McCormick, Melissa

Ecologist

mycorrhizae; plant-fungus interactions; orchid-fungus interactions; molecular analysis of soil fungal communities.

Research Areas

Geographic Focus

North America Continent
Palau Country

education and training

B.S., Trinity University
Ph.D., Michigan State University

awards and honors

Smithsonian Scholarly Studies Award, conferred by Smithsonian Scholarly Studies Awards, 2018

selected publications

article
- Zale, Peter J., McCormick, Melissa K., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2022. "Choosing a Favorable Substrate to Cultivate Native Orchids Symbiotically: Examples Using Goodyera tesselata and Platanthera blephariglottis." HortScience, 57, (5) 634–642. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTSCI16509-22. 2022
- Whigham, Dennis, McCormick, Melissa, Brooks, Hope, Josey, Brian, Floyd, Robert, and Applegate, Jason. 2021. "Isotria medeoloides, a North American Threatened Orchid: Fungal Abundance May Be as Important as Light in Species Management." Plants-Basel 10 (9):https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10091924 2021
- Kim, Sunghyun, Kang, Hojeong, Megonigal, J. Patrick, and McCormick, Melissa. 2021. "Microbial Activity and Diversity Vary with Plant Diversity and Biomass in Wetland Ecosystems." Estuaries and Coasts https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-021-01015-z 2021
- Leray, Matthieu, Wilkins, Laetitia G. E., Apprill, Amy, Bik, Holly M., Clever, Friederike, Connolly, Sean R., De Leon, Marina E., Duffy, J. Emmett, Ezzat, Leila, Gignoux-Wolfsohn, Sarah, Herre, Edward Allen, Kaye, Jonathan Z., Kline, David I., Kueneman, Jordan G., McCormick, Melissa K., McMillan, W. Owen, O'Dea, Aaron, Pereira, Tiago J., Petersen, Jillian M., Petticord, Daniel F., Torchin, Mark E., Vega Thurber, Rebecca, Videvall, Elin, Wcislo, William T., Yuen, Benedict et al. 2021. "Natural experiments and long-term monitoring are critical to understand and predict marine host-microbe ecology and evolution." Plos Biology 19 (8):https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001322 2021
- McCormick, Melissa, Burnett, Robert, and Whigham, Dennis. 2021. "Protocorm-Supporting Fungi Are Retained in Roots of Mature Tipularia discolor Orchids as Mycorrhizal Fungal Diversity Increases." Plants-Basel 10 (6):https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10061251 2021
- Downing, Jason L., Liu, Hong, McCormick, Melissa K., Arce, Jay, Alonso, Dailen, and Lopez‐Perez, Jorge. 2020. "Generalized mycorrhizal interactions and fungal enemy release drive range expansion of orchids in southern Florida." Ecosphere 11 (8):Article e03228. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3228 2020
- McCormick, Melissa K., Whigham, Dennis F., Stapp, Jared R., Hazelton, Eric L. G., McFarland, Eliza K., and Kettenring, Karin M. 2020. "Shoreline modification affects recruitment of invasive Phragmites australis." Wetlands Ecology and Management https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-020-09757-6 2020
- Ma, Yini, McCormick, Melissa K., Szlavecz, Katalin, and Filley, Timothy R. 2019. "Controls on soil organic carbon stability and temperature sensitivity with increased aboveground litter input in deciduous forests of different forest ages." Soil Biology and Biochemistry 134:90-99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2019.03.020 2019
- Hazelton, Eric L. G., Downard, Rebekah, Kettenring, Karin M., McCormick, Melissa K., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2019. "Correction to: Spatial and Temporal Variation in Brackish Wetland Seedbanks: Implications for Wetland Restoration Following Phragmites Control (vol 41, pg S68, 2018)." Estuaries and Coasts 42 (3):907. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-018-00500-2 2019
