Bret D. Elderd

Ronald and Denise Alvarez Professor Bret Elderd
SEE Division

PhD: University of California, Santa Cruz, 2002

Phone: 225-578-6733
Lab Phone: 225-578-8047
Office: A206 Life Sciences Annex
Lab: 27a/27b/223/232 Life Sciences Building & 350 Life Sciences Annex
E-mail: elderd@lsu.edu 

elderd lab

Area of Interest

My research focuses on examining how disease outbreaks, community structure, and stochasticity influence population dynamics by combining field-based experimental and theoretical modeling approaches. I'm particularly interested in:

  • Virus transmission and insect outbreaks
  • Variability in disease transmission
  • Disturbance and riparian community structure
  • Population viability and rare species management

If you're interested in joining my research group, please email me. I'm seeking both students and post-docs to work on projects involving either population or community ecology. In particular, I take a quantitative approach to ecological questions and would require that my students have some interest or training in mathematical ecology/modeling. While students may work on projects closely affiliated with my research, I encourage them to seek out their own research identity.

Selected Publications

complete list of publications

Elderd, B.D. and Miller, T.E.X. 2016. Quantifying demographic uncertainty: Bayesian methods for integral projection models. Ecological Monographs (pages 125–144)

Parker, B.J., Elderd, B.D., and G. Dwyer. 2010. Host behaviour and exposure risk in an insect-pathogen interaction. Journal of Animal Ecology 79:863-870.

Elderd, B.D., J. Dushoff, and G. Dwyer. 2008. Host-pathogen interactions, insect outbreaks and natural selection for disease resistance. The American Naturalist 172:829-842.

Grear, J. and B.D. Elderd. 2008. Performance of partial life cycle models when survivorship varies with age. Oikos. 117:1587-1593.

Elderd, B.D. and M.P. Nott. 2008. Changing landscapes, changing demography: An individual-based model for the endangered Cape Sable seaside sparrow (Ammodramus maritimus mirabilis). Journal of Applied Ecology. 45:258-268.

Elderd, B.D., V. Dukic, and G. Dwyer. 2006. Quantifying uncertainty in predictions of public-health responses to bioterrorism and emerging diseases. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA. 103:15693-15697.

Elderd, B.D. and D.F. Doak. 2006. Abiotic and biotic impacts of disturbance on plant population dynamics: Flooding, herbivory, and Mimulus guttatus. Journal of Ecology, 94: 656-669.

Elderd, B.D. 2006. Disturbance mediated trophic interactions and plant performance. Oecologia, 147: 261-271.

Elderd, B.D. 2003. Changing flow regimes: Its impacts on riparian vegetation and a common riparian species, Mimulus guttatus. Ecological Applications, 13: 1610-1625.