RUI: Advancing the ecological niche through demography

RUI：通过人口统计推进生态位

• 批准号: 1655541
• 负责人: Alden Griffith
• 金额: $ 47.4万
• 依托单位: Wellesley College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2017-08-15 至 2023-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1655541&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: RUI; Advancing; ecological; niche; through

An important goal of ecology is to understand how environmental factors (such as the availability of resources) influence the viability of species in different habitats. This has become particularly relevant in a world of rapid environmental change, with species being transported across continents and introduced into new locations. This research will examine how multiple environmental factors collectively affect populations of an aggressive invasive plant species, Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard), across a range of conditions. As species do not exist in isolation, the project will also investigate the intersection of competition between plant species and their surrounding habitat; specifically, how does the environment influence the outcome of species competition and what are the implications for coexistence or exclusion? Overall, this research aims to explicitly test and advance invasion biology theory, improve ecological forecasting, and inform the management of invasive species. The project also includes a strong focus on promoting undergraduate research and training in the field and laboratory.This project combines three main lines of investigation that focus on the concept of the ecological niche, i.e. the range of conditions in which a population can persist. First, a large-scale field experiment (across Southern New England) will use demographic methods to empirically quantify the ecological niche for the invasive plant, Alliaria petiolata. These analyses will be used to address questions regarding the nature and extent of resistance to invasion by resident species across the life cycle and ecological niche of the invader. Second, greenhouse studies will examine the degree to which the ecological niche of A. petiolata has evolved across different populations, as well as the mechanisms that promote demographic success. Third, a controlled mesocosm study will be used to develop two-species demographic models for A. petiolata and a co-occurring native. These models will address questions regarding how opposing mechanisms of coexistence are influenced by environmental factors, and the potential for competitive exclusion across a range of conditions in the absence of mechanisms that would promote coexistence.

生态学的一个重要目标是了解环境因素（例如资源的可用性）如何影响物种在不同栖息地中的生存能力。在迅速的环境变化世界中，这已经变得尤其重要，物种被运输到大洲并引入新地点。这项研究将研究多种环境因素如何在各种条件下统一影响侵略性入侵植物物种Alliaria Petiolata（大蒜芥末）的种群。由于物种并非孤立地存在，因此该项目还将研究植物物种及其周围栖息地之间竞争的交集。具体而言，环境如何影响物种竞争的结果以及对共存或排斥的影响？总体而言，这项研究旨在明确检验和提高入侵生物学理论，改善生态预测并告知入侵物种的管理。该项目还重点关注促进本领域和实验室的本科研究和培训。该项目结合了三个主要的调查线，重点关注生态位的概念，即人群可以持续存在的一系列条件。首先，一个大规模的现场实验（遍布新英格兰南部）将使用人口统计学方法来量化侵入性植物Alliaria Petiolata的生态位。这些分析将用于解决有关居民在生命周期和入侵者的生态基础上对居民对入侵的性质和程度的问题。其次，温室研究将研究A. petiolata的生态位在不同人群中发展的程度，以及促进人口统计学成功的机制。第三，将使用受控的中验研究来开发针对A. petiolata和同时存在的天然的两种人口统计学模型。这些模型将解决有关共存机制如何受环境因素影响的问题，以及在没有促进共存的机制的情况下，在一系列条件下竞争排斥的潜力。