Mary Ann Vinton, PhD

Program Director, Environmental Science

Professor

photo placeholder for Vinton, Mary Ann

Contact

vinton@creighton.edu
College of Arts and Sciences
Biology
Hixson Lied Science Building 438

Mary Ann Vinton, PhD

Program Director, Environmental Science

Professor

Dr. Mary Ann Vinton joined the Department of Biology in 1995.  She held the Clare Boothe Luce Chair for Women in Science from 1995-2000 and chaired the Biology department from 2005-2008.  Presently she is a Professor in Biology and Director of the Environmental Science (EVS) Program, an interdepartmental degree program involving 20 faculty members from eight departments and granting a BS in EVS, a minor in EVS and a minor in Environmental Policy.  Her teaching and research interests are in the area of ecology and she teaches courses ranging from introductory biology and environmental science to a senior course in ecosystem ecology.   Research projects revolve around human-caused changes in plant communities and ecosystems in prairies and forests of the Midwestern region.   Human drivers of change include fire suppression, land clearing for agriculture and urban development, altered temperature regimes, and elevated carbon dioxide and nitrogen, all of which have major implications for key attributes of ecosystem health such as biodiversity, nitrogen pollution and carbon storage.   Recent projects have explored these changes, particularly as manifested in plants that have become more common or even invasive under these changed conditions.  Since 2016, Dr. Vinton leads an interdisciplinary project at Creighton on the Nebraska Sandhills, the largest grass-stabilized sand dune system in the Western Hemisphere and the key area of ground water recharge for the High Plains Aquifer.  Using an interdiciplinary approach involving art, social science and natural science, she and a team of Creighton faculty and students examine social and biophysical factors affecting the sustainability and conservation of this region. 

Research Focus

Ecosystem ecology, role of plants in ecosystems, grassland ecology and biodiversity, nutrient cycling and decomposition, plant-soil interactions, ecology of invasive plant species, ecosystem services, use of satellite imagery in ecology and conservation, environmental science education and pedagogy, dynamics and resilience of social-ecological systems, place-based studies as exemplified in the Nebraska Sandhills

Department

Biology

Position

Professor

Book, Chapter/Section

  • The Nebraska Sandhills
    Vinton Mary Ann, Leighter Jay, Local Knowledge and the Future of the Sandhills [Book Chapter] 2024
  • Ecology of the Shortgrass Steppe: Perspectives from Long-term Research
    Vinton Mary A., Burke I. C., Mosier A. R., Hook P. B., Milchunas D. G., Barrett J.E., McCulley R. L., Kaye J. P., Gill R. A., Epstein H. E., Kelly R. H., Parton W. J., Yorker C. M., Lowe P., Laurenroth W. K., Soil Organic Matter and Nutrient Dynamics of Shortgrass Steppe Ecosystems [Book Chapter] 2008

General

  • Vinton Mary Ann, Grass: In Search of Human Habitat 2011
  • Vinton Mary Ann, The National Grasslands: A Guide to America's Undiscovered Treasures 2007
  • Vinton Mary A., Review of The National Grassland: A Guide to America's Undiscovered Treasures by Francis Moul. (Book Review) 2007
  • Vinton Mary Ann, Standard Soil Methods for Long-Term Ecological Research 2001
  • Vinton Mary Ann, Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie 1999

Publications

  • Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and affiliated societies
    Baker Gabrielle, Vinton Mary Ann, Using satellite imagery to compare land cover and water resources in two counties of the Nebraska Sandhills 2022
  • Great Plains research
    Vinton Mary, Larsen Alexander, Landscape Variability Underpinning the Social-Ecological System in the Nebraska Sandhills
    32:1, p. 69 - 81 2022
  • Great Plains Research
    Downey Sean, Greenberg Pierce, Vinton Mary Ann, Explaining Resident Attitudes toward Wind Energy Development in the Sandhills
    32:1, p. 56 - 68 2022
  • Great Plains research
    O'Keefe John, Leighter James L, Vinton Mary Ann, Invited Essay: Ecology, Culture, and Spirituality in the Nebraska Sandhills
    29:2, p. 71 - 81 2019
  • Ecosystems
    Vinton Mary A., Goergen Erin M., Plant–Soil Feedbacks Contribute to the Persistence of Bromus inermis in Tallgrass Prairie
    9:6, p. 967 - 976 2006
  • Journal of Vegetation Science
    Murphy Kenneth L., Burke Ingrid C., Vinton Mary Ann, Lauenroth William K., Virginia Ross A., Lowe Petra N., Aguiar Martin R., Wedin David A., Regional analysis of litter quality in the central grassland region of North America
    13:3, p. 395 - 402 2002
  • Journal of Range Management
    Vinton Mary Ann, Kathol Emily S., Vogel Kenneth P., Hopkins Andrew A., Endophytic fungi in Canada wild rye in natural grasslands
    54:4, p. 390 - 390 2001
  • Biogeochemistry
    Burke Ingrid C., Lauenroth William K., Vinton Mary Ann, Hook Paul B., Kelly Robin H., Epstein Howard E., Aguiar Martin R., Robles Marcos D., Aguilera Manuel O., Murphy Kenneth L., Gill Richard A., Plant-Soil Interactions in Temperate Grasslands
    42:1/2, p. 121 - 143 1998
  • Oecologia
    Vinton Mary Ann, Burke Ingrid C., Contingent Effects of Plant Species on Soils along a Regional Moisture Gradient in the Great Plains
    110:3, p. 393 - 402 1997
  • Ecology (Durham)
    Vinton Mary Ann, Burke Ingrid C., Interactions Between Individual Plant Species and Soil Nutrient Status in Shortgrass Steppe
    76:4, p. 1116 - 1133 1995
  • The American midland naturalist
    Vinton Mary Ann, Hartnett David C., Finck Elmer J., Briggs John M., Interactive Effects of Fire, Bison (Bison bison) Grazing and Plant Community Composition in Tallgrass Prairie
    129:1, p. 10 - 18 1993
  • Oecologia
    Vinton M. A, Hartnett D. C, Effects of bison grazing on Andropogon gerardii and Panicum virgatum in burned and unburned tallgrass prairie
    90:3, p. 374 - 382 1992

Grants

  • The Nebraska Sandhills: An Interdisciplinary Study of Place Through Ecology, Culture/Sponsor: Nebraska Environmental Trust

  • NASA-Nebraska Space Grant Fellowship FY 2021 - Quigley and Baker/Sponsor: University of Nebraska at Omaha/UNO

  • NASA NE Space Grant FY 22 Fellowship CU Quigley/Sponsor: University of Nebraska at Omaha/UNO

  • NASA FY23 Fellowship CU Stoll/Sponsor: University of Nebraska at Omaha/UNO