Dr. Andrew Barton, Professor of Biology at the University of Maine at Farmington (UMF), will give a presentation entitled, “Return of the Pyrocene: Wildfires in Your Backyard!”

Dr. Barton will draw on his research on forest response to changing climate and wildfire in the mountains of the southwestern United States. The event is free and open to the public. A reception will follow in Pearson Hall.

The Wilson Lecture will also be livestreamed on the Hefner Museum YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/@hefnermuseumofnaturalhisto2063?si=vfh7Du0j_ofFi7QC

Dr. Barton’s visit is sponsored by the Roger E. Wilson Lecture in Botany Fund, which was named for the former ecologist in Miami's Department of Botany and established in his memory by family, friends, and colleagues

. This year the Lecture is co-sponsored by Miami’s Department of Biology, College of Arts and Science, the Graduate School, the Institute for the Environment and Sustainability, the W.S. Turrell Herbarium, and Project Dragonfly, as well as by Three Valley Conservation Trust and the Southwest Ohio Woodland Association.

Dr. Barton completed his MS at the University of Florida, and his Ph.D. in Biology at the University of Michigan. He is the author of the award-winning book, The Changing Nature of the Maine Woods, and co-author of Ecology and Recovery of Old-growth Forests in Eastern North America, as well as over 50 scientific journal articles. He co-founded the Michigan National Forest Watch and the UMF Sustainable Campus Coalition. He serves on several advisory groups for the state of Maine, including the Science Advisory Committee for the Ecological Reserves System. His research has been supported by grants from NASA, the National Park Service, and the National Science Foundation, among others. On Thursday, April 10, Dr. Barton will also give the Biology Department seminar at 4:15 pm in 218 Pearson Hall. That presentation is entitled, “From Individuals to Ecosystems: Impacts and Recovery of Arizona Sky Island Forests after Wildfire.

” For those wishing to meet with Dr. Barton during his visit, please contact David Gorchov in the Department of Biology at GorchoDL@miamioh.edu.