Katya Kovalenko Ph.D.

Head and shoulder picture of a woman.
Professional Title
Quantitative Ecologist and Data Scientist

Research Interests

Research interests include interface of ecology and data science, community and ecosystem ecology, habitat complexity, invasive species, ecological resilience, and biodiversity conservation.

Education

  • Postdoctoral, Aquatic Ecology, University of Windsor, 2009-2013
  • Ph.D., Aquatic Ecology, Mississippi State University, 2006-2009
  • M.S., Aquaculture and Fisheries/Statistics, Mississippi State University, 1999-2001

Profiles

Recent Publications

Ecological Transformations of Coastal Wetlands of the Conterminous United States in Response to Contemporaneous Sea-Level Rise

Recent Publications: Ekaterina Kovalenko
1 month ago
Ecological Transformations of Coastal Wetlands of the Conterminous United States in Response to Contemporaneous Sea-Level RiseNeville, J. A., Kovalenko, K. E., Snedden, G. A., Osland, M. J., Thorne, K. M., Feher, L. C., Moorman, M. C., Moon, J. A., Krauss, K. W., Grace, J. B., Lane, T. C., Sanspree, C. R., Cahoon, D. R. & Guntenspergen, G. R., Aug 2026, In: Earth's Future. 14, 8, e2025EF006836.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Comparison between fluorometry and microscopy-based phytoplankton assessments in the Laurentian Great Lakes

Recent Publications: Ekaterina Kovalenko
4 months ago
Comparison between fluorometry and microscopy-based phytoplankton assessments in the Laurentian Great LakesKovalenko, K. E., Reavie, E. D., Filstrup, C. T., Scofield, A., Lightfoot, M., Yang, E. & Alexson, E. E., May 2026, In: Limnology and Oceanography: Methods. 24, 5, e70033.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Survival and growth of underplanted replacement tree species in black ash wetlands threatened by emerald ash borer in Minnesota, USA

Recent Publications: Ekaterina Kovalenko
10 months ago
Survival and growth of underplanted replacement tree species in black ash wetlands threatened by emerald ash borer in Minnesota, USAPalik, B. J., Slesak, R. A., Kastendick, D. N., Kovalenko, K., D’Amato, A. W., Toczydlowski, A. & Grinde, A. R., Nov 2025, In: New Forests. 56, 6, 71.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Phytoplankton trends in the Laurentian Great Lakes (2001–2021) reveal significant changes in phytoplankton abundance and taxonomic composition

Recent Publications: Ekaterina Kovalenko
1 year 5 months ago
Phytoplankton trends in the Laurentian Great Lakes (2001–2021) reveal significant changes in phytoplankton abundance and taxonomic compositionReavie, E. D., Kovalenko, K. E., Cai, M., Alexson, E. E., Wellard Kelly, H. A. & Scofield, A. E., Apr 2025, In: Journal of Great Lakes Research. 51, 2, 102514.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Featured Research Projects

Screenshot of the ForCast tool including data layer overlay in Northern Minnesota, and bar chart analysis of data

ForCAST: Forest Change Assessment and Simulation Tool

The ForCAST tool attempts to provide forestry professionals and land managers with an opportunity to evaluate how a changing climate and changing markets might affect Minnesota’s forests and

Screenshot of Beaver Dam Modeling tool in Northeastern Minnesota. Half the screen is a aerial photo, half an illustrated map, overlain with beaver dam locations

Predicting Beaver Dam Locations on North Shore Streams

The goal of this project was to develop a model that predicts potential beaver dam locations based on stream channel, watershed and habitat characteristics.

NRRI News Articles

Forest trees with clear ball in the middle of image.

'ForCASTing' the future

NRRI builds future modeling tool for natural resources decision-making.

Head and shoulders image of a woman with large tree behind her.

Meet the Researcher - Katya Kovalenko

Scientists love their data. But tracking and sorting the ever-increasing amounts of data can be a time consuming effort. Enter the data wrangler.

Media Coverage