Recent Research

Our research interests are both applied and theoretical, our projects span a variety of temporal and spatial scales, and our products are shaped by the colleagues with whom we have the privilege to work.

Structural Complexity


How do you characterize the structural complexity of a forested stand, how does it change over time and space, and how can it be best modeled?

old-growth

Publications

  • Zenner, E.K. and Peck, J.E. 2021. Quantifying the vertical diversification development stage of old-growth Douglas-fir to derive stage-specific targets for restoration silviculture. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 51: 484-492.
  • Peck, J.E. and E.K. Zenner. 2021. Structure area curves in eastern hardwoods: implications for minimum plot sizes to capture spatially-explicit structure indices. Annals of Forest Science, 78: 1-11.
  • Zenner, E.K., J.E. Peck, and V. Trotsiuk. 2020. Multi-aged micro-neighborhoods challenge the forest cycle model in primeval European beech. iForest 13: 209–214.
  • Zenner, E.K., J.E. Peck, and M.L. Hobi. 2020. Development phase convergence across scale in a primeval European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forest. Forest Ecology and Management 460: 117889.
  • Peck, J.E. and E.K. Zenner. 2019. Common ground among beech forest development stages: matrix vs. stage-typical live tree structure. Journal of Vegetation Science, 30: 893–904.
  • Zenner, E.K., J.E. Peck, and K. Sagheb-Talebi. 2019. Patchiness in old-growth oriental beech forests across development stages at multiple neighborhood scales. European Journal of Forest Research, 138: 739–752.
  • Zenner, E.K. and J.E. Peck. 2018. Floating neighborhoods reveal contribution of individual trees to high sub-stand scale heterogeneity. Forest Ecology and Management 412: 29–40.
  • Zenner, E.K., J.E. Peck, & K. Sagheb-Talebi. 2018. One shape fits all, but only in the aggregate: Diversity in sub-stand scale diameter distributions. Journal of Vegetation Science 29:501-510.

Climate Change

How have communities changed in recent decades, can we predict how forest cover will change in future decades, and what can models tell us about future risks?

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Publications:

  • Mafi-Gholami, D., A. Jaafari, E.K. Zenner, A.N. Kamari, and D. Tien Biu. 2020. Vulnerability of coastal communities to climate change: Thirty-year trend analysis and prospective prediction for the coastal regions of the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. Science of the Total Environment, 741: 140305.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D., A. Jaafari, E.K. Zenner, A.N. Kamari, D. Tien Biu. 2020. Spatial modeling of exposure of mangrove ecosystems to multiple environmental hazards. Science of the Total Environment, 740: 140167.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D., E.K. Zenner, A. Jaafari, and D. Tien Bui. 2020. Spatially explicit predictions of changes in the extent of mangroves of Iran at the end of the 21st century. Estuarine, Coastal, and Shelf Science 106644, 10 pp.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D., E.K. Zenner, A. Jaafari. 2020. Mangrove regional feedback to sea level rise and drought intensity at the end of the 21st century. Ecological Indicators, 110: 105972.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D., E.K. Zenner, A. Jaafari, H. Riahi Bakhtiari, and D. Tien Bui. 2019. Multi-hazards vulnerability assessment of southern coasts of Iran. Journal of Environmental Management 252: 109628.
  • Hong, H., Jaafari, A., and E.K. Zenner. 2019. Predicting spatial patterns of wildfire susceptibility in the Huichang County, China: An integrated model to analysis of landscape indicators. Ecological Indicators, 101: 878–891.
  • Jaafari, A., E.K. Zenner, M. Panahi, and H. Shahabi. 2019. Hybrid artificial intelligence models based on a neuro-fuzzy system and metaheuristic optimization algorithms for spatial prediction of wildfire probability. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 266-267: 198–207.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D., E.K. Zenner, A. Jaafari, and R.D. Ward. 2019. Modeling multi-decadal mangrove leaf area index in response to drought along the semi-arid southern coasts of Iran. Science of the Total Environment, 565: 1326–1336.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D. and E.K. Zenner. 2018. A review of climate change impacts on mangrove ecosystems. International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Protection 5(2):18-23.
  • Jaafari, A., D., E.K. Zenner, and B. Thai Pham. 2018. Wildfire spatial pattern analysis in the Zagros Mountains, Iran: A comparative study of decision tree based classifiers. Ecological Informatics 43:200-211.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D., A. Nouri-Kamari and E.K. Zenner. 2018. An Analysis of the Relationship Between Perceptions of Coastal Communities and CCA Planning. American Journal of Environmental Engineering and Science 5(1):1-9.
  • Mafi-Gholami, D., B. Mahmoudi, and E.K. Zenner. 2017. An analysis of the relationship between drought events and mangrove changes. Esturarine, Coastal, and Shelf Science 199:141-151.
  • Jaafari, A., D. Mafi-Gholami, and E.K. Zenner. 2017. A Bayesian modeling of wildfire probability in the Zagros Mountains, Iran. Ecological Informatics 39: 32-44.