Matthew Bowker

Matthew Bowker is a Professor in the School of Forestry at Northern Arizona University, within the College of Ecosystem Science and Society. His research is focused on biological soil crusts, dryland ecosystems, and ecological restoration.

His primary research interests include biological soil crusts, dryland ecology, soil restoration, biogeochemistry, and land management in arid regions. His work investigates how biocrusts stabilize soils, cycle nutrients, and respond to disturbances such as climate change and herbicide use.

The recent publications show a consistent focus on biocrust cultivation, restoration techniques, herbicide compatibility, and aeolian sediment dynamics. These studies span disciplines including ecology, environmental science, geomorphology, and soil microbiology, with field sites across global drylands.

Matthew Bowker actively collaborates with researchers such as Antoninka, Barger, and Reed, contributing to large-scale, international studies on dryland ecosystems. He has co-authored works in high-impact journals including Nature Plants, Restoration Ecology, and Geomorphology.

He has contributed to open datasets, including one on biocrust communities under novel climates, hosted on Mendeley Data. His research is widely read and cited, with a Scopus h-index of 13 and over 700 citations, indicating significant scholarly impact.