: 602-611. (pdf)

Chapin, F.S., III., M. Robards, H.P. Huntington, J.F. Johnstone, S.F. Trainor, R.W. Ruess, N. Fresco, D. Natcher, G. Kofinas. 2006. Predicting directional changes in ecological communities and social-ecological systems. American Naturalist 168: S36-S49. (pdf)

Kielland, K, R.W. Ruess, K. Olson, and R.D. Boone. 2006. Contribution of winter processes to nitrogen dynamics in taiga forest soils. Biogeochemistry 81: 349-360. (pdf)

Loomis, P.F, R.W. Ruess, B. Sveinbjornsson, and K. Kielland. 2006. Mineral and organic nitrogen cycling along a latitudinal treeline transect in Alaska. Ecoscience 13: 544-556. (pdf)

Lovelock, C.E., R.W. Ruess, and I.C. Feller. 2006. Root respiration in Rhizophora mangle over variation in forest stature and nutrient availability. Tree Physiology 26: 1601-1606.

Ruess, R.W., M.D. Anderson, J.S. Mitchell, and J.W. McFarland. 2006. Effects of defoliation on growth and N2-fixation in Alnus tenuifolia: consequences for changing disturbance regimes at high latitudes. Ecoscience 13: 404-412. (pdf)

Stewart, K.M., R.T. Bowyer, R.W. Ruess, B.L. Dick, and J.G. Kie. 2006. Testing the herbivore optimization hypothesis: experimental manipulation of elk population density. Wildlife Monographs 167: 1-24. (pdf)

Chapin, F.S., III., D. McGuire, R.W. Ruess, M.W. Walker, R.D. Boone, M.E. Edwards, B.P. Finney, L.D. Hinzman, J.B. Jones, G.P. Juday, E.S. Kasischke, K. Kielland, A.H. Lloyd, M.W. Oswood, C.-L. Ping, E. Rexstad, V.E. Romanovsky, J.P. Schimel, E.B. Sparrow, B. Sveinbjornsson, D.W. Valentine, K. Van Cleve, D.L. Verbyla, L.A. Viereck, R.A. Werner, T.L. Wurtz, and J. Yarie. 2006. Summary and synthesis: past and future changes in the Alaskan boreal forest. Pages 332-338, In: F.S. Chapin, III, M.W. Oswood, K. Van Cleve, L. Viereck, and D. Verbyla  (editors), Alaska’s changing boreal forest, Oxford University Press, New York, NY.

Kielland, K., J.P. Bryant, and R.W. Ruess.  2006. The role of large herbivores in the functioning of the boreal forest.  Pages 211-226, In: F.S. Chapin, III, M.W. Oswood, K. Van Cleve, L. Viereck, and D. Verbyla  (editors), Alaska’s changing boreal forest, Oxford University Press, New York, NY.

Ruess, R.W., R.L. Hendrick, J.G. Vogel, B. Sveinbjornsson. 2006. The role of fine roots in the functioning of boreal forests.  Pages 189-210, In: F.S. Chapin, III, M.W. Oswood, K. Van Cleve, L. Viereck, and D. Verbyla (editors), Alaska’s changing boreal forest, Oxford University Press, New York, NY.

Zhang, X., A.D. McGuire, and R.W. Ruess. 2006. Scaling uncertainties in estimating canopy foliar maintenance respiration for black spruce ecosystems in Alaska. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change 11: 147-171. (pdf)

Brenner, R.E., R.D. Boone, and R.W. Ruess. 2005. Nitrogen additions to a pristine high-latitude ecosystem: consequences for soil nitrogen transformations in mid and late succession.  Biogeochemistry 72: 257-282. (pdf)

Treseder, K.K., M.F. Allen, R.W. Ruess, K.S. Pregitzer, and R.L. Hendrick. Lifespans of fungal rhizomorphs under nitrogen fertilization in a Pinyon-Juniper woodland. 2005. Plant and Soil 270: 249-255.