- Leebens-Mack, James H., Barker, Michael S., Carpenter, Eric J., Deyholos, Michael K., Gitzendanner, Matthew A., Graham, Sean W., Grosse, Ivo, Li, Zheng, Melkonian, Michael, Mirarab, Siavash, Porsch, Martin, Quint, Marcel, Rensing, Stefan A., Soltis, Douglas E., Soltis, Pamela S., Stevenson, Dennis W., Ullrich, Kristian K., Wickett, Norman J., DeGironimo, Lisa, Edger, Patrick P., Jordon-Thaden, Ingrid E., Joya, Steve, Liu, Tao, Melkonian, Barbara, Miles, Nicholas W. et al. 2019. "One thousand plant transcriptomes and the phylogenomics of green plants." Nature 574 (7780):679- . https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1693-2 2019
- Griffin, Eric A., Harrison, Joshua G., McCormick, Melissa K., Burghardt, Karin T., and Parker, John D. 2019. "Tree Diversity Reduces Fungal Endophyte Richness and Diversity in a Large-Scale Temperate Forest Experiment." Diversity 11 (12):234. https://doi.org/10.3390/d11120234 2019
- Shefferson, Richard P., Kull, Tiiu, Hutchings, Michael J., Selosse, Marc-Andre, Jacquemyn, Hans, Kellett, Kimberly M., Menges, Eric S., Primack, Richard B., Tuomi, Juha, Alahuhta, Kirsi, Hurskainen, Sonja, Alexander, Helen M., Anderson, Derek S., Brys, Rein, Brzosko, Emilia, Dostalik, Slavomir, Gregg, Katharine, Ipser, Zdenek, Jakalaniemi, Anne, Jersakova, Jana, Kettle, W. Dean, McCormick, Melissa K., Mendoza, Ana, Miller, Michael T., Moen, Asbjorn et al. 2018. "Drivers of vegetative dormancy across herbaceous perennial plant species." Ecology Letters 21 (5):724-733. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.12940 2018
- Szlavecz, Katalin, Chang, Chih-Han, Bernard, Michael J., Pitz, Scott L., Xia, Lijun, Ma, Yini, McCormick, Melissa K., Filley, Timothy, Yarwood, Stephanie A., Yesilonis, Ian D., and Csuzdi, Csaba. 2018. "Litter quality, dispersal and invasion drive earthworm community dynamics and forest soil development." Oecologia 188 (1):237-250. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-018-4205-4 2018
- McCormick, Melissa K., Whigham, Dennis F., and Canchani-Viruet, Armando. 2018. "Mycorrhizal fungi affect orchid distribution and population dynamics." New Phytologist 219 (4):1207-1215. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15223 2018
- Unruh, Sarah A., McKain, Michael R., Lee, Yung-I, Yukawa, Tomohisa, McCormick, Melissa K., Shefferson, Richard P., Smithson, Ann, Leebens-Mack, James, and Pires, J. C. 2018. "Phylotranscriptomic analysis and genome evolution of the Cypripedioideae (Orchidaceae)." American Journal of Botany 105 (4):631-640. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajb2.1047 2018
- Hazelton, Eric L. G., Downard, Rebekah, Kettenring, Karin M., McCormick, Melissa K., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2018. "Spatial and Temporal Variation in Brackish Wetland Seedbanks: Implications for Wetland Restoration Following Phragmites Control." Estuaries and Coasts 41 (Supplement 1):68-84. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-017-0289-z 2018
- Downing, Jason L., Liu, Hong, Shao, Shicheng, Wang, Xilong, McCormick, Melissa, Deng, Rongyan, and Gao, Jiangyun. 2017. "Contrasting changes in biotic interactions of orchid populations subject to conservation introduction vs. conventional translocation in tropical China." Biological Conservation 212, Part A:29-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2017.05.021 2017
- Eller, Franziska, Skálová, Hana, Caplan, Joshua S., Bhattarai, Ganesh P., Burger, Melissa K., Cronin, James T., Guo, Wen-Yong, Guo, Xiao, Hazelton, Eric L. G., Kettenring, Karin M., Lambertini, Carla, McCormick, Melissa K., Meyerson, Laura A., Mozdzer, Thomas J., Pyšek, Petr, Sorrell, Brian K., Whigham, Dennis F., and Brix, Hans. 2017. "Cosmopolitan Species As Models for Ecophysiological Responses to Global Change: The Common Reed Phragmites australis." Frontiers in Plant Science 8:e1833. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2017.01833 2017
- Rock-Blake, Rachel, McCormick, Melissa K., Brooks, Hope E. A., Jones, Cynthia S., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2017. "Symbiont abundance can affect host plant population dynamics." American Journal of Botany 104 (1):72-82. https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.1600334 2017
- Whigham, Dennis F., Mirenda, Tom, O'Neill, Jay, and McCormick, Melissa K. 2016. "A chance for orchid lovers to benefit conservation." Orchids: the Magazine of the American Orchid Society (January): 32-35. 2016
