Western Carolina University

Department of Biology
Associate Professor

Phone: 828-227-3663
Fax: 828-227-7066
Email: collinsb@email.wcu.edu
Office Address: Natural Science Building 132

Education:

• Ph.D., Botany, Rutgers University, 1985
• M.S., Botany, Rutgers University, 1979
• B.S., Botany, University of Kentucky, 1977

Courses Taught:

• BIOL 304: “General Ecology”
• BIOL 433/533: “Ecological Co-Adaptations”
• BIOL 436/536: “Physiological and Ecosystem Ecology”
• BIOL 437/537: “Community and Landscape Dynamics”

Recent Publications:

• Greenberg, Cathryn, Beverly Collins, Frank Thompson III (Eds.).  2011.  Sustaining young forest communities: ecology and management of early successional habitats in the central hardwood region, USA.  180p. http://www.springer.com/life+sciences/ecology/book/978-94-007-1619-3
• Schnurr, J. and B. Collins. 2007.  Influences on oak and pine establishment with time-since-fire in sandhills longleaf pine forests. Southeastern Naturalist, in press.
• Dilustro, J., B. Collins and L. Duncan. 2006.  Land use history effects in mixed pine hardwood forests at Fort Benning.  Journal of Torrey Botanical Society 133:460-467.
• Battaglia, L. and B. Collins. 2006. Linking hydroperiod and vegetation response in Carolina Bay wetlands.  Plant Ecology 184: 173-185.
• Collins, B., P. Minchin, J. Dilustro, and L. Duncan. 2006. Land use effects on groundlayer composition and regeneration of mixed pine hardwood forests in the Fall Line Sandhills, S.E. USA  Forest Ecology and Management 226: 181-188. 
• Collins, B., R. Sharitz, K. Madden, and J. Dilustro. 2006. Comparison of sandhills and mixed pine hardwood communities at Fort Benning, Georgia.  Southeastern Naturalist 5:92-102.
• Holladay, C.-A., C. Kwit, and B. Collins. 2006. Woody regeneration in and around aging southern bottomland hardwood forest gaps: effects of herbivory and gap size.  Forest Ecology and Management 223:218-225.
• Lejeunesse, S. J. J. Dilustro, R. R. Sharitz, and B. S. Collins. 2006. Ground layer carbon and nitrogen cycling and legume nitrogen inputs in a frequently burned mixed pine forest.  American Journal of Botany 93: 84-93.
• Collins, B. S., R. R. Sharitz, and D. P. Coughlin. 2005. Elemental composition of native wetland plants in constructed mesocosm treatment wetlands.  Bioresource Technology 96:937-948.
• Dilustro, J.J., B. Collins, L. Duncan, and C. Crawford. 2005. Moisture and soil texture effects on soil CO2 efflux components in southeastern mixed pine forests. Forest Ecology and Management 204:85-95.
• Collins, B., J. V. McArthur, and R. Sharitz. 2004. Plant effects on microbial assemblages and remediation of acidic coal pile runoff in mesocosm treatment wetlands.  Ecological Engineering 23:107-115
• Battaglia, L. B. Collins, and R. Sharitz. 2004. Do regeneration strategies of bottomland hardwoods predict field distributions?  Forest Ecology and Management 198:15-30.
• Battaglia, L., B. Collins, and P. Weisenhorn. 2004. Regeneration in bottomland forests:  recruitment and persistence of Quercus michauxii in and around aging canopy gaps.  Can. J. For. Res. 34:1359-1364 

Research Presentations:

• Collins, B. (2006) Multiple land use effects on upland forest vegetation of a heterogeneous military site.  EPA Ecotoxicology Conference, 23-27 April, Cincinnati.
• Collins, B. (May 2005). Land use effects on plant community dynamics at Fort Benning, GA.  Eastern Kentucky University.
• Collins, B. (18 April, 2005) Fire and tanks: Land use effects on upland mixed pine forest vegetation at Fort Benning.  Columbus State University.
• Collins, B., Rebecca R. Sharitz, Kathryn Madden, and John Dilustro (August, 2005) Comparison of sandhills and mixed pine hardwood communities at Fort Benning, Georgia.  ESA Annual Meeting, Montreal, CA.
• Collins, B., J. Dilustro, and L. Duncan (November 2005) Land management and military use effects on the ground layer of upland forests at Fort Benning.  SERDP Symposium.
• Collins, B. (January 2004) Fire and Tanks:  Land use effects on vegetation and nitrogen cycling at Fort Benning.  Drexel University.
• Dilustro, J., B. Collins, and L. Duncan (November 2004) Soil nitrogen availability in mixed pine forests of varying management, military use and soil texture.  Soil Science Society of America meeting.
• Collins, B. and L. Battaglia (April 2004) Regeneration strategies in bottomland hardwood forests.  ASB meeting, Memphis, TN.
• McLeod, K. W., B. S. Collins, and B. P. Jackson (June 2004) Impact of fly ash deposition on a bottomland/swamp forest plant community.  SWS.
• Dilustro, J., B. Collins, L. Duncan, and C. Crawford (August 2004) Soil respiration, microbial biomass, and fine root production in forests of varying soil texture.  ESA meeting, Portland, OR.