Population Dynamics in Variable Environments

可变环境中的种群动态

• 批准号: 0211985
• 负责人: Henry Wilbur
• 金额: $ 19.5万
• 依托单位: University of Virginia Main Campus
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2002
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2002-08-15 至 2005-01-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0211985&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Population; Dynamics; Variable; Environments

Three mechanisms that promote the persistence of populations in uncertain environments are: 1) a variable age at maturation, 2) repeated reproduction, and 3) dispersal between populations. The project will study 18 amphibian species that breed in a complex of 32 natural sinkhole ponds. All individuals of 7 species are photographed whenever they are captured. Computer-assisted matching of these images yields data for capture-recapture models to estimate population sizes and vital rates. These estimates will allow direct evaluation of population dynamics and persistence in uncertain environments under realistic assumptions. The detailed model for the most common focal species, Ambystoma opacum, will guide construction of an individual-based model for Ambystoma tigrinum, a species listed as endangered in several states. Population dynamics in spatially and temporally varying environments comprise an important area of population biology because they determine the context of life history adaptation and population differentiation. This study is also important because population ecology is the foundation for community ecology and for the development of plans for managing populations for harvest, pest control, or conservation action.The request for imaging equipment is supported within this award as part of NSF's Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities, a funding mechanism that enables scientists with disabilities to more fully engage in the research process. The project will support doctoral and post-doctoral research. Undergraduates will be employed as field assistants during the summer.

种群在不确定环境中的持久性有三种机制：1）成熟年龄可变，2）重复繁殖，3）种群间的扩散。该项目将研究在32个天然天坑池塘中繁殖的18种两栖动物。 7个物种的所有个体在捕获时都被拍照。这些图像的计算机辅助匹配产生捕获-再捕获模型的数据，以估计人口规模和生命率。这些估计数将允许在现实的假设下直接评价种群动态和在不确定环境中的持久性。最常见的焦点物种Ambystoma opacum的详细模型将指导构建一个基于个体的模型Ambystoma tigrinum，这是一种在几个州被列为濒危物种的物种。时空变化环境中的种群动态是种群生物学的一个重要领域，因为它们决定了生活史适应和种群分化的背景。这项研究也很重要，因为种群生态学是社区生态学的基础，也是制定收获、虫害控制或保护行动的种群管理计划的基础。成像设备的申请是NSF残疾科学家和工程师促进奖的一部分，该资助机制使残疾科学家能够更充分地参与研究过程。该项目将支持博士和博士后研究。本科生将在夏季被聘为外勤助理。