- Paudel, Shishir, Longcore, Travis, MacDonald, Beau, McCormick, Melissa K., Szlavecz, Katalin, Wilson, Gail W. T., and Loss, Scott R. 2016. "Belowground interactions with aboveground consequences: Invasive earthworms and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi." Ecology 97 (3):605-614. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-1085.1 2016
- McCormick, Melissa K., Taylor, D. L., Whigham, Dennis F., and Burnett, Robert K. 2016. "Germination patterns in three terrestrial orchids relate to abundance of mycorrhizal fungi." Journal of Ecology 104 (3):744-754. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12556 2016
- Sciance, M. Benjamin, Patrick, Christopher J., Weller, Donald E., Williams, Meghan N., McCormick, Melissa K., and Hazelton, Eric L. G. 2016. "Local and regional disturbances associated with the invasion of Chesapeake Bay marshes by the common reed Phragmites australis." Biological Invasions 18 (9):2661-2677. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-016-1136-z 2016
- Kim, Sunghyun, Lee, Seunghoon, McCormick, Melissa, Kim, Jae Geun, and Kang, Hojeong. 2016. "Microbial Community and Greenhouse Gas Fluxes from Abandoned Rice Paddies with Different Vegetation." Microbial ecology 72 (3):692-703. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-016-0801-1 2016
- McCormick, Melissa K., Brooks, Hope E. A., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2016. "Microsatellite analysis to estimate realized dispersal distance in Phragmites australis." Biological Invasions 18 (9):2497-2504. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-016-1126-1 2016
- Kowalski, Kurt P., Bacon, Charles, Bickford, Wesley, Braun, Heather, Clay, Keith, Leduc-Lapierre, Mich, Lillard, Elizabeth, McCormick, Melissa K., Nelson, Eric, Torres, Monica, White, James, and Wilcox, Douglas A. 2015. "Advancing the science of microbial symbiosis to support invasive species management: a case study on Phragmites in the Great Lakes." Frontiers in Microbiology 6:https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2015.00095 2015
- Hazelton, Eric L. G., McCormick, Melissa K., Sievers, Matthew, Kettenring, Karin M., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2015. "Stand Age is Associated with Clonal Diversity, but Not Vigor, Community Structure, or Insect Herbivory in Chesapeake Bay Phragmites australis." Wetlands, 877–888. 35, (5), DORDRECHT; VAN GODEWIJCKSTRAAT 30, 3311 GZ DORDRECHT, NETHERLANDS: SPRINGER. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-015-0678-7. 2015
- Ma, Yini, Filley, Timothy R., Szlavecz, Katalin, and McCormick, Melissa K. 2014. "Controls on wood and leaf litter incorporation into soil fractions in forests at different successional stages." Soil Biology and Biochemistry 69:212-222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2013.10.043 2014
- Whigham, Dennis F., McCormick, Melissa K., and O'Neill, John P. 2014. "Ongoing studies of Isotria medeoloides, Small Whorled Pogonia." The Native Orchid Conference Journal 11 (4):6-11. 2014
- McCormick, Melissa K. and Jacquemyn, Hans. 2014. "What constrains the distribution of orchid populations?." New Phytologist 202 (2):392-400. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.12639 2014
- Szlavecz, Katalin, Pitz, Scott L., Bernard, Michael J., Xia, Lijun, O'Neill, John P., Chang, Chih-Han, McCormick, Melissa K., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2013. "Manipulating earthworm abundance using electroshocking in deciduous forests." Pedobiologia 56 (1):33-40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedobi.2012.08.008 2013
- McCormick, Melissa K., Parker, Kenneth L., Szlavecz, Katalin, and Whigham, Dennis F. 2013. "Native and exotic earthworms affect orchid seed loss." AoB Plants 5:plt018. https://doi.org/10.1093/aobpla/plt018 2013
- Krupnick, Gary A., McCormick, Melissa K., Mirenda, Thomas, and Whigham, Dennis F. 2013. "The Status and Future of Orchid Conservation in North America." Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 99 (2):180-198. https://doi.org/10.3417/2011108 2013