Vogel, J.G., D.W. Valentine, and R.W. Ruess. 2005. Root and heterotrophic respiration in mature Alaskan black spruce forests that vary in the rate of soil organic matter decomposition.  Canadian Journal of Forest Research 35: 161-174. (pdf)

Anderson, M. D., R.W. Ruess, D.D. Uliassi, and J.S. Mitchell. 2004. Estimating N2 fixation in two species of Alnus in interior Alaska using acetylene reduction and 15N2 uptake. Ecoscience 11: 102-112. (pdf)

Lovelock, C. E., S. Wright, D. Clark, and R.W. Ruess.  2004. Carbon stocks of glomalin produced by arbuscular mycorrhizae across a tropical rainforest landscape. Journal of Ecology 92: 278-287. (pdf)

Crocker, T.L., R.L. Hendrick, R.W. Ruess, K.S. Pregitzer, A.J. Burton, M.F. Allen, J. Shan, and L.A. Morris. 2003. Substituting root numbers for length: Improving the use of minirhizotrons to study fine root dynamics. Applied Soil Ecology 23: 127-135. (pdf)

Person, B.B., M.P. Herzog, R.W. Ruess, J.S. Sedinger, R.M. Anthony, and C.A. Babcock.  2003. Feedback dynamics of grazing lawns: coupling vegetation change with animal growth. Oecologia 135: 583-592. (pdf)

Person, B.T., and R.W. Ruess. 2003. Stability of a near Arctic saltmarsh: community resistance to tidal inundation. Ecoscience 10: 351-360. (pdf)

Ruess, R.W., R.L. Hendrick, A.J. Burton, K.S. Pregitzer, B. Sveinbjornsson, M.F. Allen, and G. Maurer. 2003. Coupling fine root dynamics with ecosystem carbon cycling in black spruce forests of interior Alaska. Ecological Monographs 74: 643-662. (pdf)

Burton, A.J., K.S. Pregitzer, R.W. Ruess, R.L. Hendrick, and M.F. Allen. 2002. Fine root respiration rates in North American forests: effects of nitrogen concentration and temperature across biomes. Oecologia 131: 559-568. (pdf)

Lenart, E.A., R. T. Bowyer, J. Ver Hoef, and R.W. Ruess. 2002. Climate change and caribou: effects of weather on forage. Canadian Journal of Zoology 80: 664-678.

McFarland. J.M., R.W. Ruess, K. Kielland , and A. Doyle. 2002. Cycling dynamics of NH4+ and amino acid N in soils of a deciduous boreal forest ecosystem. Ecosystems 5: 775-788. (pdf)

Pregitzer, K.S., J.L. DeForest, A.J. Burton, M.F. Allen, R.W. Ruess, and R.L. Hendrick.  2002. Fine root architecture of nine North American trees. Ecological Monographs 72: 293-309. (pdf)

Uliassi, D.D. and R.W. Ruess. 2002. Limitations to symbiotic nitrogen fixation in primary succession on the Tanana River floodplain, Alaska. Ecology 83: 88-103. (pdf)

Zacheis, A., R.W. Ruess, and J.W. Hupp. 2002. Nitrogen dynamics in an Alaskan salt marsh following spring use by geese. Oecologia 130: 600-608.

Zacheis, A.B., Hupp, J.W. and Ruess, R.W.  2002. Response of a subarctic salt marsh plant community to foraging by captive lesser snow geese. Ecoscience 9: 320-331.

Chapin, F.S., III., and R.W. Ruess. 2001. The roots of the matter. Nature 411: 749-752.

Doran, K., R.W. Ruess, F.G. Plumley, and T. Wurtz. 2001. Photosynthetic acclimation of juvenile white spruce (Picea glauca) to controlled density microenvironments. Ecoscience 8: 76-88.

Mulder, C.P.H., and R.W. Ruess. 2001. Long-term effects of changes in goose grazing intensity on arrowgrass populations: a spatially explicit model. Journal of Ecology 89: 406-417.

Zacheis, A., J.W. Hupp, and R.W. Ruess. 2001. Effects of migratory geese on the plant communities of an Alaskan salt marsh. Journal of Ecology 89: 57-71.

Uliassi, D.D., K. Huss-Danell, R.W. Ruess, and K. Doran. 2000. Biomass allocation and nitrogenase activity in Alnus tenuifolia: responses to successional soil type and phosphorus availability.  Ecoscience 7: 73 - 79.

Bledsoe, C.S., T.J. Fahey, F. P. Day, and R.W. Ruess. 1999. Measurement of static root parameters - biomass, length, distribution. Pages 413-436, in: Robertson, G.P., C.S. Bledsoi, D.C. Coleman, and P. Sollins (eds). Standard soil methods for long-term ecological research.  Oxford University Press, New York, N.Y.

Fahey, T., C. Bledsoe, F. Day, R.W. Ruess, and A. Smucker. 1999. Root production and demography. Pages 378-412, in: Robertson, G.P., C.S. Bledsoi, D.C. Coleman, and P. Sollins (eds). Standard soil methods for long-term ecological research.  Oxford University Press, New York, N.Y.

