LEE A. DYER Professor Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology 310 Dinwiddie Hall Tulane University New Orleans, LA 70118; ldyer@tulane.edu

EDUCATION

B.A. Biochemistry; B.A. English; University of California, Santa Barbara; 1983-1987

Ph.D. Ecology; University of Colorado, Boulder; 1991-1994

RESEARCH

Current research program focused on tritrophic interactions, biodiversity, and chemical ecology in natural and managed ecosystems; currently includes 1 senior research fellow, 10 graduate students, 6 undergraduates, 1 laboratory technician, 2 Costa Rican field assistants, 3 Ecuadorian field assistants.

Founder, Western Colorado Center for Tropical Research

Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California, Santa Cruz, 6/94-9/95

Graduate Assistant to Curator, University of Colorado Museum, Entomology Section, 1/93-6/94

Lab/field technician, Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory; 1/86-4/90

TEACHING

Professor, Tulane University, 1/01 – present; (Associate Prof, 1/01 – 1/05)

Associate Professor, Mesa State College, 8/95 - 12/00 (Assistant Prof, 8/95 – 1/00; taught 19 different courses, 12 credits/semester)

Visiting Professor, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, 8/98 - 12/98

Lecturer, University of California, Santa Cruz, 2/95 - 6/95

TALKS

Invited seminars/colloquia/symposia 1996-2007

University of Costa Rica, 1996

University of Missouri-St. Louis, 1996

University of California Santa Cruz, 1996

University of Colorado-Boulder, 1997

University of Arizona-Tucson, 1997

Organization for Tropical Studies, 1997

Colorado State University-Fort Collins, 1998

University of South Dakota, 1998

Annual Earthwatch Symposium, Harvard University, 1998

Boise State University, 1999

East Carolina University, 1999

Boston University, 1999

Organization for Tropical Studies, 1999

Entomological Society of America, 1999

Ecological Society of America, 1999

Lepidopterists' Society, 1999

Colorado Native Plant Society, 1999

Organization for Tropical Studies, Costa Rica, 2001

University of New Orleans, 2001

Tulane University Health Sciences Center, E-hormone symposium, 2002

Auburn University, 2002

University of Southern Mississippi, 2002

Organization for Tropical Studies, Costa Rica, 2002

Texas A&M, 2003

Amgen, 2003

University of Florida Gainesville, 2003

Eminent Biologist Lecture - University of Pittsburgh, 2003

Organization for Tropical Studies, Costa Rica, 2004

Southwest Research Station, 2004

Oklahoma University, 2004

Indiana University, 2005

Organization for Tropical Studies, Costa Rica, 2005

University of California Davis, 2005

Bodega Marine Laboratory, 2005

Mesa State College, 2005

Rice University, 2005

University of Kentucky (Graduate Student Select Speaker), 2005

Louisiana State University, 2005

University of Texas, Austin, 2006

University of Maryland, 2006

Wright State University, 2006

Southestern Louisiana University, 2006

Organization for Tropical Studies, Costa Rica, 2007

Contributed papers, 1996-2007

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 1996

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 1997

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 1998

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 1999

Rocky Mountain Population Biologists, Annual Meeting, 1999

Entomological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 1999

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 2000

Entomological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 2001

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 2002

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 2003

International Entomophagous Insects Meeting, 2003

International Caterpillar Biodiversity and Conservation Meeting, 2003

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 2004

Ecological Society of America, Annual Meetings, 2005

Association of Tropical Biologists, Annual Meetings, 2007

OTHER SKILLS AND INTERESTS

Fluent in Spanish

Expert technical rock climber; over 50 first ascents

Active in environmental and political issues

Statistical consultant

Poetry

PEER REVIEW AND PANEL SERVICE 1996 - 2006

Subject Editor, Biotropica (2005 – present)

National Institute of Health (2 panels)

National Science Foundation (5 panels)

National Science Foundation (63 proposals)

United States Department of Agriculture (1 panel)

United States Department of Agriculture (6 proposals)

Czech Academy of Sciences (1 proposal)

Oecologia (10 manuscripts)

Biotropica (12 manuscripts reviewed)

Ecology (12 manuscripts)

Ecology Letters (8 manuscripts)

Book chapters (6 books)

