Ira Tanya Handa

Assistant Professor,
Université du Québec à Montréal
Département des Sciences Biologiques
E-mail: handa.ira_tanya@uqam.ca
Institution page



Education

B.Sc. (1996) : McGill University in Biology
M.Sc. (1998) : University of Toronto in Botany
Ph.D. (2006): University of Basel (Switzerland) in Plant Ecology.


Research

Dr. Handa's research interests are linked by the desire to understand the consequences of global change on ecosystem processes. She is interested in how changes such as rising atmospheric CO2 or urbanisation affect tree growth, as well as how changes in biodiversity influence litter decomposition and nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems.

QCBS students

Laura Jeanne Raymond-Léonard

Ph.D.
(Start: 2021)
Urban soil biodiversity: response to greenspace management and effect on ecosystem multifunctionality

marylou meyer

Membre employé(e) / Employed member
Other (co-)supervisor: Kneeshaw, Dan
(Start: 2018)
Projet sur la tourbière du site de l'assomption

Previous students (since 2009)

Pierre-Marc Brousseau

Ph.D.
(Start: 2011, End: 2017)
Other QCBS (co-)supervisor: Dominique Gravel
Soil arthropod diversity and decomposition in temperate forests of southern Quebec

Javier Ibarra Isassi

Ph.D.
(Start: 2016, End: 2018)
Other QCBS (co-)supervisor: Jean-Philippe Lessard
Ant functional diversity across broad-scale gradients and its influence on ecosystem processes
Personal page

Laurent Rousseau

Ph.D.
Other (co-)supervisor: Lisa Venier (Canadian Forest Service)
(Start: 2013, End: 2018)
Responses of soil mesofaunal communities to intensive woody biomass removal in jack pine forests of northeastern Ontario (Canada)
Link to thesis (pdf)
Personal page

Chelsea Archambault

M.Sc.
(Start: 2012, End: 2014)
Roots interactions in a biodiversity experiment with trees

Robin Beauséjour

M.Sc.
(Start: 2011, End: 2014)
Other QCBS (co-)supervisor: Mark Vellend
Plant community change over the past decade at Mont St-Hilaire, Québec

Nathaly Guerrero Ramirez

M.Sc.
Other (co-)supervisor: Christian Messier, UQAM
(Start: 2011, End: 2013)
The role of functional diversity in root decomposition of a secondary tropical forest plantation (Sardinilla, Panama)

Eugénie Potvin

M.Sc.
(Start: 2012, End: 2017)
Ecosystem services in forests of southern Québec

Laura Jeanne Raymond-Léonard

M.Sc.
(Start: 2015, End: 2017)
Functional diversity at multiple trophic levels: will exotic tree litter modify the collembola community structure?
Link to thesis (pdf)

Examples of species studied

Coleoptera
Staphylinidae
Pinus banksiana


Publications

40- Direct and Indirect Effects of Forest Anthropogenic Disturbance on Above and Below Ground Communities and Litter Decomposition
Laigle I , Moretti M , Rousseau L , Gravel D , Venier L , Handa I T , Messier C , Morris D , Hazlett P , Fleming R , Webster K , Shipley B , Aubin I ,
2021 Ecosystems (Date Added: 2021-03-15)

39- Shade-growing practices lessen the impact of coffee plantations on multiple dimensions of ant diversity
Ibarra‐Isassi J , Handa I T , Arenas‐Clavijo A , Escobar‐Ramírez S , Armbrecht I , Lessard J ,
2021 Journal of Applied Ecology (Date Added: 2021-02-23)

38- Decomposition of leaf litter mixtures across biomes: The role of litter identity, diversity and soil fauna
Zhou S , Butenschoen O , Barantal S , Handa I T , Makkonen M , Vos V , Aerts R , Berg M P , McKie B , Van Ruijven J , Hättenschwiler S , Scheu S ,
2020 Journal of Ecology (Date Added: 2020-08-02)

37- Dead wood provides habitat for springtails across a latitudinal gradient of forests in Quebec, Canada
Raymond-Léonard L J , Bouchard M , Handa I T ,
2020 Forest Ecology and Management (Date Added: 2020-06-01)

36- First record on the biology of sarcophaga (Bulbostyla) (diptera, sarcophagidae)
Brousseau P , Giroux M , Handa I T ,
2020 ZooKeys (Date Added: 2020-02-26)

35- Functional Diversity: An Epistemic Roadmap
Malaterre, C, Dussault, AC, Rousseau-Mermans, S, Barker, G, Beisner, BE, Bouchard, F, Desjardins, E, Handa, IT, Kembel, SW, Lajoie, G, Maris, V, Munson, AD, Odenbaugh, J, Poisot, T, Shapiro, BJ, Suttle, CA
2019 BioScience (Date Added: 2019-10-25)