- Ma, Yini, Filley, Timothy R., Johnston, Cliff T., Crow, Susan E., Szlavecz, Katalin, and McCormick, Melissa K. 2013. "The combined controls of land use legacy and earthworm activity on soil organic matter chemistry and particle association during afforestation." Organic Geochemistry 58:56-68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.orggeochem.2013.02.010 2013
- Meyerson, L. A., Lambertini, C., McCormick, Melissa K., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2012. "Hybridization of common reed in North America? The answer is blowing in the wind." AoB Plants 2012:pls022. https://doi.org/10.1093/aobpla/pls022 2012
- McCormick, Melissa K., Lee Taylor, D., Juhaszova, Katarina, Burnett, Robert K., Whigham, Dennis F., and O'Neill, John P. 2012. "Limitations on orchid recruitment: not a simple picture." Molecular Ecology 21 (6):1511-1523. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-294X.2012.05468.x 2012
- McCormick, Melissa K. and Whigham, Dennis F. 2012. "Using the complexities of orchid life histories to target conservation efforts." The Native Orchid Conference Journal 9 (4):14-23. 2012
- Szlavecz, Katalin, McCormick, Melissa K., Xia, Lijun, Saunders, Jaclyn, Morcol, Taylan, Whigham, Dennis F., Filley, Timothy, and Csuzdi, Csaba. 2011. "Ecosystem effects of non-native earthworms in Mid-Atlantic deciduous forests." Biological Invasions 13 (5):1165-1182. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-011-9959-0 2011
- Innis, Anne F., Forseth, Irwin N., Whigham, Dennis F., and McCormick, Melissa K. 2011. "Genetic diversity in the invasive Rubus phoenicolasius as compared to the native Rubus argutus using inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers." Biological Invasions 13 (8):1735-1738. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-011-0012-0 2011
- Shefferson, Richard P., McCormick, Melissa K., Whigham, Dennis F., and O'Neill, John P. 2011. "Life history strategy in herbaceous perennials: inferring demographic patterns from the aboveground dynamics of a primarily subterranean, myco-heterotrophic orchid." Oikos 129 (9):1291-1300. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2011.19130.x 2011
- Kettenring, Karin M., McCormick, Melissa K., Baron, Heather M., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2011. "Mechanisms of Phragmites australis invasion: feedbacks among genetic diversity, nutrients, and sexual reproduction." Journal of Applied Ecology 48 (5):1305-1313. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2011.02024.x 2011
- Shefferson, Richard P., Cowden, Charles C., McCormick, Melissa K., Yukawa, Tomohisa, Ogura-Tsujita, Yuki, and Hashimoto, Toshimasa. 2010. "Evolution of host breadth in broad interactions: mycorrhizal specificity in East Asian and North American rattlesnake plantains (Goodyera spp.) and their fungal hosts." Molecular Ecology 19 (14):3008-3017. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-294X.2010.04693.x 2010
- McCormick, Melissa K., Kettenring, Karin M., Baron, Heather M., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2010. "Extent and Reproductive Mechanisms of Phragmites australis Spread in Brackish Wetlands in Chesapeake Bay, Maryland (USA)." Wetlands 30 (1):67-74. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-009-0007-0 2010
- Kettenring, Karin M., McCormick, Melissa K., Baron, Heather M., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2010. "Phragmites australis (Common Reed) Invasion in the Rhode River Subestuary of the Chesapeake Bay: Disentangling the Effects of Foliar Nutrients, Genetic Diversity, Patch Size, and Seed Viability." Estuaries and Coasts 33 (1):118-126. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-009-9241-1 2010
- McCormick, Melissa K., Kettenring, Karin M., Baron, H. M., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2010. "Spread of invasive Phragmites australis in estuaries with differing degrees of development: genetic patterns, Allee effects and interpretation." Journal of Ecology 98 (6):1369-1378. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2745.2010.01712.x 2010