Ecological Applications (3 manuscripts)

American Naturalist (3 manuscripts)

Animal Behaviour (2 manuscripts)

DOE (2 proposals)

Journal of Tropical Ecology (2 manuscripts)

Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society (2 manuscripts)

Journal of Experimental Biology (1 manuscript)

Ecological Monographs (1 manuscript)

Naturwissenshaften (1 manuscript)

Journal of Tropical Forest Science (1 manuscript)

Functional Ecology (1 manuscript)

Conservation Biology (1 manuscript)

Canadian Journal of Zoology (1 manuscript)

Ecological Entomology (1 manuscript)

Environmental Entomology (1 manuscript)

Ecología Austral (1 manuscript)

Annals of Applied Biology (1 manuscript)

Journal of Insect Science (1 manuscript)

Soil Biology & Biochemistry (2 manuscripts)

Oikos (1 manuscript)

Nature (1 manuscript)

GRANT/FELLOWSHIP SUPPORT, 1996-2007

National Science Foundation (NSF), Chemistry, 8/07 – 7/10, $298,000 (collaborative budget)

NSF, Biotic Surveys and Inventories (BSI), 9/07 – 8/10, $500,000 (collaborative budget)

Tulane University Research Enhancement, 5/07-6/08, $85,000

National Institute for Climate Change Research (NICCR), 6/07-5/12, $1,250,000 (CoPI with Tornquist and Chambers; renewed yearly)

NSF, Ecology, 8/06 – 7/09, $293,000 (CoPI with D. Bowers; awarded to University of Colorado)

NSF, Ecology (SGER), 2/06 – 2/07, $60,000

NSF, Dissertation Improvement, 5/05 – 5/07, (for graduate student, M. Fincher) $9,900

National Geographic, 9/05 – 10/06, $25,000 (awarded directly to PI)

NSF, BSI, 8/04 – 7/07, $415,000 (collaborative budget, includes supplements)

NSF, Ecology 5/04 – 4/07, $345,000 (collaborative budget, includes supplements)

NICCR, 9/04 – 8/07, $320,000 (with supplements)

USDA, 9/02 – 5/04, $79,000

Louisiana BOR (equipment grant with T. Bianchi), 1/02 – 1/03, $101,000

Louisiana BOR (graduate student fellowship grant with D. Heins) 9/04 – 5/08, $80,000

NSF, Ecology, 9/00 - 8/02, $183,000

OTS, 10/98, 6/03, $15,000

Earthwatch Institute, 8/96 - 12/99, $100,000 (awarded diretly to PI)

Earthwatch Institute, 8/00 - 12/03, $140,000 (awarded diretly to PI)

Earthwatch Institute, 1/03 – 12/07, $180,000 (awarded diretly to PI)

Colorado OSC, 7/98 - 6/00, $33,000

Lathrop Agricultural Fund, 4/98 - 12/00, $35,000

National Geographic, 8/96 - 7/97, $20,000

Mellon, 7/96 - 10/96, $5,000

NSF REU, 6/96 - 9/96, $4,800

Small grants, 8/96 – 5/00, $90,000

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Dyer, L.A., M.S. Singer, J.T. Lill, J.O. Stireman III, G.L. Gentry, R.J. Marquis, R.E. Ricklefs, H.F. Greeney, D.L. Wagner, H.C. Morais, I.R. Diniz, T.A. Kursar, and P.D. Coley. 2007. Host specificity of Lepidoptera in tropical and temperate forests. Nature 448:696-699.

Dyer, L.A. and D.K. Letourneau. 2007. Determinants of lichen diversity in a rainforest understory. Biotropica 39:525-539.

Dyer, L.A. 2007. The ecology of tri-trophic interactions in the tropics. In: Carson, W.P. and S.A. Schnitzer (editors). Tropical Forest Community Ecology. Blackwell Science, Oxford, UK.

Dyer, L.A. and R.E. Forkner. 2007. Why are agroecosystems green? Ecology 88:1606-1607.

Armstrong, M., Berkowitz, A.R., Dyer, L.A. and J. Taylor. 2007. Understanding why students underrepresented in ecology pursue ecology careers: a preliminary case study of 39 African American students. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. In press.

