COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: Biodiversity and ecosystem function in intertidal seaweed communities

合作研究：潮间带海藻群落的生物多样性和生态系统功能

• 批准号: 0351778
• 负责人: John Stachowicz
• 金额: $ 26.65万
• 依托单位: University of California-Davis
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2004
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2004-03-01 至 2009-02-28
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0351778&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: COLLABORATIVE; RESEARCH; Biodiversity; ecosystem; function

Stachowicz/Graham-0351778/1345Collaborative research: Biodiversity and ecosystem function in intertidal seaweed communities. The relationships between species diversity and ecosystem properties such as stability, resilience, and resistance to perturbation have long been topics of theoretical interest to ecologists. In recent years, however, accelerating loss of biodiversity due to human activities has renewed interest in the functional consequences of biodiversity in ecosystems. Although experimental ecology in marine habitats has a long and productive history, and there is a fair understanding of what maintains diversity in marine benthic assemblages, little is known about the functional consequences of that diversity for the rest of the community. In this regard marine scientists lag far behind their terrestrial colleagues. This project entails a series of lab and field experiments to examine the effects of intertidal macroalgal (seaweed) diversity on primary production and the diversity, abundance, and reproduction of consumer species. The study will begin with a relatively large scale manipulation (2 m diameter plots) of macroalgal diversity on natural rocky intertidal communities at Bodega Bay, California. Five main treatments will consist of a monoculture of each of the 4 algal species that comprise 90% of the algal cover in this system and the the 4-species polyculture. Results of this experiment will be used to examine the relationship between diversity and a variety of ecosystem functions at the producer and consumer level, including the primary productivity and biomass of the macroalgal community; the growth, recruitment and reproduction of individual algal species; and the diversity, and abundance of mobile and sessile invertebrates. For objectives 2 and 3, the mechanisms responsible for any of these effects will be explored. For example, some seaweeds exhibit significantly different rates of photosynthesis in air vs. water, providing a potential mechanism for complementarity among species. Thus, in objective 2, the effects of diversity on shorter term carbon fixation in air and in water will be explored in the lab using O2 evolution (water) and CO2 uptake (air). Similarly, in objective 3, field experiments with algal mimics will be used to assess whether the structural complexity of more diverse algal communities is responsible for enhanced inverterbrate diversity or abundance. For this objective, the possibility that the algal diet provided by multiple species in polycultures results in superior growth, survival or fecundity of herbivorous invertebrates in the plots will also be tested. In all experiments, the experimental design will allow us to (a) determine whether there is a diversity effect and (b) if there is a diversity effect, whether it is simply due to the overwhelming effect of one species (i.e., the sampling effect) or due to complementary roles played by the various macroalgal species. Given the unprecedented rate of extinctions the earth is experiencing, an understanding of the consequences of biodiversity loss is critical to management efforts and this study will allow us to assess the applicability of terrestrial results to the management of marine systems. For example, it is vital that resource managers and designers of Marine Protected Areas understand the degree to which diversity at the producer level is important for enhancing the production and diversity of higher trophic levels and the overall function of coastal ecosystems. This study will provide some of the first data anywhere in marine systems on these issues and the first experimental data for the Pacific marine rocky intertidal. This project will also enhance the experience and training of post-doctoral, Ph.D. and M.S. students, and undergraduate students at two institutions. (edited 15 Jan 04, J. Pawlik)

Stachowicz/graham-0351778/1345策略研究：潮间带海藻社区的生物多样性和生态系统功能。物种多样性与生态系统特性之间的关系（例如稳定性，韧性和对扰动的抵抗）长期以来一直是生态学家理论兴趣的主题。 然而，近年来，由于人类活动引起的生物多样性丧失的加速已经引起了对生态系统对生物多样性的功能后果的兴趣。 尽管海洋栖息地中的实验生态具有悠久而富有成效的历史，并且对维持海洋底栖组合多样性的多样性有公平的了解，但对这种多样性对社区的其他多样性的功能后果知之甚少。 在这方面，海洋科学家远远落后于他们的地面同事。 该项目需要进行一系列实验室和现场实验，以检查潮间宏观（海藻）多样性对初级生产以及消费物种的多样性，丰度和繁殖的影响。 这项研究将从加利福尼亚州博德加湾的天然岩石潮间带社区的大型操纵（直径为2 m直径）开始。 五种主要治疗方法将由4种藻类物种中的每一种组成，这些藻类占该系统中90％的藻类覆盖物和4种物种多养殖。 该实验的结果将用于检查生产者和消费者水平上多样性与多种生态系统功能之间的关系，包括大型阿尔加尔社区的主要生产力和生物量；单个藻类物种的生长，招募和繁殖；以及多样性和丰富的移动和无脊椎动物。对于目标2和3，将探讨负责这些效果的机制。 例如，某些海藻在空气与水中表现出明显不同的光合作用速率，从而为物种之间的互补性提供了潜在的机制。因此，在目标2中，将使用O2进化（水）和CO2吸收（空气）在实验室中探索多样性对空气和水中较短的碳固定的影响。 同样，在目标3中，将使用藻类模拟物的现场实验来评估更多样化的藻类群落的结构复杂性是否负责增强逆脑脑多样性或丰度。 为了这个目标，多种物种在多元文化中提供的藻类饮食的可能性也会导致地块中食草无脊椎动物的卓越生长，生存或繁殖力。 在所有实验中，实验设计都将使我们能够（a）确定是否存在多样性效应，以及（b）是否存在多样性效应，是仅仅是由于一种物种的压倒性效应（即采样效应）还是由于各种宏观宏观物种所扮演的互补作用。 鉴于地球所经历的灭绝率前所未有，对生物多样性损失的后果的理解对于管理工作至关重要，这项研究将使我们能够评估陆地结果对海洋系统管理的适用性。 例如，至关重要的是，海洋保护区的资源经理和设计师了解生产者水平的多样性对于增强较高营养水平的生产和多样性以及沿海生态系统的整体功能至关重要的程度。 这项研究将在海洋系统中的任何地方提供有关这些问题的任何地方，以及太平洋海洋岩石潮间带的第一个实验数据。 该项目还将增强博士后博士的经验和培训。和M.S.学生和两家机构的本科生。 （编辑04年1月15日，J。Pawlik）