World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!

D-Index & Metrics

Ecology and Evolution

D-Index
53
Citations
25019
World Ranking
3210
National Ranking
1134

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2018 - Fellow of the Ecological Society of America (ESA)

Overview

Erika S. Zavaleta is a researcher affiliated with the University of California, Santa Cruz in the United States. Their work spans environmental science and social sciences, contributing significantly to the study of ecological and evolutionary biology, biodiversity management, and higher education research within these fields.

The following are frequent publication venues for Zavaleta's academic output:

  • Ecology and Evolution
  • Biological Conservation
  • Trends in Ecology & Evolution
  • Integrative and Comparative Biology
  • Diversity and Distributions

Key papers authored or coauthored by Zavaleta demonstrate their involvement in both ecological research and inclusion initiatives in science education. Notable recent publications include:

  • "Field courses narrow demographic achievement gaps in ecology and evolutionary biology" (2020, Ecology and Evolution)
  • "Anti-racist interventions to transform ecology, evolution and conservation biology departments" (2021, Nature Ecology & Evolution)
  • "How Field Courses Propel Inclusion and Collective Excellence" (2020, Trends in Ecology & Evolution)
  • "Conservation strategies for the climate crisis: An update on three decades of biodiversity management recommendations from science" (2022, Biological Conservation)
  • "Global hotspots for coastal ecosystem-based adaptation" (2020, PLoS ONE)

Themes in their research focus prominently on species distribution and climate change, with 16 publications addressing this topic. Other main research topics include career development and diversity (14 publications), diverse educational innovations (10 publications), ecology and vegetation dynamics (10 publications), higher education research (8 publications), and genetic diversity and population structure (8 publications).

Zavaleta's work incorporates various subfields that inform their broad expertise, including genetics, safety research, ecological modeling, education, and global and planetary change studies. These subfields support their interdisciplinary approach toward environmental and social science challenges.

Throughout their career, Zavaleta has collaborated frequently with several researchers, demonstrating a networked and cooperative research practice. Frequent coauthors include:

  • Roxanne S. Beltran
  • Abraham L. Borker
  • Blair C. McLaughlin
  • Kristen Ruegg
  • Alexandra Race

Recognition for Zavaleta's contributions includes being named a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America in 2018.

Best Publications

  • Consequences of changing biodiversity

    F. Stuart Chapin Iii;Erika S. Zavaleta;Valerie T. Eviner;Rosamond L. Naylor

  • Biodiversity management in the face of climate change: A review of 22 years of recommendations

    Nicole E. Heller;Erika S. Zavaleta

  • High plant diversity is needed to maintain ecosystem services

    Forest Isbell;Vincent Calcagno;Andy Hector;John Connolly

  • Viewing invasive species removal in a whole-ecosystem context

    Erika S. Zavaleta;Richard J. Hobbs;Harold A. Mooney

  • The Functions of Biological Diversity in an Age of Extinction

    Shahid Naeem;J. Emmett Duffy;Erika Zavaleta

  • Restoration through reassembly: plant traits and invasion resistance

    Jennifer L. Funk;Elsa E. Cleland;Katherine N. Suding;Erika S. Zavaleta

  • A checklist for ecological management of landscapes for conservation

    David Lindenmayer;Richard J. Hobbs;Rebecca Montague-Drake;Jason Alexandra

  • A global review of the impacts of invasive cats on island endangered vertebrates

    Félix M. Medina;Elsa Bonnaud;Elsa Bonnaud;Eric Vidal;Bernie R. Tershy

  • Severity of the Effects of Invasive Rats on Seabirds: A Global Review

    Holly P. Jones;Bernie R. Tershy;Erika S. Zavaleta;Donald A. Croll

  • Grassland responses to global environmental changes suppressed by elevated CO2.

    M. Rebecca Shaw;Erika S. Zavaleta;Erika S. Zavaleta;Nona R. Chiariello;Elsa E. Cleland;Elsa E. Cleland

  • Harnessing nature to help people adapt to climate change

    Holly P. Jones;David G. Hole;Erika S. Zavaleta

  • Sustaining multiple ecosystem functions in grassland communities requires higher biodiversity

    Erika S. Zavaleta;Jae R. Pasari;Kristin B. Hulvey;G. David Tilman

  • Additive effects of simulated climate changes, elevated CO2, and nitrogen deposition on grassland diversity

    Erika S. Zavaleta;M. Rebecca Shaw;Nona R. Chiariello;Harold A. Mooney

  • Grassland responses to three years of elevated temperature, CO2, precipitation, and N deposition

    Erika S. Zavaleta;Erika S. Zavaleta;M. Rebecca Shaw;Nona R. Chiariello;Brian D. Thomas;Brian D. Thomas

  • Realistic species losses disproportionately reduce grassland resistance to biological invaders.

    Erika S. Zavaleta;Kristin B. Hulvey

  • Phenological tracking enables positive species responses to climate change

    Elsa E. Cleland;Jenica M. Allen;Theresa M. Crimmins;Jennifer A. Dunne

  • The economic value of controlling an invasive shrub

    Erika Zavaleta

  • Several scales of biodiversity affect ecosystem multifunctionality

    Jae R. Pasari;Taal Levi;Erika S. Zavaleta;David Tilman

  • Increasing Wildfire in Alaska's Boreal Forest: Pathways to Potential Solutions of a Wicked Problem

    F. Stuart Chapin;Sarah F. Trainor;Orville Huntington;Amy L. Lovecraft

  • The diet of feral cats on islands: a review and a call for more studies

    E. Bonnaud;E. Bonnaud;F. M. Medina;Eric Vidal;M. Nogales

  • Policy strategies to address sustainability of Alaskan boreal forests in response to a directionally changing climate

    F. Stuart Chapin;Amy L. Lovecraft;Erika S. Zavaleta;Joanna Nelson

Frequent Co-Authors

Bernie R. Tershy
Bernie R. Tershy University of California, Santa Cruz
Richard J. Hobbs
Richard J. Hobbs University of Western Australia
Carol Shennan
Carol Shennan University of California, Santa Cruz
Donald A. Croll
Donald A. Croll University of California, Santa Cruz
M. Rebecca Shaw
M. Rebecca Shaw World Wide Fund for Nature
F. Stuart Chapin
F. Stuart Chapin University of Alaska Fairbanks
Elsa E. Cleland
Elsa E. Cleland University of California, San Diego
Christopher B. Field
Christopher B. Field Stanford University
Harold A. Mooney
Harold A. Mooney Stanford University
David N. Cole
David N. Cole US Forest Service

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