Dyer, L.A. 2007. Do not go gentle into that tropical night. In: Adams, R. (ed.). Reflections by Moonlight. University Press of Colorado. In press.

Pearson, C.V. and L.A. Dyer. 2006. Trophic diversity in two grassland ecosystems. Journal of Insect Science 6:23.

Stireman III, J.O., L.A. Dyer, D.H. Janzen, M.S. Singer, J.T. Lill, R.J. Marquis, R.E. Ricklefs, G.L. Gentry, W. Hallwachs, P.D. Coley, J.A. Barone, H.F. Greeney, H. Connahs, P. Barbosa, H.C. Morais, and I.R. Diniz. 2005. Climatic unpredictability and caterpillar parasitism: implications of global warming. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 102:17384-17387.

Dyer, L.A., Matlock, R.M., Cherzad, D., and R. O’Malley. 2005. Predicting successful biological control in banana plantations. Environmental Entomology 34:403-409.

Stireman, J.O. III, Dyer, L.A., and R.M. Matlock. 2005. Top-down forces in managed versus unmanaged habitats. Pages 303-323 in: Barbosa, P. and I. Castellanos (eds.). Ecology of Predator-Prey Interactions. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Letourneau, D.K. and L.A. Dyer. 2005. Multi-trophic interactions and biodiversity: beetles, ants, caterpillars, and plants. Pages 366-385 in: Burslem,D.F.R.P.; Pinard,M.A.; Hartley,S.E. (eds.). Biotic Interactions in the Tropics: Their Role in the Maintenance of Species Diversity. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.

Irschick, D., Dyer, L.A., and T. Sherry. 2005. Phylogenetic methods for studying specialization. Oikos 110:404-408.

Dyer, L.A., Dodson, C.D., Letourneau, D.K., Tobler, M.A., Hsu, A., and J.O. Stireman III. 2004. Ecological causes and consequences of variation in defensive chemistry of a neotropical shrub. Ecology 85:2795-2803.

Letourneau, D.K., Dyer, L.A., and G. Vega. 2004. Indirect effects of top predator on rain forest understory plant community. Ecology 85:2144-2152.

Dyer, L.A. and A.N. Palmer. 2004. Piper. A model genus for studies of evolution, chemical ecology, and trophic interactions. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Boston.

Dyer, L.A., Dodson, C.D., and J. Richards. 2004. Isolation, synthesis, and evolutionary ecology of Piper amides. Pages 117-139 in: Dyer, L.A. and A.N. Palmer (eds.). Piper. A model genus for studies of evolution, chemical ecology, and trophic interactions. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Boston.

Dyer, L.A., Gentry, G. and M. Tobler. 2004. Fitness consequences of herbivory: impacts on asexual reproduction of tropical rainforest understory plants. Biotropica 36:68-73.

Dyer, L.A., Dodson, C.D., Gentry, G. 2003. A bioassay for insect deterrent compounds found in plant and animal tissues. Phytochemical Analysis 14:381-388.

Dyer, L.A. and J.O. Stireman III. 2003. Community-wide trophic cascades and other indirect interactions in an agricultural community. Basic and Applied Ecology 4:423-432.

Dyer, L.A., Dodson, C.D., Stireman, J.O., Tobler, M.A., Smilanich, A.M., Fincher, R.M., and D.K. Letourneau. 2003. Synergistic effects of three Piper amides on generalist and specialist herbivores. Journal of Chemical Ecology 29:2499-2514.

Dyer, L.A. and D.K. Letourneau. 2003. Top-down and bottom-up diversity cascades in detrital versus living food webs. Ecology Letters 6:60-68.

Gentry, G.L. and L.A. Dyer. 2002. On the conditional nature of neotropical caterpillar defenses against their natural enemies. Ecology 83:3108-3119.

Dyer, L.A. 2002. Jungle phobias. Earthwatch 21:10-11.

Dyer, L.A. 2002. A quantification of predation rates, indirect positive effects on plants, and foraging variation of the giant tropical ant, Paraponera clavata. Journal of Insect Science 2.18:1-7.

Dyer, L.A. and G.L. Gentry. 2002. Caterpillars and parasitoids of a tropical lowland wet forest. http://www.caterpillars.org.

