Dr. LaRue’s areas of interests focus on uncovering mechanisms underlying spatial patterns in plant species distributions and the structural diversity and function of ecosystems. She is also interested in improving the monitoring and management of nuisance species and those of conservation concern across dryland and forest ecosystems.

• Ph D in Biological Sciences, Purdue University (2017)
• MS in Biology, Grand Valley State University (2012)
• BS in Biology, Grand Valley State University (2010)
• AAS in Transfer, Muskegon Community College (2008)

• Positive association between emerald ash borer residence time and accumulation of invasive plants Ecosphere 14 12 (2023), A Gougherty, J M. Elliott, Elizabeth LaRue, J Gallion, S Fei.
• Forest structural diversity is linked to soil microbial diversity Ecosphere 14 11 (2023), A Lang, Elizabeth LaRue, S Kivlin, R Phillips, J Gallion, N Kong, J D. Parker, M McCormick, G Domke, S Fei.
• Structural Diversity from the NEON Discrete-Return LiDAR Point Cloud in 2013-2022 Environmental Data Initiative TBD TBD (2023), J Wang, D Choi, Elizabeth LaRue, J Atkins, J Foster, J Matthes Hatala, R Fahey, S Fei, B Hardiman.
• Diversity - volume relationships: Adding structural arrangement and volume to species - area relationships across forest macrosystems Ecography 2023 10 (2023), Elizabeth LaRue, Anna G. Downing, Sheila Saucedo, Arturo Rocha, Sergio M. Vargas, Vicente Mata-Silva, Michael G. Harvey.
• Diversity - volume relationships: Adding structural arrangement and volume to species - area relationships across forest macrosystems Ecography 2023 10 (2023), Elizabeth LaRue, Anna G. Downing, Sheila Saucedo, Arturo Rocha, Sergio M. Vargas, Vicente Mata-Silva, Michael G. Harvey.
• Integrating forest structural diversity measurement into ecological research Ecosphere 14 9 (2023), Jeff W. Atkins, Parth Bhatt, Carrasco, Chris Hakkenberg, Emily Francis, B Hardiman, Jung, A Koirala, Elizabeth LaRue, Sunchang Oh, G Shao, G Shao, A Spiers, A Stovall, T Surasinghe, X Tai, Lu Zhai, Tao Zhang, K Kruase.
• Diversity - volume relationships: Adding structural arrangement and volume to species - area relationships across forest macrosystems Ecography 7 (2023), Elizabeth LaRue, Anna G. Downing, Sheila Saucedo, Arturo Rocha, Sergio A. Vargas Zesati, Vicente Mata-Silva, Michael G. Harvey.
• Short-term effects of moderate severity disturbances on forest canopy structure Journal of Ecology 111 9 (2023), Dennis H. Choi, Elizabeth LaRue, Jeff W. Atkins, Jane R. Foster, J Hatala Matthes, Robert T. Fahey, Bina Thapa, B S. Hardiman, S Fei.
• Structural Diversity: A Digital Revolution Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 21 1 (2023), Songlin Fei, Elizabeth LaRue, Brady S. Hardiman, Kyla Dahlin.
• Scale dependency of lidar-derived structural diversity Methods in Ecology and Evolution 14 2 (2023), Jeff W. Atkins, J Costanza, K Dahlin, M Dannenberg, A J. Elmore, M C. Fitzpatrick, C R. Hakkenberg, B S. Hardiman, A Kamoske, Elizabeth LaRue, C A. Silva, A E. Stovall, Elske K. Tielens.
• Structural diversity as a reliable and novel predictor for ecosystem productivity Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 21 1 (2023), Elizabeth LaRue, Jon Knott, Grant Domke, H Y. Chen, Qingfeng Guo, Masumi Hisano, Chris Oswalt, Sonja Oswalt, Nicole Kong, Kevin Potter, Songlin Fei.
• A theoretical framework for the ecological role of three-dimensional structural diversity Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 22 1 (2023), Elizabeth LaRue, Robert Fahey, Brandon Aleveshere, Jeff W. Atkins, Parth Bhatt, Brian Buma, Stella Cousins, Jessica M. Elliott, Andrew Elmore, Christopher Hakkenberg, Brady Hardiman, Jeremey Johnson, Daniel Kashian, Anil Koirala, Mona Papes, Jamille B. St. Hilliare, Thilina Surasinghe, Zambrano, Lu Zhai, Songlin Fei.
• Evaluating the sensitivity of forest structural diversity characterization to LiDAR point density Ecosphere 13 9 (2022), Elizabeth LaRue, Robert Fahey, Tabatha L. Fuson, Jane Foster, Jackie Hatala Matthes, Brady S. Hardiman.
• Coupling of plant and mycorrhizal fungal diversity: its occurrence, relevance, and possible implications under global change New Phytologist 234 6 (2022), Songlin Fei, Stephanie Kivlin, Grant Domke, Insu Jo, Elizabeth LaRue, Rich Phillips.
• Evaluating the Sensitivity of Forest Structural Diversity Characterization to LiDAR Point Density Preprints 2021 (2021), Elizabeth LaRue, R Fahey, Tabatha Fuson, J Foster, J Hatala Matthes, B S. Hardiman.
• Harnessing the NEON Data Revolution to Advance Open Environmental Science with a Diverse and Data-Capable Community Ecosphere 12 12 (2021), Chelsea Nagy, 120 authors, including , Elizabeth LaRue.
• Macrosystems as metacoupled human natural systems Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 19 2 (2021), F Tromboni, J Liu, E Ziaco, D D. Breshears, K Thompson, W K. Dodds, K Dahlin, Elizabeth LaRue, J H. Thorp, A Vina, M Lague, A Maazri, H Yang, S Chandra, S Fei.
• The evolution of macrosystems biology. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 19 2 (2021), Elizabeth LaRue, J Rohr, J Knott, K Dahlin, W Dodds, J H. Thorp, J S. Johnson, B S. Hardiman, M I. Rodriguez-Gonzalez, M Keller, R Fahey, M SanClements, J W. Atkins, F Tromboni, G Parker, J Liu, S Fei.
• Community and structural constraints on the complexity of eastern North American forests. Global Ecology and Biogeography 12 (2020), C Gough, J W. Atkins, R Fahey, B S. Hardiman, Elizabeth LaRue.
• Multidimensional structural characterization is required to detect and differentiate among moderate disturbance agents. Ecosphere 11 (2020), J W. Atkins, B Bond-Lamberty, R Fahey, L Haber, E Stuart-Jaentjens, Elizabeth LaRue, B McNeil, D Orwig, A Stovall, J Walter, C Gough.
• Data Tutorial: Calculating Forest Structural Diversity Metrics from NEON LiDAR Data. National Ecological Observatory Network, Battelle, Boulder, CO, USA. https://www.neonscience.org/structural-diversity-discrete-return (2020), Elizabeth LaRue, D O'Leary, J , A Stovall.
• Compatibility of aerial and terrestrial LiDAR for quantifying structural diversity in forest macrosystems. Remote Sensing 12 (2020), Elizabeth LaRue, F W. Wagner, S Fei, W. Atkins, R T. Fahey, C M. Gough, S S. Hardiman.
• An assessment of the potential impacts of climate change on freshwater habitats and biota of Indiana, U.S.A. Climate Change 163 (2020), T O. Hook, C Foley, P Collingsworth, D Dorworth, B Fisher, J Hooverman, Elizabeth LaRue, M Pyron, J Tank.
• A roadmap for exploring the thematic content of ecology journals Ecosphere 10 (2019), J Knott, Elizabeth LaRue, Ward, E McCallen, Ordonez, Wagner, I Jo, E M. Elliott, Fei.
• Structural diversity as a predictor of ecosystem function. Environmental Research Letters 14 (2019), Elizabeth LaRue, B S. Hardiman, J M. Elliott, S Fei.
• Geographic variation in dispersal distance facilitates range expansion in response to climate change in a lakeshore plant species. Diversity and Distributions 25 (2019), Elizabeth LaRue, N C. Emery, L Briley, M R. Christie.