34- A novel set of traits to describe Collembola mouthparts: taking a bite out of the broad chewing mandible classification
,
2019 Soil Biology and Biochemistry (Date Added: 2019-10-09)

33- Traits of litter-dwelling forest arthropod predators and detritivores covary spatially with traits of their resources
Brousseau P , Gravel D , Handa I T ,
2019 Ecology (Date Added: 2019-08-23)

32- Woody biomass removal in harvested boreal forest leads to a partial functional homogenization of soil mesofaunal communities relative to unharvested forest
Rousseau L , Venier L , Aubin I , Gendreau-Berthiaume B , Moretti M , Salmon S , Handa I T ,
2019 Soil Biology and Biochemistry (Date Added: 2019-03-30)

31- Evergreenness influences fine root growth more than tree diversity in a common garden experiment
Archambault C , Paquette A , Messier C , Khlifa R , Munson A D , Handa I T ,
2019 Oecologia (Date Added: 2019-03-23)

30- A characterization of media representation of biodiversity and implications for public perceptions and environmental policy: the case of Québec, Canada
Brunet N D , Dagenais D , Breux S , Handa I T ,
2018 Environment, Development and Sustainability (Date Added: 2018-09-23)

29- On the development of a predictive functional trait approach for studying terrestrial arthropods
Brousseau P , Gravel D , Handa I T ,
2018 Journal of Animal Ecology (Date Added: 2018-08-16)

28- Springtail community structure is influenced by functional traits but not biogeographic origin of leaf litter in soils of novel forest ecosystems
Raymond-Léonard L J , Gravel D , Reich P B , Handa I T ,
2018 Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (Date Added: 2018-06-10)

27- Long-term effects of biomass removal on soil mesofaunal communities in northeastern Ontario (Canada) jack pine (Pinus banksiana) stands
Rousseau L , Venier L , Fleming R , Hazlett P , Morris D , Handa I T ,
2018 Forest Ecology and Management (Date Added: 2018-03-06)

26- Carbohydrate dynamics in roots, stems, and branches after maintenance pruning in two common urban tree species of North America
Ramirez J , Handa I , Posada J , Delagrange S , Messier C ,
2018 Urban Forestry and Urban Greening (Date Added: 2018-01-24)

25- Trait matching and phylogeny as predictors of predator–prey interactions involving ground beetles
Brousseau P , Gravel D , Handa I T ,
2018 Functional Ecology (Date Added: 2018-01-19)

24- Forest floor mesofauna communities respond to a gradient of biomass removal and soil disturbance in a boreal jack pine (Pinus banksiana) stand of northeastern Ontario (Canada)
Rousseau L , Venier L , Hazlett P , Fleming R , Morris D , Handa I T ,
2018 Forest Ecology and Management (Date Added: 2018-01-03)

23- The unseen invaders: introduced earthworms as drivers of change in plant communities in North American forests (a meta-analysis)
Craven D , Thakur M P , Cameron E K , Frelich L E , Beauséjour R , Blair R B , Blossey B , Burtis J , Choi A , Dávalos A , Fahey T J , Fisichelli N A , Gibson K , Handa I T , Hopfensperger K , Loss S R , Nuzzo V , Maerz J C , Sackett T , Scharenbroch B C , Smith S M , Vellend M , Umek L G , Eisenhauer N ,
2017 Global Change Biology (Date Added: 2017-02-26)

22- Trade-offs between timber production, carbon stocking and habitat quality when managing woodlots for multiple ecosystem services
Carpentier, S, Filotas, E, Handa, IT, Messier, C
2017 Environmental Conservation (Date Added: 2016-12-05)

21- Root quality and decomposition environment, but not tree species richness, drive root decomposition in tropical forests
Guerrero-Ramírez, NR, Craven, D, Messier, C, Potvin, C, Turner, BL, Handa, IT
2016 Plant and Soil (Date Added: 2016-10-11)

20- The importance of litter traits and decomposers for litter decomposition: A comparison of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems within and across biomes
García-Palacios, P, McKie, BG, Handa, IT, Frainer, A, Hättenschwiler, S
2016 Functional Ecology (Date Added: 2016-01-14)

19- First Record In Canada of Onthophilus pluricostatus LeConte (Coleoptera: Histeridae) and a New Mention for the Rare Species Lordithon niger (Gravenhorst) (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae)
Brousseau, P-M, Gravel, D, Handa, IT
2014 The Coleopterists Bulletin (Date Added: 2016-07-06)

