International Research Fellow Awards: Comparative Ecophysiology of Savanna and Forest Trees as a Key to Understanding the Dynamics of the Savanna-Forest Boundary

9803013霍夫曼国际研究员奖计划使美国科学家和工程师能够在国外进行3至24个月的研究。该项目的奖项提供了联合研究的机会，并提供了使用国外独特或互补的设施、专业知识和实验条件的机会。该奖项将支持威廉·A·霍夫曼博士在巴西巴西利亚大学与奥古斯托·C·佛朗哥博士合作进行为期24个月的博士后研究访问。他们的工作将涉及对稀树草原和森林树木的生态生理学进行比较，以此作为了解稀树草原-森林边界动态的关键。这项研究的目的是：测量稀树草原和森林物种之间的水分关系、叶水平生理和分布模式的差异，以显示这两个物种组内特征的趋同进化；衡量分配模式和生态生理适应对稀树草原和森林物种表现差异的重要性；以及确定哪些环境因素限制稀树草原和林木跨越稀树草原-森林边界的生长。他们将在塞拉多进行这项研究，塞拉多是一种稀树草原植被，覆盖巴西200万公里。佛朗哥博士的专业领域是塞拉多木本植物生态的生理学基础领域。除了与巴西利亚大学的设施合作外，霍夫曼博士还可以进入一个国家公园、三个生态保护区和两个研究站，所有这些都可以进行这类研究。***

9803013 Hoffmann The International Research Fellow Awards Program enables U.S. scientists and engineers to conduct three to twenty- four months of research abroad. The program's awards provide opportunities for joint research, and the use of unique or complementary facilities, expertise and experimental conditions abroad. This award will support a twenty-four-month postdoctoral research visit by Dr. William A. Hoffmann to work with Dr. Augusto C. Franco at the Universidade de Brasilia in Brazil. Their work will involve the comparison of the ecophysiology of savanna and forest trees as a key to understanding the dynamics of the savanna-forest boundary. The objectives of this research are: to measure differences in water relations, leaf-level physiology, and distribution patterns between savanna and forest species to show convergent evolution of traits within each of these two groups of species; to measure the importance of allocation patterns versus ecophysiological adaptations to the differences in the performance of savanna and forest species; and to determine what environmental factors limit the growth of savanna and forest trees across the savanna- forest boundary. They will conduct this research within the cerrado, a savanna vegetation that occupies 2 million kilometers of Brazil. Dr. Franco's area of expertise is in the area of the physiological basis of woody plant ecology in the cerrado. In addition to working with the facilities of the University of Brasilia, Dr. Hoffmann will have access to a national park, three ecological reserves and two research stations, all of which are accessible for this type of research. ***