Myrold, D. D., R.W. Ruess, and M. Klug. 1999. Dinitrogen fixation. Pages 241-257, in: Robertson, G.P., C.S. Bledsoi, D.C. Coleman, and P. Sollins (eds). Standard soil methods for long-term ecological research.  Oxford University Press, New York, N.Y.

Paul, E.A., D. Harris, M. Klug, and R.W. Ruess. 1999. The determination of microbial biomass. Pages 291-317, in: Robertson, G.P., C.S. Bledsoi, D.C. Coleman, and P. Sollins (eds). Standard soil methods for long-term ecological research.  Oxford University Press, New York, N.Y.

Mulder, C.P.H, and R.W. Ruess. 1998. Effects of herbivory on arrowgrass: interactions between geese, neighboring plants, and abiotic factors. Ecological Monographs 68: 275-293.

Mulder, C.P.H., and R.W. Ruess. 1998. Relationships between size, biomass allocation, reproduction and survival in Triglochin palustris:  implications for the effects of goose herbivory.  Canadian Journal of Botany 76: 2164-2176.

Person, B.T., C.A. Babcock, and R.W. Ruess. 1998. Spatial variation in forage abundance and quality in brood rearing areas used by Pacific Brant Geese on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska.  Journal of Ecology 86: 243-259.

Ruess, R.W., R.L. Hendrick, and J.P. Bryant. 1998. Regulation of fine root dynamics by mammalian browsers in early successional Alaskan taiga forests. Ecology 79:2706-2720. (pdf1),  (pdf2)

Schimel, J.P., R.G. Cates, and R.W. Ruess. 1998. The role of balsam poplar secondary chemicals in controlling nutrient dynamics through succession in the Alaskan taiga. Biogeochemistry 42: 221-234.

Kielland, K., J.P. Bryant, and R.W. Ruess. 1997. Moose herbivory and carbon turnover of early successional stands in interior Alaska. Oikos 80: 25-30.

Ruess, R.W, D.D. Uliassi, C.P.H. Mulder, and B.T. Person. 1997. Growth responses of Carex ramenskii to defoliation, salinity, and nitrogen availability: implications for geese-ecosystem dynamics in western Alaska. Ecoscience 4: 170-178. (pdf)

Mulder, C.P.H,  R.W. Ruess, and J.S. Sedinger. 1996. Effects of environmental manipulations on Triglochin palustris: implications for the role of goose herbivory on controlling its distribution. Journal of Ecology 84: 267-278.

Ruess, R.W., K. Van Cleve, J. Yarie, L.A. Viereck. 1996. Contributions of fine root production and turnover to the carbon and nitrogen cycling in taiga forests of the Alaskan interior.  Canadian Journal of Forest Research 26: 1326-1336.

Ruess, R.W., and S.W. Seagle. 1994. Landscape patterns in soil microbial processes in the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania.  Ecology 75: 892-904.

Jefferies, R.L., J. Svoboda, G. Henry, M. Raillard, and R. Ruess. 1992. Tundra grazing systems and climatic change. pages 391-412, In: Chapin, F.S.,III, R.L. Jefferies, J.F. Reynolds, G.R. Shaver, and J. Svoboda. (eds.) Arctic ecosystems in a changing climate: an ecophysiological perspective. Academic Press, New York.

Seagle, S.W., S.J. McNaughton, and R.W. Ruess. 1992. Simulated effects of grazing on soil nitrogen and mineralization in contrasting Serengeti grasslands. Ecology 73: 1105-1123.

Ruess, R.W. and F.E. Halter. 1990. The impact of large herbivores on the Seronera Woodlands, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. African Journal of Ecology 28: 259-275.

Ruess, R.W., D.H. Hik, and R.L. Jefferies. 1989. The role of Lesser Snow Geese as nitrogen processors in a sub-arctic salt marsh. Oecologia 79: 23-29.

Georgiadis, N.J., R.W. Ruess, S.J. McNaughton, and D. Western. 1989. Ecological conditions that determine when grazing stimulates grass production. Oecologia 81: 316-322.

Lodhi, M.A.K., and R.W. Ruess 1988. Variation in soil nitrifiers and leaf nitrate reductase activity in selected tree species in a forest community. Soil Biology and Biochemistry.

McNaughton, S. J., R. W. Ruess, and S. W. Seagle. 1988. Large mammals and process dynamics in African ecosystems. BioScience 38: 794-800.

