Dr. Bever's research focuses on testing basic ecological and evolutionary processes occurring within plants and their associated fungi. Much of the conceptual basis of ecology and evolution was developed with animals in mind. Plants and fungi differ from animals in important ways, including their motility, their nutrient acquisition systems and their genetic systems. Conceptual frameworks building on these peculiarities can be very useful in exploring the dynamics of population and communities of plants and fungi. Developing, testing, and exploring the implications of these models has been the goal of my work.