Debra A Willard, Ph.D.
I am a palynologist (pollen and spores) with expertise in paleoecology, paleoclimatology, and biostratigraphy. My biostratigraphic expertise extends from the Carboniferous to the Holocene, with an emphasis on Euramerica (Paleozoic) and the Northern Hemisphere. My paleoclimate expertise includes the late Paleozoic and the Paleogene to Holocene intervals.
Editorial Boards
- Global and Planetary Change
- Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution – Paleoecology section Review Editor
- Quaternary
- Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology
Professional Experience
2021-Present Research Geologist, US Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia
2011-2021 Coordinator, USGS Climate Research & Development Program
1991-2011 Research Geologist, US Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia
1990-1991 Postdoctoral Researcher, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
Education and Certifications
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - Ph.D., Botany 1990
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - M.S., Botany 1985
The Pennsylvania State University - B.S., Botany 1982
Stephens College - A.A., Geology 1980
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union
Geological Society of America
The Palynological Society
Science and Products
The impact of anthropogenic land-cover change on the Florida Peninsula Sea Breezes and warm season sensible weather
Late-Holocene climate andecosystem history from Chesapeake Bay sediment cores, USA
Medieval Warm Period, Little Ice Age and 20th century temperature variability from Chesapeake Bay
Ecosystem history of southern and central Biscayne Bay: Summary report on sediment core analyses
Tree Islands of the Florida Everglades - A Disappearing Resource
Paleoecological insights on fixed tree island development in the Florida Everglades: I. environmental controls
The U.S. Geological Survey and the Chesapeake Bay – The role of science in environmental restoration
Radiocarbon dating, chronologic framework, and changes in accumulation rates of holocene estuarine sediments from Chesapeake Bay
The Florida Everglades ecosystem: climatic and anthropogenic impacts over the last two millennia
Long-term patterns of vegetation and salinity change in the Lake Pontchartrain region, Louisiana
Bedrock cores from 89° North: Implications for the geologic framework and Neogene paleoceanography of Lomonosov Ridge and a tie to the Barents shelf
Pollen assemblages as paleoenvironmental proxies in the Florida Everglades
Science and Products
The impact of anthropogenic land-cover change on the Florida Peninsula Sea Breezes and warm season sensible weather
Late-Holocene climate andecosystem history from Chesapeake Bay sediment cores, USA
Medieval Warm Period, Little Ice Age and 20th century temperature variability from Chesapeake Bay
Ecosystem history of southern and central Biscayne Bay: Summary report on sediment core analyses
Tree Islands of the Florida Everglades - A Disappearing Resource
Paleoecological insights on fixed tree island development in the Florida Everglades: I. environmental controls
The U.S. Geological Survey and the Chesapeake Bay – The role of science in environmental restoration
Radiocarbon dating, chronologic framework, and changes in accumulation rates of holocene estuarine sediments from Chesapeake Bay
The Florida Everglades ecosystem: climatic and anthropogenic impacts over the last two millennia
Long-term patterns of vegetation and salinity change in the Lake Pontchartrain region, Louisiana
Bedrock cores from 89° North: Implications for the geologic framework and Neogene paleoceanography of Lomonosov Ridge and a tie to the Barents shelf
Pollen assemblages as paleoenvironmental proxies in the Florida Everglades
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government