
Zechariah Meunier
Zechariah Meunier
Background
Biography
Zech is an ecologist, environmentalist, and educator. He seeks to understand how ecological systems change over space and time, both naturally and in response to anthropogenic stress and disturbance. Zech's graduate research focuses on rocky intertidal communities, and he plans to devote his career to studying and preserving coastal ecosystems. He also contributes to conservation efforts through collaborative work on marine protected area establishment. By pursuing fundamental and applied research projects, Zech hopes to make discoveries that advance our understanding of the natural world and are societally relevant.
Research
Co-advised by Sally Hacker and Bruce Menge
Zech studies rocky intertidal ecosystems of Oregon, California, and Nova Scotia. He is interested in how climate change, disturbance events, diseases, and species interactions influence the dynamics of community succession. Following his passion for conservation, Zech has also published research on marine protected area commitments and the unintended consequences of biocontrol insects for threatened wildflowers.
Teaching
Classes Taught
- BI 101. Environmental Biology: Ecology, Conservation, and Global Change
- BI 102. Animal Biology: Genes, Behavior, and Evolution of Life
- BI 211. Principles of Biology: Diversity of Life
- BI 212. Principles of Biology: Structure and Function from Cells to Organisms
- BI 450. Marine Biology and Ecology
Background
Education
BA, Biology & Environmental Studies, Lawrence University, 2015
Awards
- Graduate Research Fellowship, National Science Foundation, 2019-2022 Provost’s Distinguished Graduate Fellowship, Oregon State University, 2017-2018