David Nicolas Bertil Soderberg, PhD
I am a Biologist with the US Geological Survey’s Western Ecological Research Center. I research forest population dynamics within the southern Sierra Nevada mountains. More recently, my attention has included understanding the effects of high severity fire and prolonged drought on mortality and regeneration among Sierra Nevada conifers, specifically, giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum).
My career started in the Sierra mixed conifer forests of the UC Berkeley Forestry Field School – “forestry camp”. This was supposed to be a fun summer interlude, but it ended up being a turning point. Afterwards I immersed myself in the world of forest ecology working for various universities, US Forest Service, National Park Service, and the US Geological Survey. During my graduate studies, I honed in on unexplored research niches of a very small insect, the mountain pine beetle, and very old trees, the bristlecone pines. I earned my PhD in Ecology (2021) from Utah State University and along the way acquired quantitative skills in study design, math, and modeling. Currently I work for the USGS Western Ecological Research Center – where I first cut my teeth as a seasonal field tech (!) – and partner with Utah State University as an Adjunct Assistant Professor for the College of Natural Resources. Voilà!
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Ecology, Utah State University 2021
Quinney Doctoral Research Fellow
B.S., Molecular Environmental Biology, U.C. Berkeley 2011
Minor: Forestry and Natural Resources
Science and Products
Increasing Giant Sequoia Reforestation Success after Catastrophic Wildfire Using Soil and Microbial Indicators
The Effects of Catastrophic Wildfires on Vegetation and Fuel Loads in the Sierra Nevada of California
Assessment of Giant Sequoia Mortality and Regeneration within Burned Groves in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (ver. 3.0, September 2024)
Effects of recent wildfires on giant sequoia groves were anomalous at millennial timescales: a response to Hanson et al.
Post-fire reference densities for giant sequoia seedlings in a new era of high-severity wildfires
Assessing giant sequoia mortality and regeneration following high-severity wildfire
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Increasing Giant Sequoia Reforestation Success after Catastrophic Wildfire Using Soil and Microbial Indicators
The Effects of Catastrophic Wildfires on Vegetation and Fuel Loads in the Sierra Nevada of California
Assessment of Giant Sequoia Mortality and Regeneration within Burned Groves in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (ver. 3.0, September 2024)
Effects of recent wildfires on giant sequoia groves were anomalous at millennial timescales: a response to Hanson et al.
Post-fire reference densities for giant sequoia seedlings in a new era of high-severity wildfires
Assessing giant sequoia mortality and regeneration following high-severity wildfire
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.