18- Consequences of biodiversity loss for litter decomposition across biomes
Handa, IT, Aerts, R, Berendse, F, Berg, MP, Bruder, A, Butenschoen, O, Chauvet, E, Gessner, MO, Jabiol, J, Makkonen, M, McKie, BG, Malmqvist, B, Peeters, ETHM, Scheu, S, Schmid, B, van Ruijven, J, Vos, VCA, Hattenschwiler, S
2014 Nature (Date Added: 2015-07-24)

17- Historical anthropogenic disturbances influence patterns of non-native earthworm and plant invasions in a temperate primary forest
Beauséjour, R, Handa, IT, Lechowicz, MJ, Gilbert, B, Vellend, M
2014 Biological Invasions (Date Added: 2014-10-20)

16- Alpine treelines in a CO2 – rich world : synthesis of a nine year free air CO2 enrichment study
Dawes MA, HF
2013 Oecologia (Date Added: 2016-06-27)

15- Highly consistent effects of plant litter identity and functional traits on decomposition across a latitudinal gradient
Makkonen, M, Berg, MP, Handa, IT, Hättenschwiler, S, van Ruijven, J, van Bodegom, PM, Aerts, R
2012 Ecology Letters (Date Added: 2012-09-17)

14- Growth and community responses of alpine dwarf shrubs to in situ CO2 enrichment and soil warming
Dawes, MA, Hagedorn, F, Zumbrunn, T, Handa, IT, Hättenschwiler, S, Wipf, S, Rixen, C
2011 New Phytologist (Date Added: 2011-09-27)

13- Leaf traits and decomposition in tropical rainforests: Revisiting some commonly held views and towards a new hypothesis
Hättenschwiler, S, Coq, S, Barantal, S, Handa, IT
2011 New Phytologist (Date Added: 2011-07-28)

12- The ecology of saprophagous macroarthropods (millipedes, woodlice) in the context of global change
David, J-F, Handa, IT
2010 Biological Reviews (Date Added: 2011-07-28)

11- Species-specific tree growth responses to 9?years of CO2 enrichment at the alpine treeline
Dawes, MA, Hättenschwiler, S, Bebi, P, Hagedorn, F, Handa, IT, Körner, C, Rixen, C
2010 Journal of Ecology (Date Added: 2011-05-26)

10- Snail and millipede complementarity in decomposing Mediterranean forest leaf litter mixtures
de Oliveira, T, Hättenschwiler, S, Handa, IT
2010 Functional Ecology (Date Added: 2011-04-20)

9- The importance of biotic factors in predicting global change effects on decomposition of temperate forest leaf litter
Rouifed, S, Handa, IT, David, J-F, Hättenschwiler, S
2010 Oecologia (Date Added: 2011-04-20)

8-Interactions between lesser snow geese and Arctic coastal vegetation leading to alternative stable states.
Handa, T, Jefferies, RL
2009 New models for ecosystem dynamics and restoration ( Date Added: 2012-09-17)

7- No stimulation in root production in response to 4 years of in situ CO 2 enrichment at the Swiss treeline
Handa, IT, Hagedorn, F, Hättenschwiler, S
2008 Functional Ecology (Date Added: 2011-07-28)

6- Elevated atmospheric CO2 fuels leaching of old dissolved organic matter at the alpine treeline
Hagedorn, F, van Hees, PAW, Handa, IT, Hättenschwiler, S
2008 Global Biogeochemical Cycles (Date Added: 2011-07-28)

5- Conifer stem growth at the altitudinal treeline in response to four years of CO2 enrichment
Handa, IT, Körner, C, Hättenschwiler, S
2006 Global Change Biology (Date Added: 2011-04-20)

4- A test of the treeline carbon limitation hypothesis by in situ CO 2 enrichment and defoliation
Handa, IT, Körner, C, Hättenschwiler, S
2005 Ecology (Date Added: 2011-07-28)

3- Patterns of vegetation change and the recovery potential of degraded areas in a coastal marsh system of the hudson bay lowlands
Handa, IT, Harmsen, R, Jefferies, RL
2002 Journal of Ecology (Date Added: 2011-07-28)

2- Atmospheric CO2 enrichment of alpine treeline conifers
Hättenschwiler, S, Handa, IT, Egli, L, Asshoff, R, Ammann, W, Körner, C
2002 New Phytologist (Date Added: 2011-07-28)

1- Assisted revegetation trials in degraded salt-marshes
Handa, IT, Jefferies, RL
2000 Journal of Applied Ecology (Date Added: 2011-07-28)