- Whigham, Dennis F., Kettenring, Karin M., McCormick, Melissa K., and Baron, Heather. 2010. "The invasion of common reed (Phragmites australis) in Chesapeake Bay (USA)." Australian Plant Conservation 18 (4):17-18. 2010
- McCormick, Melissa K., Whigham, Dennis F., O'Neill, John P., Becker, Janie J., Werner, Sarah, Rasmussen, Hanne N., Bruns, Thomas D., and Taylor, D. Lee. 2009. "Abundance and distribution of Corallorhiza odontorhiza reflect variations in climate and ectomycorrhizae." Ecological Monographs 79 (4):619-635. https://doi.org/10.1890/08-0729.1 2009
- Crow, Susan E., Filley, Timothy R., McCormick, Melissa K., Szlavecz, Katalin, Stott, Diane E., Gamblin, David, and Conyers, Grace. 2009. "Earthworms, stand age, and species composition interact to influence particulate organic matter chemistry during forest succession." Biogeochemistry 92 (1-2):61-82. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-008-9260-1 2009
- Filley, T. R., McCormick, Melissa K., Crow, S. E., Szlavecz, K., Whigham, Dennis F., Johnston, C. T., and van den Heuvel, R. N. 2008. "Comparison of the chemical alteration trajectory of Liriodendron tulipifera L. leaf litter among forests with different earthworm abundance." Journal of Geophysical Research. G. Biogeosciences 113:G01027. 2008
- Øien, D. I., O'Neill, John P., Whigham, Dennis F., and McCormick, Melissa K. 2008. "Germination ecology of the boreal-alpine terrestrial orchid Dactylorhiza lapponica (Orchidaceae)." Annales Botanici Fennici 45 (3):161-172. https://doi.org/10.5735/085.045.0301 2008
- Taylor, D. L. and McCormick, Melissa K. 2008. "Internal transcribed spacer primers and sequences for improved characterization of basidiomycetous orchid mycorrhizas." New Phytologist 177:1020-1033. 2008
- Shefferson, R. P., Taylor, D. L., Weiss, M., Garnica, S., McCormick, Melissa K., Adams, S., Gray, H. M., McFarland, J. W., Kull, T., Tali, K., Yukawa, T., Kawahara, T., Miyoshi, K., and Lee, Y. I. 2007. "Evolutionary history of mycorrhizal specificity among lady's slipper orchids." Evolution 61:1380-1390. 2007
book
- Breitburg, Denise L., Hines, Anson H., Jordan, Thomas E., McCormick, Melissa K., Weller, Donald E., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2008. Landscape patterns, nutrient discharges, and biota of the Rhode River estuary and its watershed: Contribution of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center to the Pilot Integrated Ecosystem Assessment. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. 2008
chapter
- Whigham, Dennis F., McCormick, Melissa K., and O'Neill, John P. 2008. "Specialized seedling strategies II: orchids, bromeliads, carnivorous plants and parasites." in Seedling ecology and evolution, edited by Leck, M. A., Parker, Thomas V., and Simpson, Robert L., 79-100. Cambridge Univ. Press. 2008
dataset
- McCormick, Melissa K., Taylor, Donald Lee, Whigham, Dennis F., and Burnett, Robert K. 2016. [Dataset] "Germination patterns in three terrestrial orchids relate to abundance of mycorrhizal fungi." Distributed by Dryad Digital Repository. 2016
- McCormick, Melissa K., Taylor, D. Lee, Juhaszova, Katarina, Burnett, Robert K., Jr., Whigham, Dennis F., and O'Neill, John P. 2011. [Dataset] "Data from: Limitations on orchid recruitment: not a simple picture." Distributed by Dryad Digital Repository. https://doi.org/10.5061/DRYAD.C770013C 2011
Hazelton, Eric L. G., McCormick, Melissa K., Sievers, Matthew, Kettenring, Karin M., and Whigham, Dennis F. 2015. "Stand Age is Associated with Clonal Diversity, but Not Vigor, Community Structure, or Insect Herbivory in Chesapeake Bay Phragmites australis." Wetlands, 35, (5) 877–888. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-015-0678-7. 2015

McCormick, Melissa

Research Areas

Geographic Focus

Background And Education

education and training

awards and honors

Research And Grants

co-principal investigator on

investigator on

Publications

selected publications

article

book

chapter

dataset

Other

Location