Email:
kfrance@vims.edu
Office: Maury Hall
204
Phone: (804) 684-7148
Evolutionary Ecology Website
Click here for curriculum
vitae as pdf
Education
BA, Biology, concentration in Environmental Studies,
Williams
College, 1999. Summa cum laude.
Major Advisor
Dr. J. Emmett
Duffy
Research
Effects
of
regional species pool dynamics on local and meta- community structure
and
ecosystem function
My
dissertation is an
integrated study of relationships between regional biodiversity,
community
assembly and disassembly, and ecosystem function in marine ecosystems. I am particularly interested in whether or not
the relationship between biodiversity and stability of ecosystem
function scales up from isolated patches to metacommunities, or
networks of patches connected by dispersal. My specific
objectives are to: 1) investigate
the relationship between biodiversity and invasibility in a partially
open
seagrass mesocosm system, 2) model meta- and local community dynamics
of
species abundance in response to additions and removals of species from
the
regional pool, 3) test the effects of regional species pool size and
changes to
the regional species pool on meta- and local community dynamics of
species
abundance as well as ecosystem function in seagrass mesocosms, and 4)
examine
the effects of regional species pool size on distribution of species
abundances
and ecosystem function in the field, using natural gradients in
regional
species pool size.
Publications
K.
E. France and
J. E. Duffy. In press.
“Diversity, dispersal, and scale
interactively affect the predictability of ecosystem function.”
K.
E. France
and J. E. Duffy. In press.
“Consumer diversity mediates invasion
dynamics at multiple trophic levels.” Oikos.
J. E. Duffy, K. E.
France and J. P. Richardson. 2005. “Ecosystem consequences
of
diversity depend on food chain length in estuarine vegetation.” Ecology
Letters. 8: 301-309.
McIntyre,
P. B., E. Michel, K.
France, A. Rivers, P. Hakizimana and A. S. Cohen.
2005. “Effects of
anthropogenic sedimentation on
snails in Lake
Tanganyika:
comparing individual- and community-level
measures.” Conservation Biology.
19(1): 171-181.
Selected Presentations
Symposium: “Incorporating
trophic diversity into the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning debate:
Lessons
from aquatic ecosystems.” P. B.
McIntyre, K. E. France, J. E. Duffy
and A. S. Flecker, coordinators. 90th Annual Meeting of the
Ecological Society of America, Montréal, Quebec, August 7-12,
2005
“Effects of regional species pool size and dispersal on
variability of ecosystem functions in experimental seagrass
metacommunities.” K. E. France and J. E. Duffy. Presented
at the 90th Annual
Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, Montreal, Quebec, August
7-12, 2005.
"Testing effects of
consumer diversity on invasion success in a multi-trophic level
system." K. E. France and J.
E. Duffy. Presented at the 88th Annual
Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, held jointly with the
International Society for Ecological Modeling, Savannah, GA, August
3-8, 2003.
“Littoral
algivores of Lake Tanganyika: comparing the influence of fishes and
snails.” C. Solomon, P. B. McIntyre, E. Michel, S.
Miller, J. Chan, J. Sapp and K. France.
Presented at the North American Benthological Society Annual Meeting,
Athens, GA, May 27-31, 2003.
“Biodiversity
and ecosystem function: the consumer connection.” J.E. Duffy,
K.E. France and J.P.
Richardson. Presented at the 87th Annual
Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, Tucson, AZ, August 4-9,
2002.
“Treasure Seekers Meet Jack Tar: The Shaping of Unique Temporary
Maritime
Communities During California Gold Rush Voyages.” K.E. France.
Presented
at the National Conference for Undergraduate Research, Rochester, NY,
April
1999.
Research Experience
Woods Hole
Oceanographic
Institution, Woods Hole, MA. June-August 1999.
Summer Student Fellow under Drs. Lauren Mullineaux and Heather Hunt.
The Nyanza Project,
Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania. NSF REU Program. June 1-July 15 1998.
Researcher
under Drs. Andrew Cohen and Ellinor Michel.
State
University of NY Biological Field Station, Cooperstown, NY. Summers
1993-1996.
Rufus J. Thayer Otsego Lake Research Assistantship under Dr. Bill
Harman.
Fellowships, Awards and Honors
Teaching Experience
Education and Outreach Coordinator. Salish Sea Expeditions, Bainbridge,
WA.
November 2000-July 2001. Coordinated marine science immersion program
for
low-income middle school girls, designed to increase self-confidence
and
inquisitive courage. Taught marine science and the scientific
process
to 5th -12th graders in classrooms and onboard sailing vessels.
Teaching assistant. Introduction to Environmental Studies. Center for
Environmental
Studies, Williams College. September-December 1998.
Teaching assistant. Introduction to Environmental Science. Center for
Environmental
Studies, Williams College. February-May 1997.
Professional Memberships
Ecological Society of America
International Biogeography Society
Sigma Xi
Society of Conservation Biology
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