BoCP-Implementation: Eco-evolutionary dynamics of rewilding: Real-time genetic monitoring of large-mammal community reassembly

BoCP-实施：野化的生态进化动力学：大型哺乳动物群落重组的实时基因监测

基本信息

批准号：
2225088
负责人：
Robert Pringle
金额：
$ 248.87万
依托单位：
Princeton University
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Continuing Grant
财政年份：
2023
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2023-01-01 至 2027-12-31
项目状态：
未结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2225088&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
BoCP Implementation Eco evolutionary dynamics

项目摘要

Large wild animals are ecologically and economically important, but their populations are shrinking, and many species are threatened with extinction. A growing number of initiatives seek to reverse these trends by restoring wildlife populations, but the scientific foundation for guiding these efforts is weak. One key obstacle to understanding how and why wildlife populations increase in abundance (or not) is the difficulty of measuring the survival and reproduction of individual animals. The two main aims of this research are to test new methods for monitoring wildlife populations using DNA collected non-invasively from fecal samples, and to apply these methods to understand the process of wildlife recovery in Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park. This project focuses on Gorongosa because it is the world’s premiere example of large-scale wildlife restoration. The park’s large mammals were nearly eliminated during a long civil war, but most species are now rapidly recovering. This creates unique opportunities to understand how a whole community of animals reassembles from scratch. The research also has a range of broader benefits. First, the techniques devised and validated during this project will be applicable for basic research, wildlife monitoring, and environmental management elsewhere throughout the world. Second, knowledge gained from the research will be directly applied to conserve species that are at risk of extinction. Third, the project will build capacity for cutting-edge genomic analyses in Mozambique, where no such facilities currently exist. Fourth, a diverse group of early-career scientists based in the United States will be trained on the project. Results of the research will be communicated in non-specialist terms to a broad audience, deepening public understanding of Gorongosa’s hopeful story of environmental recovery.This project draws on rapidly advancing genomic capabilities to address a fundamental challenge at the interface of ecology and evolutionary biology: the ability to measure reproductive success and its phenotypic, demographic, and environmental correlates. By sequencing environmental DNA in fecal samples, the investigators will attempt to construct pedigrees and use genomic mark-recapture methods to estimate population sizes and key demographic parameters such as birth and death rates. DNA from the same fecal samples will be sequenced to assess diet composition, gut microbiomes, and gastrointestinal parasites. Based on these data, the research team will answer a suite of questions about the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of a recovering large-mammal community, including: How does the loss and subsequent recovery of top predators affect prey fitness as a function of individual behavior? Does a recovering community tend towards its historical state, or instead follow alternative trajectories? Do behavioral anomalies in small, reintroduced populations persist or dissipate as the population grows? How does a collapsed food web reassemble, and what can this tell us about the mechanisms by which biodiversity is maintained?This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

大型野生动物在生态和经济上都很重要，但它们的数量正在减少，许多物种面临灭绝的威胁。越来越多的举措试图通过恢复野生动物数量来扭转这些趋势，但指导这些努力的科学基础很薄弱。理解野生动物种群数量如何以及为何增加（或不增加）的主要障碍是测量个体动物的生存和繁殖的困难，这项研究的两个主要目的是测试使用非生物收集的 DNA 监测野生动物种群的新方法。侵入性地从粪便样本中提取，并应用这些方法了解莫桑比克戈龙戈萨国家公园野生动物恢复的过程该项目重点关注戈龙戈萨，因为它是世界上第一个大规模野生动物恢复的例子，该公园的大型哺乳动物在长期内战中几乎被消灭，但大多数物种现在都已灭绝。这为了解整个动物群落如何从头开始重组创造了独特的机会，该研究还具有一系列更广泛的好处，该项目期间设计和验证的技术将适用于基础研究、野生动物。其次，从研究中获得的知识将直接应用于保护濒临灭绝的物种。第三，该项目将在莫桑比克建立尖端基因组分析的能力，而莫桑比克还没有这样的能力。第四，美国的一批处于职业生涯早期的科学家将接受该项目的培训，研究结果将以非专业术语传达给广大受众，加深公众对戈龙戈萨充满希望的故事的理解。环境恢复。本项目利用快速发展的基因组能力来解决生态学和进化生物学交叉点的基本挑战：通过对粪便样本中的环境 DNA 进行测序，研究人员将尝试构建测量繁殖成功及其表型、人口统计和环境相关性的能力。谱系并使用基因组标记重捕获方法来估计种群规模和关键人口统计参数，例如对相同粪便样本的 DNA 进行测序，以评估饮食成分、肠道微生物组和胃肠道寄生虫。根据这些数据，研究小组将回答一系列有关正在恢复的大型哺乳动物群落的生态和进化动态的问题，包括：顶级捕食者的消失和随后的恢复如何影响猎物的适应性作为个体行为的函数？一个正在恢复的群体倾向于其历史状态，还是遵循其他轨迹？随着人口的增长，重新引入的小群体中的行为异常是否会持续存在或消失？崩溃的食物网如何重组？这可以告诉我们什么机制？生物多样性是该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

项目成果

期刊论文数量（3）

专著数量（0）

科研奖励数量（0）

会议论文数量（0）

专利数量（0）

Impacts of large herbivores on terrestrial ecosystems

大型食草动物对陆地生态系统的影响

DOI：
10.1016/j.cub.2023.04.024
发表时间：
2023-06
期刊：
Current Biology
影响因子：
9.2
作者：
Pringle, Robert M.;Abraham, Joel O.;Anderson, T. Michael;Coverdale, Tyler C.;Davies, Andrew B.;Dutton, Christopher L.;Gaylard, Angela;Goheen, Jacob R.;Holdo, Ricardo M.;Hutchinson, Matthew C.;et al
通讯作者：
et al

Trait-based sensitivity of large mammals to a catastrophic tropical cyclone

大型哺乳动物对灾难性热带气旋的基于性状的敏感性

DOI：
10.1038/s41586-023-06722-0
发表时间：
2023-11
期刊：
Nature
影响因子：
64.8
作者：
Walker, Reena H.;Hutchinson, Matthew C.;Becker, Justine A.;Daskin, Joshua H.;Gaynor, Kaitlyn M.;Palmer, Meredith S.;Gonçalves, Dominique D.;Stalmans, Marc E.;Denlinger, Jason;Bouley, Paola;et al
通讯作者：
et al

Wolves, otters, ungulates, and a promising path for ecology

狼、水獭、有蹄类动物和一条充满希望的生态之路