Dyer, L.A. and N. Bishop. 2001. In defense of caterpillars. Natural History 110:42-47.

Dyer, L.A. and P.D. Coley. 2001. Latitudinal gradients in tri-trophic interactions. Pages 67-88 in: Tscharntke, T. and Hawkins, B.A. (editors). Multitrophic Level Interactions. Cambridge University Press.

Dyer, L.A., Dodson, C.D., Beihoffer, J. and D.K. Letourneau. 2001. Trade offs in anti-herbivore defenses in Piper cenocladum: ant mutualists versus plant secondary metabolites. J. Chem. Ecol 27:581-592.

Dodson, C.D., Dyer, L.A., Searcy, J., Wright, Z., and D.K. Letourneau. 2000. Cenocladamide, a dihydropyridone alkaloid from Piper cenocladum. Phytochemistry 53:51-54.

Dyer, L.A., Williams, W., Dodson, C., and D.K. Letourneau. 2000. A commensalism between Piper marginatum Jacq. (Piperaceae) and a coccinellid beetle. Journal of Tropical Ecology 15:841-846.

Dyer, L.A. 2000. Cybernetic insect outbreaks. Ecology 81:3262-3263.

Dyer, L.A. and D.K. Letourneau. 1999. Trophic cascades in a complex, terrestrial community. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 96:5072-5076.

Dyer, L.A. and D.K. Letourneau. 1999. Relative strengths of top-down and bottom-up forces in a tropical forest community. Oecologia 119:265-274.

Dyer, L.A. and Gentry, G. 1999. Larval defensive mechanisms as predictors of successful biological control. Ecological Applications 9:402-408.

Letourneau, D.K. and L.A. Dyer. 1998. Density patterns of Piper ant-plants and associated arthropods: Top predator cascades in a terrestrial system? Biotropica 30:162-169.

Letourneau, D.K. and L.A. Dyer. 1998. Experimental manipulations in lowland tropical forest demonstrate top-down cascades through four trophic levels. Ecology 79:1678-1687.

Dyer, L.A. 1997. Effectiveness of caterpillar defenses against three species of invertebrate predators. Journal of Research on the Lepidoptera 34:48-68.

Dyer, L.A. and M.D. Bowers. 1996. The importance of sequestered iridoid glycosides as a defense against an ant predator. Journal of Chem. Ecology 22:1527-1539.

Folgarait, P.J., L.A. Dyer, R.J. Marquis, and H.E. Braker. 1996. Leaf-cutting ant (Atta cephalotes) preferences for five native tropical plantation tree species growing under different light conditions. Ent. Exp. et App. 80:521-531.

Dyer, L.A. 1995. Tasty generalists and nasty specialists? A comparative study of antipredator mechanisms in tropical lepidopteran larvae. Ecology 76:1483-1496.

De la Fuente, M.A., L.A. Dyer, and M.D. Bowers. 1994. The iridoid glycoside, catalpol, as a deterrent to the predator Camponotus floridanus (Formicidae). Chemoecology 5/6:13-18.

Dyer, L.A. and T. Floyd. 1993. Determinants of predation on phytophagous insects: the importance of diet breadth. Oecologia 96:575-582.

REFERENCES

Doctoral Advisor:	Postdoctoral Advisor:
Dr. Deane Bowers Dept. of EPO Biology, C.B. 334 University of Colorado Boulder, CO 80309 (303) 492-5530 bowers@spot.colorado.edu	Dr. Deborah Letourneau Environmental Studies University of California Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (408) 459-2860 dletour@cats.ucsc.edu
Collaborator:	Collaborator:
Dr. Phyllis Coley 257 South 1400 East Biology Department University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0840 coley@biology.utah.edu	Dr. Pedro Barbosa Department of Entomology Plant Sciences Building University of Maryland College Park, MD USA 20742 (301) 405-3946 pbarbosa@umd.edu
Collaborator:	Collaborator:
Dr. Craig Dodson Chemistry Department Mesa State College Grand Junction, Colorado 81501 (970) 248-1595 cddodson@mesastate.edu	Dr. Ted Floyd Editor, Birding, ABA P.O. Box 7974 Boulder, Colorado 80306-7974 (775) 348-2644 tedfloyd@aba.org