Dissertation Research: Island Biogeography Theory and Restoration: The Role of Tree Islands as Regeneration Foci in the Rehabilitation of Abandoned Pastures in Honduras.

这个项目涉及与生态恢复有关的岛屿生物地理学理论的各个方面。这项研究将评估更大的岛屿大小和/或离种子来源的距离是否会增加种子招募、幼苗建立和随后在废弃牧场的“海洋”中木本植物的岛屿扩张的速度。人工树岛将通过种植两个物种的木质插穗(一个固定氮素，一个不固定氮素)来创建。将对这两个物种作为岛屿“再生焦点”的相对能力进行评估。此外，为了评估两种人工岛处理在更新过程中的效果，将与其他三种生境进行比较：开阔牧场、残留岛和次生林。这项研究将对热带地区普遍存在的退化牧场加速演替的理论基础和可能普遍适用的模型进行测试。

0071811AugspurgerThis project addresses aspects of island biogeography theory in relation to ecological restoration. The research will evaluate whether larger island size and/or shorter distance from seed source increase the rate of seed recruitment, seedling establishment, and subsequent island expansion of woody species in a "sea" of abandoned pasture. Artificial tree islands will be created by planting woody cuttings of two species (one that fixes nitrogen and one that does not fix nitrogen). The two species will be evaluated for their relative ability to serve as island "regeneration foci". In addition, to evaluate the efficacy of the two artificial island treatments on regeneration processes, comparisons will be made to three other habitats: open pasture, remnant islands, and secondary forest. This study will contribute a test of a theoretically based and possibly universally applicable model for accelerating succession in degraded pastures that have become widespread in tropical regions.