How does nutrient enrichment affect wildflowers and their mutualisms with pollinators?

Nutrient enrichment, or the anthropogenic addition of excess nutrients into ecosystems, is contributing to declines in plant diversity. Whether these effects of nutrient enrichment are globally generalizable and have downstream effects on pollinator remain emerging questions. Through collaborating with Dr. Elizabeth Borer and Dr. Eric Seabloom at the University of Minnesota and the collaborative Nutrient Network, my research explores these questions.  

To learn more, check out our paper in Communications Biology, showing that nitrogen addition is driving global declines in wildflower diversity, but large mammalian herbivores can rescue wildflowers from these negative effects of nutrients.