Dissertation Research: Differences in Foraging Behavior among Multiple Predator Species: Implications for Prey Communities

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Proposal: DEB-0104644PIs: Daniel A. Soluk and Heather D. VanceTitle: Dissertation Research: Differences in foraging behavior among multiple predator species: Implications for prey communitiesBy studying isolated subcomponents of complex systems, many assume that the processes observed in such small subsets can be added together to predict phenomena in the larger system. This assumption is inherent in predation theory, yet many recent studies report that the impacts of particular predators in isolation with their prey cannot be added together to predict the impact of multiple predator species simultaneously. The ability to predict conditions under which higher or lower rates of predation than expected will occur is crucial to determining patterns of mortality in prey populations. A lab experiment involving predators that use similar foraging behaviors and those that use different foraging behaviors will be used to test hypotheses about the combined effects of predation by multiple predator species. This experiment will provide knowledge about the level of predation risk that prey face and has implications for biodiversity by demonstrating the factors influencing the distribution and abundance of species in nature. This study will improve our ability to predict the effect of invasive predator species on native communities.