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As she cruises through Rhode Island\u2019s wetlands in a kayak, College of the Environment and Life Sciences (CELS) Ph.D. student Lynde Dodd has a mission: study the invasive water chestnut to help identify the most effective methods for its management. Dodd, a research biologist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, has traveled all over the country studying some of the most difficult and destructive invasive aquatic plants. She is based out of the Lewisville Aquatic Ecosystem Research Facility<\/a> in Texas with the Engineer Research and Development Center but is on assignment in Rhode Island conducting research on this devastating plant as part of her Ph.D. program.<\/p>\n Dodd studies invasive plants: non-native species introduced from outside an ecosystem that cause significant harm to the environment, economy, and\/or human health. She specializes in invasion ecology, an important discipline of study that aims to better understand invasion processes and how to prevent, manage, and mitigate them. \u201cInvasive species can disrupt natural processes and food webs, and reduce species diversity by outcompeting and displacing natives,\u201d states Dodd.<\/p>\n Throughout her career, Dodd has focused her research on aquatic invasive plants. These plants can cause significant damage to infrastructures like water intakes and dams by causing impediments due to extensive growth. \u201cMany invasives like water chestnut can impede navigation, whether you\u2019re on a large boat or a kayak,\u201d she says. \u201cIf you have lakefront property, you may not be able to get in and out of your boat dock. And if you have invasives in your reservoir, it can impact the ability to get water out of your tap.\u201d In addition to these challenges, Dodd emphasizes that these invasives are often very difficult and expensive to control. \u201cMillions of dollars are regularly spent by federal, state, and local governments to control such invasives,\u201d she says. \u201cWe must manage them to reduce impacts on the environment and our everyday lives.\u201d This is where her Ph.D. comes in.<\/p>\n Dodd has been studying an invasive aquatic plant known as the European water chestnut<\/a> since 2016. This aggressive invader can almost completely enshroud pond surfaces, wreaking havoc on freshwater ecosystems. \u201cWater chestnut can reduce water quality by acting as a barrier to sunlight, starving plant life below the surface of light,\u201d explains Dodd. She says the plant can form dense mats of vegetation on the surface that reduce oxygen, compete with native plants for resources, and threaten fish and other wildlife.<\/p>\n Dodd is conducting her research with the aid of her advisor, CELS professor, and researcher Dr. Laura Meyerson. \u201cI was attracted to the University of Rhode Island (URI) because I get to work with an internationally-known invasion ecologist,\u201d says Dodd of Meyerson\u2019s recent recognition as a fellow of the Ecological Society of America<\/a>. \u201cThe work I\u2019m doing here in CELS has molded me into a better researcher by providing me the needed tools, connections, facilities, guidance, and collaborations,\u201d she states. \u201cI will use what I have learned in my role as a research biologist and team leader for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
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