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College of Life Sciences Plant and Wildlife Sciences
St. Clair Lab
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Sam St Clair

The summers of my childhood and teenage years were spent in wilderness areas in the western US doing research with my father. We spent the summer of 1983 in the Uintas during an extremely rainy summer finishing up his dissertation project. I slept in a wet sleeping bag and ate freeze dried food for more than six weeks. We finally published the data from that project four years ago. Spending so much time in those beautiful places and being surrounded by biology filled me with curiosity and a love of the natural world. At some point I realized my Dad was getting paid to do what most people do for vacation. So many times I’ve sat under a sugar maple, aspen or Joshua tree forest, eating my lunch unable to believe I get paid to do this.

I completed my undergraduate and MS degrees at Brigham Young University, studying lichens as biomonitors of air quality. My Ph.D work focused on the impacts of soil acidification on the physiology and ecology of the eastern deciduous forest. I studied climate change impacts on the grasslands of northern California as a postdoctoral researcher. Since coming back to Utah, I have started major research projects in aspen-conifer forests and Mojave and Great Basin deserts.

I love reading, especially with my kids, and I have a fairly serious passion for mountain biking.

Contact Me:
4124 LSB Plant and Wildlife Science Department Brigham Young University Provo, Utah 84602
Phone: 801-422-5725
Email: stclair@byu.edu
Sam St Clair CV

Kainoawaianuhea Ah Quin (MS Student)

Kainoawaianuhea Ah Quin is enrolled in the Wildlife & Wildland Conservation Master's program, studying microbiome through varying plant communities and its role in facilitating plant growth. Following the completion of her B.S. in April 2021, Kainoa entered the work field with non-profit organizations focused on cultural stewardship and restoration of Hawaiʻi landscapes. Despite not enjoying school previously, Kainoa decided to return to continue learning as much as she can to become a better resource for her community in Hawaiʻi. One tip Kainoa has for anyone who reads this far is, "ʻAʻole pau ka ʻike i ka hālau hoʻokahi - not all knowledge is learned in one place." You will learn as much or more LIVING life than in a classroom. Allow yourself the humility, space, and time to learn from different environments and people.

Past MS/PhD Students

Ryan Pienaar (Ph.D 2021-2025)
Disturbance impacts on desert and forest ecosystems

Nathan Jones (M.S. 2023-2024)
Rodent and fire effects on soil processes

Sterling Kerr (M.S. 2022-2024)
Disturbance impacts on herbivory and forest succession

Noelle Zenger (M.S. 2020-2023)
Disturbance impacts on herbivory and forest succession

Devri Adams (Ph.D 2019-2023)
Megafire impacts on terrestrial systems

Brian Brown (M.S. 2019-2021) co-advised with Ben Abbott
Megafire impacts on aquatic systems

Rebekah Stanton (Ph.D. 2016-2021)
Consumer impacts on invasive grass fire cycles in deserts

Tyson Terry (M.S. Graduated April 2020)
Overcoming abiotic limitations to desert plant community assembly
Publications: 2 first author, 1 co-author

Justin Taylor (M.S. Graduated April 2020)
Overcoming biotic limitations to desert plant community assembly
Publications: 1 first author, 2 co-author

Chelsea Lamb Keefer (M.S Graduated December 2019) co-advised with Matt Madsen
Seed coating to overcome limitations to desert plant community assembly
Publications: 1 first author

Rebecca Lee (M.S. Graduated December 2019)
Remote sensing to track drought impacts on the plant invasions
Publications: 2 first author, 1 co-author

Tara Bishop (Ph.D. Graduated April 2019)
Plant community ecology and invasions
Publications: 3 first author, 4 co-author

Jordan Maxwell (Ph.D. Graduated April 2019)
Effects of disturbance and climate change on forest hydrology
Publications: 3 first author, 1 co-author

Josh Day (M.S. Graduated April 2018)
Invertebrate community response to plant invasions
Publications: 2 first author

Anson Call (M.S. Graduated August 2017)
Pathogen and herbivore impacts on forest function
Publications: 2 first author, 1 co-author

Aaron Rhodes (Ph.D. Graduated December 2017)
Influences of ungulate herbivory on forest development
Publications: 7 first author, 2 co-author

Tiffanny Sharp Bowman (M.S. Graduated April 2015) co-advised with Brock McMillan
Consumer impact on invasions
Publications: 3 first author

Rory O’Connor (M.S. Graduated December 2014) co-advised with Rick Gill
Top-down regulation of plant invasions
Publications: 2 co-author

Andrew Lybbert (M.S. Graduated December 2014)
The effects of invasive plant-fire cycles on desert pollination
Publications: 2 first author

Ho Yi Wan (M.S. Graduated April 2014)
Influence of fire size and severity on wildlife herbivory in forests
Publications: 2 first author, 1 co-author

Kevin Horn (Ph.D. Graduated August 2013)
Ecosystem responses to emergence of invasive/plant fire cycles in deserts
Publications: 6 first author, 1 co-author

Josh Buck (M.S. Graduated August 2012)
Facilitative and competitive interactions in subalpine forests
Publications: 2 first author, 1 co-author

Eric Smith (M.S. Graduated August 2010)
Developmental influences on quaking aspen fitness under altered disturbances regimes
Publications: 2 first author, 1 co-author

John Calder (M.S. Graduated December 2009)
Ecophysiology of conifer expansion in aspen forest
Publications: 3 first author, 1 co-author