Freshwater Ecology Lab

Carri LeRoy has been a member of the faculty at The Evergreen State College since 2006. She completed her Ph.D. in Biology (Freshwater Ecology) in 2005 at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ and a Masters in Liberal Studies (Environmental Education) in 2001.
Carri is a freshwater ecologist and her research focuses on how riparian forests interact with streams and provide energy through leaf litterfall. Her research has shown that both the species diversity and genetic diversity of these litter inputs can affect in-stream leaf litter decomposition rates, aquatic fungi and aquatic macroinvertebrates.
Her current research focuses on how leaf litter and salmon carcass inputs interact, what drives global patterns of leaf litter decomposition, how streams have developed in the 41 years since the eruption of Mt St Helens, and how endophyte infections can alter phytochemistry and leaf litter dynamics. Other topics she is interested in include: ecological genetics, sustainable practices, sci-art linkages, and issues of women and underrepresented groups in the sciences.
New Blog site!
Check out our new undergraduate student-centered Blog! – LeRoy Leaf Litter (L3) Lab