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I received my BSc (Botany with a minor in Ecology), MSc and PhD (Botany) from the University of Guelph. I then held a limited limited-term appointment teaching Ecology, and Introductory Biology at Laurier, a Post-doctoral Research Associate position in the Department of Biological Sciences, Southeastern Louisiana University (SELU) in Hammond Louisiana and a faculty position in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of North Texas.
In partnership with industry, government, non-profit organizations, and conservation authorities our research on urban and natural watershed issues is broadly focussed on identifying the effects of anthropogenic stressors on wetland plants communities and determining the capacity of wetland plants and wetland plant communities to mitigate the effects of human population growth.
Specific areas of interest include contaminant effects on plants, understanding relationships between plants and beneficial soil dwelling symbionts (arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, rhizosphere bacteria), evaluating wetland restoration and creation efforts, identifying causes of rarity and invasiveness in wetland vegetation, and optimizing constructed wetland function.
There are several opportunities to get involved in our research. Typical routes include MSc/PhD supervision but there are also opportunities for undergraduate involvement through enrollment in Directed Studies (BI495) or Thesis (BI499). If you are interested in our research and would like to join our research group as an undergraduate or graduate student please contact me. kestevens@wlu.ca
Bannister, J.W., L.K. Clairmont, K.J. Stevens and R.M. Slawson. 2021. Exposure to elevated nutrient load results in structural and functional changes to microbial communities associated with riparian wetland plants Phalaris arundinaceae and Veronica anagallis-aquatica. Rhizosphere 18:100350.
Sesin, V., Davy, C.M., Stevens, K.J., Hamp, R., Freeland, J.R. 2021. Glyphosate toxicity to native nontarget macrophytes following three different routes of incidental exposure. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management 17:597-613. article
Sesin, V., Freeland, J. R., Gilbert, J. M., Stevens, K.J., & Davy, C. M. (2022). Legacies of invasive plant management: effects of leaching from glyphosate-treated and untreated plants on germination and early growth of native macrophytes. Biological Invasions, 1-20. article
Clairmont L, Coristine A, Stevens K. and Slawson R. 2020. Factors influencing the persistence of enteropathogenic bacteria in wetland habitats and implications for water quality. J Appl Microbiol. https://doi.org/10.1111/jam.14955
Clairmont K, Stevens K, Slawson R. 2020. Differential response of rhizoplane, rhizosphere and water wetland bacterial communities to short-term phosphorus loading in lab scale mesocosms. Applied Soil Ecology 154: 103598,
Clairmont L, Stevens K and Slawson R. 2019. Site-specific differences in microbial community structure and function within the rhizosphere and rhizoplane of wetland plants is plant species dependent. Rhizosphere 9: 56-68.
Wall CB and Stevens KJ. 2015. Assessing wetland mitigation efforts using standing vegetation and seed bank community structure in neighboring natural and compensatory wetlands in north-central Texas. Wetlands Ecology and Management. 23: 149-166.
Twanabasu B, Stevens KJ, Venables B and Sears W. 2013. The effects of triclosan on arbuscular mycorrhizal spore germination, hyphal growth, and hyphal branching in Glomus intraradices. Science of the Total Environment 454–455: 51-60
Twanabasu B, Smith C, Stevens KJ, Venables B and Sears W. 2013. Triclosan inhibits arbuscular mycorrhizal colonization in three wetland plants. Science of the Total Environment 447: 450-457.
Alahmady KK, Atkinson S and Stevens KJ. 2013. Effect of hydraulic detention times, plant age and water depth on the performance of flow-through duckweed bioremediation system. Journal of Environmental Engineering 139: 160-166
Zarate R, Schulwitz S, Stevens KJ and Venables B. 2012. Bioconcentration of triclosan, methyl-triclosan, and triclocarban in the plants and sediments of a constructed wetland. Chemosphere 88: 323-329.
BI 363: Plant Ecology
BI 368: Plants: Form and Function
WASC 304: Wetland Science
BI 495: Directed Studies
BI 499: Thesis