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David L. Gorchov

Natural Areas Committee

The Natural Areas Committee, chaired by Dr. David Gorchov, reports to the President of the University and is responsible for oversight and management of the Natural Areas.

Biographical Information

Dave Gorchov studies plant population ecology and community ecology. One major focus of Dr. Gorchov and his graduate and undergraduate students is the invasion of forests by exotic plant species. Current projects investigate interactions between invasive shrubs, especially Amur honeysuckle, and overabundant white-tailed deer. These interactions include apparent competition, where invasive shrubs sustain populations of deer high enough to negatively impact native plants, and facilitation, where the same shrubs protect tree seedlings from deer browse. They also investigate the importance of the factors that shape the invasion process, particularly the relative importance of community invasibility and propagule pressure in initiating new invasions. For invasibility they focus on biotic resistance from generalist herbivores and canopy gaps caused by tree-falls and ash mortality due to emerald ash borer. Aspects of propagule pressure they are investigating include landscape connectivity and seed dispersal by deer and birds. Dr. Gorchov’s current research projects are in Ohio, although past projects were carried out in Maryland, Mexico, and Peru.

Selected Publications

• Koon, K.R., Michael R. Hughes, and D.L. Gorchov. 2024. Tree regeneration and herbaceous plants in tracts managed for white-tailed deer in the Cincinnati Parks system.  Northeastern Naturalist 31: 382-401.
• Donoso, M.U., **H. Leonard, and D.L. Gorchov. 2024. Long-term interactive impacts of the invasive shrub, Lonicera maackii, and white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus, on a deciduous forest understory" Invasive Plant Science and Management 17:25-36. 
• Hoven BM, Knight KS, Peters VE, Gorchov D.L. 2022. Woody seedling community responses to deer herbivory, introduced shrubs, and ash mortality depend on canopy competition and site wetness.  Forest Ecology and Management .
• Gorchov, D.L., B. Blossey, K.M. Averill, et al. 2021. Differential and interacting impacts of invasive plants and white-tailed deer in eastern U.S. forests.  Biological Invasions 23: 2711-2727. 
• *Deardorff, J.L., and D.L. Gorchov. 2021. Beavers cut, but do not prefer, an invasive shrub, Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii). Biological Invasions .
• Hoven, B.M., K.S. Knight, V.E. Peters, and D.L. Gorchov. 2019. Release and suppression: forest layer responses to emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis)-caused ash death Annals of Forest Science.  doi.org/10.1007/s13595-019-0895-y. 
• **Haffey, C.M. and D.L. Gorchov. 2019. The effects of deer and an invasive shrub, Lonicera maackii, on forest understory plant composition. :237-247. doi: 10.1080/11956860.2019.1582195
• Gorchov, D.L. 2019. High winter temperatures facilitate invasion of Tradescantia fluminensis in the Apalachicola River floodplain. Southeastern Naturalist 18: 76-98.
• *Wright, G.A., **I. Juska, and D.L. Gorchov. 2019. White-tailed deer browse preference for an invasive shrub, Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii), depends on woody species composition. Invasive Plant Science and Management. 12: 11–21.doi: 10.1017/inp.2018.30.
• Emsweller, L.N.*, D.L. Gorchov, Q. Zhang**, A.G. Driscoll*, and M.R. Hughes. 2018. Seed rain and disturbance impact recruitment of invasive plants in upland forest. Invasive Plant Science and Management 11: 69-81.
• Peebles-Spencer, J.R.*,C.M. Haffey**, and D.L. Gorchov. 2018. Browse by white-tailed deer decreases cover and growth of the invasive shrub, Lonicera maackii. American Midland Naturalist 179:68–77.
• Blossey, B. and D.L. Gorchov. 2017. Introduction to the Special Issue: Ungulates and invasive species: quantifying impacts and understanding interactions. AoB PLANTS 9: plx063; doi: 10.1093/aobpla/plx063.
• Hoven B.M.*, D.L. Gorchov, K.S. Knight, V.E. Peters. 2017. The effect of emerald ash borer-caused tree mortality on the invasive shrub Amur honeysuckle and their combined effects on tree and shrub seedlings. Biological Invasions 19:2813-2836. 
• Peebles-Spencer*, J.R. D.L. Gorchov, and T.O. Crist. 2017. Effects of an invasive shrub, Lonicera maackii, and a generalist herbivore, white-tailed deer, on forest floor plant community composition. Forest Ecology and Management 402: 204-212.
• Peebles-Spencer, J.R. and D.L. Gorchov. 2017. Are native tree seedlings facilitated by an invasive shrub where white-tailed deer are abundant? Natural Areas Journal 37: 540-548.
• Higham, M.**, B.M. Hoven, D.L. Gorchov, and K.S. Knight. 2017. Patterns of coarse woody debris in hardwood forests across a chronosequence of ash mortality due to the Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis). Natural Areas Journal 37: 540-548.
• Martinod, K.L.* and D.L. Gorchov. 2017. White-tailed deer browse on an invasive shrub with extended leaf phenology meets assumptions of an apparent competition hypothesis. AoB PLANTS 9: plx006; doi:10.1093/aobpla/plx006
• Driscoll, A.G.*, N.F. Angeli, D.L. Gorchov, Z. Jiang, J. Zhang, and **C. Freeman. 2016. The effect of treefall gaps on the spatial distribution of three invasive plants in a mature upland forest in Maryland. Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society 143: 349-358.
• Rondon, X.*, D.L. Gorchov, R. B. Noble Jr., and F. Cornejo. 2015. Aboveground carbon dynamics following strip clear-cutting in the Peruvian Amazon. Ecological Research 30: 693-703.
• Guiden, P.W.*, D.L. Gorchov, C. Nielsen, and E. Schauber. 2015. Seed dispersal of an invasive shrub, Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii), by white-tailed deer in a fragmented agricultural-forest matrix. Plant Ecology 216:939–950. DOI 10.1007/s11258-015-0480-x
• S.S. Pfeiffer** and D.L. Gorchov. 2015. Effects of the invasive shrub Lonicera maackii on soil water content in eastern deciduous forest. American Midland Naturalist. 173:38–46.
• Gorchov, D.L. S.M. Castellano**, and D.A. Noe. 2014. Long-distance dispersal and diffusion in the invasion of Lonicera maackii. Invasive Plant Science and Management. 7:464–472
• Gorchov, D.L., M.C. Henry, and *P.A. Frank. 2014. Invasion of an exotic shrub into forested stands in an agricultural matrix. Invasive Plant Science and Management 7: 336-344.
• Gorchov, D.L., X. J. Rondon**, F. Cornejo, R. L. Schaefer, J. M. Janosko, and G. Slutz. 2013. Edge effects in recruitment of trees, and relationship to seed dispersal patterns, in cleared strips in the Peruvian Amazon. Ecological Research 28: 53-65.
• Castellano, S.M.** and D.L. Gorchov. 2013. Using a stable isotope to label seeds and seedlings of an invasive shrub, Lonicera maackii. Invasive Plant Science and Management 6:112-117
• Johnston, S.E., M.C. Henry, and D.L. Gorchov. 2012. Using Advanced Land Imager (ALI) and Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) for the detection of the invasive shrub Lonicera maackii in southwestern Ohio forests. GIScience & Remote Sensing 49: 450–462.

Courses Taught

• BIO 155 Field Botany
• BIO 433W Field Ecology
• IES 275 Principles of Environmental Science

Links to Other Directories

Institute for the Environment and Sustainability

Natural Areas