OPUS: Optimization of Resource Acquisition Strategies and its Effects on Ecosystem Function and Community Structure

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This grant will support a synthesis of over 15 years of research by the author on the regulation of carbon and nutrient cycles in ecosystems and will result in a major monograph setting out the foundations of a theory of the optimal use of resources such as carbon, water, and nutrients. The theory predicts how organisms should regulate the acquisition of resources from their environment to maximize growth. This regulation has clear ramifications for ecosystem responses to disturbances like, for example, global warming. The monograph will present the mathematics used by the author in his model of resource optimization and provide illustrative examples. The work has the potential to develop into a broadly synthetic theory of ecosystem regulation that will unify concepts from biogeochemistry, eco-physiology, and community and population biology. This synthesis is aimed directly at education; the monograph and classroom-ready sample simulations could serve as the basis for a modeling course or supplement to an Ecology course. Most quantitative training in ecology is currently focused on statistics, not the dynamics of ecosystem function. However, a strong foundation in dynamics is required for a mechanistic understanding of ecosystems and how they respond to changes in the environment. The products of this synthesis should help establish that foundation for the next generation of ecologists.