Plant Quality Mediates the Response of Disease to Global Environmental Change By Leslie Elizabeth Decker A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology) in The University of Michigan 2018 Doctoral Committee: Professor Mark D. Hunter, Chair Associate Professor Meghan A. Duffy Associate Professor Inés Ibáñez Professor Knute J. Nadelhoffer ÓLeslie E. Decker 2018
[email protected] ORCID ID: 0000-0003-1325-052X Dedication To my family: Christa, Bill and Kayleigh. Thank you for always picking up the phone. ii Acknowledgements Many people have guided, encouraged and inspired me throughout this process. I am endlessly grateful for this network of support. First, I must thank my advisor, Mark, for all of the excellent advice, unwavering confidence, and high expectations he continually provided to and set for me. My committee members, Meghan Duffy, Inés Ibáñez, and Knute Nadelhoffer, have also been fantastic sources of wisdom, inspiration, and encouragement. Thank you all so much for your time and knowledge. None of this research would have been possible without the work of many fantastic and talented undergraduate research technicians. Abby Potts, Abbey Soule, Riley Peterson, Yitong Yang, Jordan McMahon, Kendall Schissler, Jackie Kristofik, Kathleen Moriarty, Brennan Shilling, Skye Huerta, and Graham Bevier spent countless hours feeding caterpillars, picking roots, grinding plant tissue and staring at butterfly wings. I’d like to thank the members of the Hunter Lab, past and present, for their helpful discussions, constructive comments and general willingness to support each other. Specifically, I must thank Amanda Meier, Hillary Streit, Katherine Crocker, Kristel Sanchez, Anne Elise Stratton, Callie Chappell, Johanna Nifosi, Holly Andrews, and Leiling Tao.