People

Joshua J. Puhlick, Ph.D.

Silviculturist

In September 2021, Josh joined the Jones Center as a silviculturist and plans to build on a long tradition of research on ecological forestry at the Center. He received his M.S. (2011) in Forestry from Northern Arizona University and his Ph.D. (2015) in Forest Resources from the University of Maine. Josh’s research at NAU focused on factors influencing ponderosa pine regeneration in the southwestern USA. At the University of Maine, his research included comparing carbon stocks and accumulation among different forest management treatments.

R. Scott Taylor, M.S.

Senior Research Associate II

Scott is a Senior Research Associate II in the Silviculture Lab. He also serves as a liaison with NEON and maintains supervisory responsibilities for the Center’s Laboratory facilities. Scott’s research interests have included nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems and the use of eddy covariance techniques to understand how disturbance and soil moisture interact to regulate carbon dynamics. In September 2021, Scott transitioned to managing a new lab at the Jones Center with Dr. Joshua Puhlick with a focus on Ecological Silviculture. Scott holds a B.S. in Agronomy and Soils (2000) and an M.S. in Crop Physiology (2002) from Auburn University.

João Campôa

Ph.D. Graduate Student

João is a Fulbright Scholar investigating the impact of abiotic and biotic disturbances in pine forests. As part of his work, he is collecting tree cores at Ichauway and in New Jersey. João is a Ph.D. fellow in the Environment and Sustainability program at NOVA School of Science and Technology in Portugal.

Ian Goldberg

M.S. Graduate Student

Ian started his studies at the University of Missouri in September 2022. He conducted fieldwork at Ichauway from January to August 2023. His research focus is on silvicultural strategies for promoting longleaf pine recruitment in multi-aged stands.

Gabriel Nyen

M.S. Graduate Student

Gabe started his studies at Mississippi State University in September 2022. He measured overstory tree attributes, inventoried longleaf pine regeneration, and clipped groundcover plants from sampling frames at Ichauway during the summer of 2023. His research focuses on silvicultural strategies for converting longleaf pine plantations to multi-aged longleaf pine stands.

JaBryan Pegues

M.S. Graduate Student

JaBryan started his studies at Mississippi State University in September 2023. His research involves quantifying site quality of longleaf pine plantations. He will also determine the growth efficiency of trees within those same plantations.