QEIB: Multitrophic Diversity Maintenance Theory

群落生态学中的一个主要挑战是理解在任何给定地区维持物种多样性的机制。捕食者的存在可能会仅仅基于对资源和资源需求的竞争来修正通常的预测，传统的看法是，捕食减少了竞争，允许更高的多样性。然而，数学模型表明，捕食可能会增加、减少或不影响物种多样性，具体取决于环境。尽管捕食者的潜在影响很大，但人们对这些情况知之甚少。因此，这项建议是通过发展捕食在维持多样性中的作用的综合数学理论，建立一个更好的理论理解，并提供可检验的预测。人类对环境的影响对捕食者物种产生了重大影响，有可能对维持多样性产生重大影响。此外，捕食在外来物种的入侵和影响中扮演着一个很有争议的角色。因此，这项工作将为物种保护和入侵物种管理提供更有力的理论基础，同时为生态学的实证研究提供更有力的预测。这项工作还将包括数学在生态学中的应用方面的重要培训内容，特别是妇女和少数群体的应用。

A major challenge in community ecology is understanding the mechanisms that maintain the diversity of species in any given locality. The presence of predators can modify the usual predictions based on competition for resources and resource needs alone, with the conventional wisdom being that predation reduces competition and allows higher diversity. However, mathematical models imply that predation can increase, decrease, or have no effect on species diversity depending on the circumstances. These circumstances are poorly understood, even though the potential effects of predators are large. Thus, this proposal is to create a better theoretical understanding, with testable predictions, by developing a comprehensive mathematical theory of the role of predation in diversity maintenance. Human impacts on the environment have had major effects on predator species, with the potential for large consequences for diversity maintenance. Moreover, predation has a much debated role in the invasion and impacts of nonnative species. Thus, this work will provide a stronger theoretical basis for conservation and invasive species management, while providing stronger predictions for empirical studies in ecology. This work will also have an important training component in the application of mathematics in ecology, especially by women and minorities.