Collaborative Research: Disturbance and the Structure of River Food Webs

9317514帕克 本计画探讨溪流干扰对水生食物链长度的影响。 生态学理论表明，食物链应该因干扰而缩短，但初步观察表明，北方加州河流的定期冬季冲刷实际上可能会延长食物链。 干扰和营养动力学的相互作用进行了研究，通过实验室试验，以建立敏感的关键无脊椎动物类群捕食，实地实验，以评估干扰的影响，物种之间的相互作用和人工冲刷的底栖生物和捕食性鱼类的摄食率的强度，并进行实地调查比较调节（低干扰）和自然（高干扰）河流的营养结构。 这项研究之所以重要，有几个原因。 首先，这是一个理想的系统，用于测试（和修订）关于食物网结构和干扰在群落结构中的作用的基本理论。 本研究结果对于探讨水库放水时间表与防洪工程对河川生物多样性与群落生态的影响具有重要意义。 研究结果将为河流管理和恢复提供重要信息。 ***

9317514 Parker This project investigates the effect of stream disturbance on the length of aquatic food chains. Ecological theory indicates that food chains should be shortened by disturbance, but preliminary observations suggest that periodic winter scouring in northern California rivers may actually lengthen food chains. The interplay of disturbance and trophic dynamics is investigated by laboratory trials to establish susceptibility of key invertebrate taxa to predation, field experiments to assess the effect of disturbance on the strength of species interactions and of artificial scouring on the benthos and feeding rates of predatory fish, and field surveys comparing the trophic structure of regulated (low disturbance) and natural (high-disturbance) rivers. %%% This research is important for several reasons. First, this is an ideal system for testing (and revising) fundamental theories on the stucture of food webs and the role of disturbance in community structure. The results of this study have important implications for the effects of dam-release schedules and flood control projects on the biodiversity and community ecology of rivers. Results from this research will provide important information for stream and river management and restoration. ***