Ruess, R.W. 1988. The interaction of defoliation and nutrient uptake in Sporobolus kentrophyllus, a short-grass species from the Serengeti Plains. Oecologia 77: 550-556.

Ruess, R.W. and S.J. McNaughton. 1988. Ammonia volatilization and the effects of large grazing mammals on nutrient loss from East African grasslands. Oecologia 77: 382-386.

Ruess, R.W. and S.J. McNaughton. 1987. Grazing and the dynamics of nutrient and energy regulated microbial processes in the Serengeti grasslands. Oikos 49: 101-110.

Ruess, R.W. 1987. The role of large herbivores in nutrient cycling of tropical savannas. In: Walker B.H. (ed) Determinants of tropical savannas. IUBS Monograph Series No. 3. IRL Press Ltd., Oxford, pp 67-91.

McNaughton, S.J., R.W. Ruess, and M.B. Coughenour. 1985. Ecological consequences of nuclear war. Nature 321: 483-487.

Ruess, R.W. 1984. Nutrient movement and grazing: experimental effects of clipping and nitrogen source on nutrient uptake in Kyllinga nervosa. Oikos 43: 183-188.

Ruess, R.W. and S.J. McNaughton. 1984. Urea as a promotive coupler of plant-herbivore interactions. Oecologia 63: 331-337.

Ruess, R.W., S.J. McNaughton, and M.B. Coughenour. 1983. The effects of clipping, nitrogen source and nitrogen concentration on the growth responses and nitrogen uptake of an East African sedge. Oecologia 59: 253-261.

Ruess, R.W., and M.K. Wali. 1980. Diel fluctuations in water potential and associated ionic changes in Atriplex canescens. Oecologia 47: 200-203.
 

Externally Funded Research Projects

Regional consequences of changing climate-disturbance interactions for the resilience of Alaska's boreal forest. National Science Foundation; Responsibilities: PI; Funded 2010-2016; $5,640,000. (Bonanza Creek LTER webpage)

Ecosystem-level consequences of mutualist partner choice in alder across a forest successional sequence in interior Alaska. National Science Foundation; Responsibilities: PI; Funded 2007-2010, $796,227.

The dynamics of change in Alaska’s boreal forests: resilience and vulnerability in response to climate warming (Renewal of the Bonanza Creek LTER).  National Science Foundation; Responsibilities: Co-PI; Funded 2006-2010, $3,280,000.

The moose-human social ecological system of interior Alaska: 2007 supplement to the Bonanza Creek LTER program. National Science Foundation; Responsibilities: Co-PI; Funded 2007-2008, $94,000.

Resilience and vulnerability in a rapidly changing north: the integration of physical, biological and social processes (Alaska EPSCoR Phase III). National Science Foundation; Responsibilities: Co-team leader of the Biology component; Funded 2007-20010, $9,000,000.

Coupling diversity with function: metagenomics of boreal forest. National Science Foundation; Responsibilities: Co-PI; Funded 2003-2004, @ $800,000. (extension through Dec 2006).

Feedbacks between river hydrology and terrestrial nitrogen dynamics in taiga forests. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; Responsibilities: Co-PI; Funded 2002-2006, $260,000.

Teaching

Graduate Students Supervised (major advisor)

Current:

Mike Anderson. Ph.D. student. (co-chair with Lee Taylor) Research topic: Host selection and associated effects on N fixation of Frankia partners by Alnus tenuifolia in early and late successional Alaskan floodplain forests.
Chris Babcock . Ph.D. student. Research topic: Biotic and abiotic factors in determining landscape vegetation patterns and community dynamics on the Yukon-Kuskokwim River Delta.
Brian Heitz. Ph.D. student. (co-chair with Bjartmar Sveinbjornsson). Effects of microclimate on growth and morphology of feather mosses.
Katie Christie. Ph.D. student. (co-chair with Mark Lindberg). Ptarmigan-shrub interactions in north-western Alaska.
Michaela Swanson. M.S. student. Strategies for soil P mobilization and associated effects on N fixation by Alnus tenuifolia in interior Alaskan floodplain ecosystems.
Ken Tape. Ph.D. student. (co-chair with Jeff Welker). Shrub distribution and expansion in northern Alaska.
Tumi Traustason. Ph.D. student. (co-chair with Bjartmar Sveinbjornsson). Growth dynamics of white spruce along a latitudinal treeline gradient in Alaska

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