He is an integrative scientist with expertise in community theory, sociology, and quantitative methods. Empirical research by Lortie and collaborators includes biogeographical comparisons of many forms of community dynamics including invasion, climate change, keystone species, and plant-insect interactions. Research efforts include structural network analyses to couple trophic and non-trophic interactions with basal facilitation in desert ecosystems. Lortie is also a senior editor for Oikos and serves on other boards including PLOSONE, Journal of Ecology, and PeerJ.