• Biocrusts: Linking Physical Structure to Function​ (2023), Volume Las Cruces, Suellen Resendez, Anthony Schaefer, Brenda Almanza, Marguerite Mauritz-Tozer, Nicole Pietrasiak, Elizabeth LaRue, Samy Belteton.
• Remote sensing and the role of vegetation structural diversity in rangelands and forests (2023), Volume Las Cruces, NM, Elizabeth LaRue.
• A remote sensing approach for quantifying belowground structural diversity in dryland landscapes (2023), Volume Riverside, CA, Elizabeth LaRue, S Bracamontes, D Morales, J Butnor.

• Employing a Structural Diversity Framework to Integrate Biocrusts as a Dynamic Soil Property into Desert Southwest Ecological Sites and State-and- Transition Models
• RaMP: Research opportunities and access for diverse scientists (ROADs) in extreme dryland environments
• MSA: RESOLVING STRUCTURAL DIVERSITY CONTROLS ON ECOSYSTEM FUNCTION ALONG A VOLUME GRADIENT ACROSS NEON DOMAINS
• EXPLORING NEW DIMENSIONS OF FOREST ECOSYSTEMS WITH STRUCTURAL DIVERSITY
• REMOTE SENSING OF STRUCTURAL DIVERSITY AS AN OPEN-SOURCE TOOL FOR MONITORING FOREST ECOSYSTEM FUNCTION
• Structural diversity: An unexplored dimension of biodiversity in Chihuahuan Desert ecosystems
• Collaborative Research: MRA: Elucidating Plant and Mycorrhizal Fungal Relationships and Consequences across Space and Time (Based at Purdue University)
• Workshop: Exploring New Dimensions of Forest Ecosystems with Structural Diversity (Based at Purdue University)