Education:
B.S., Carleton College, 1969
M.S., University of Michigan, 1971
Ph.D., University of Michigan, 1975
Postdoctoral Work:
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, 1976-1979
Harvard University, 1994-1995
Field: Tropical plant ecology; mycology, evolutionary ecology of mutualistic associations.
Research Interests:
My research focuses on the roles of mutualistic root-associates, especially mycorrhizal fungi and nitrogen-fixing bacteria, in tropical forests and agro-ecosystems. I have examined the effects of mycorrhizal fungi on the survival and growth of a variety of tropical plants and have investigated factors affecting occurrence of these fungi in different habitats. This work has led to models of how interactions among mycorrhizal fungi and vascular plants may influence succession.
My most recent research involves the effects of mycorrhizae on competition among plants. My findings suggest that in the tropics the extreme dependence of host plants on mycorrhizal fungi for mineral uptake and the lack of specificity of mycorrhizal associations contribute to high within-habitat species diversity by minimizing differences in ability to compete for mineral nutrients among host species. I hope to apply these results in the design of crop polycultures and forest management systems.
Recent Representative Publications:
Janos, D. P. 1980. Mycorrhizae influence tropical succession. Biotrop. (Supp.). 12: 56-64.
Janos, D. P. 1987. VA mycorrhizae in humid tropical ecosystems. Pp. 107-134. In: E. R. Safir (ed.). Ecophysiology of VA Mycorrhizal Plants. CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida.
Janos, D. P. 1988. Mycorrhiza applications in tropical forestry: are temperate-zone approaches appropriate? Pp. 133-188. In: F. S. P. Ng (ed.). Trees and Mycorrhiza. Forest Research Institute of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Janos, D. P. 1993. Vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizae of epiphytes. Mycorrhiza. 4: 1-4.
Janos, D. P. 1995. Mycorrhizas, succession, and the rehabilitation of deforested lands in the humid tropics. In: J. C. Frankland, N. Magan, and G. M. Gadd (eds.). Fungi and Environmental Change. British Mycological Society Symposium Vol. 20. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.