Dr Scott J. Davidson is a Lecturer in Ecosystem Resilience at the University of Plymouth. Scott completed his undergraduate degree in Geography at the University of Dundee in 2012 and his MSc in Polar and Alpine Change at the University of Sheffield in 2013. In 2017 he was awarded his PhD from the University of Sheffield, looking at greenhouse gas emissions from arctic tundra landscapes in Alaska. Scott’s research is focused on the resilience of peatland and wetland ecosystems to both climate change and disturbance regimes. His research combines field research, laboratory analysis, remote sensing and modelling approaches to better constrain spatio-temporal dynamics of wetland ecosystems. He has nearly a decade’s experience working in northern latitude ecosystems in both Europe and North America. Since 2016, he has published over 20 publications in a variety of high impact journals with > 320 citations to date. Scott is currently the Group Lead for the Plymouth Peatland Research Group and is co-founder of PEAT: Peatland ECR Action Team, which connects early career peatland scientists globally to develop a diverse, inclusive, and supportive research community.
CV
PhD Students
Kate Vogiatzis (2019-2023) – Long-term recovery of tropical forest carbon and diversity after fire and logging (Lead supervisor: Dr Sophie Fauset)
Natasha Underwood (2021-2024) – Ecological and biogeochemical benefits of environmental enhancements at Moorlinch on the Somerset Levels (Lead supervisor: Dr Paul Lunt)
Izadora Kervin (2023-2029: Part Time) – Developing capacity in ex situ conservation for threatened bryophytes (Lead supervisor: Dr Jennifer Rowntree)
Georgie Freer-Carmichael (2023-2026) – Assessment of the co-benefits of Natural Flood Management (NFM) interventions (Lead supervisor: Dr Paul Lunt)
MSc students
Jamie Huntress (2022-2023) – Improving our understanding of carbon dynamics in forested wetland ecosystems – belowground carbon stocks
Caitlin Richards (2022-2023) – Improving our understanding of carbon dynamics in forested wetland ecosystems – carbon flux measurements
Robert Jones (2022-2023) – Understanding peatland vegetation recovery post-wildfire using open-source remote sensing
Eleanor Wiltshire (2022-2023) – Understanding impact of beaver on wetland greenhouse gas emissions
Undergraduate students
Emma Pitchfork (2022-2023) – Morphological traits in sphagnum species growing in contrasting wetland ecosystems
Leah Donnelly (2022-2023) – Soil organic carbon characteristics in a wet woodland ecosystem
Marija Nore (2022-2023) – Bioindicators of temperate rainforest across Dartmoor, UK: a study on lichen populations
Completed students
Meg Schmidt MSc (2019-2021) (University of Waterloo) – Impacts of seismic line restoration on CO2 and CH4 fluxes and vegetation biomass
Rosie Oliver (2021-2022) – Soil P indices in the Somerset Levels and Moors: a technical evaluation of their value in predicting environmental pollution risk
Scott J. Davidson 