Collaborative Research: The Ecological and Evolutionary Consequences of Urbanization on Multispecies Plant-animal Interactions

合作研究：城市化对多物种动植物相互作用的生态和进化后果

• 批准号: 0743535
• 负责人: Rebecca Irwin
• 金额: $ 20万
• 依托单位: Dartmouth College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2008-08-01 至 2012-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0743535&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Ecological; Evolutionary; Consequences

Last Modified Date: 12/05/07 Last Modified By: ARUSSEL Abstract Human activities have drastically altered Earth's ecosystems. Chief among these changes is the alteration of habitats and the conversion of forests, pastures, and rangelands into homes, schools, and commercial and industrial sites. Housing development (hereafter referred to as urbanization) in particular is spreading rapidly. The ecological consequences of urbanization have received considerable attention, but what are the evolutionary implications? Striking examples have shown that direct human actions, such as overharvesting, hunting, and pest management, can affect patterns and rates of evolution in the species that are the targets of these activities. Yet, the degree to which urbanization alters the direction and strength of natural selection on native, non-target species, especially plants, remains largely unexplored. The goal of this study is to understand how urbanization alters patterns of natural selection on a native plant through changes in species interactions, including pollination, floral herbivory, and nectar robbing. The proposed work provides a powerful approach to document changes in the patterns of species interactions due to urbanization, isolate interactions responsible for changes in natural selection using experimental studies, and predict and test mechanisms responsible for such changes. Collaboration with the North Carolina Botanical Gardens will facilitate dissemination of research results to the public, and the principal investigators will present one lecture per year to the local garden club. The project also provides training opportunities to undergraduate and graduate students. Participation in research can be a critical learning experience in the education of many students, and this proposal provides for human resource development at multiple academic levels.

最后修改日期：2007年12月5日最后修改人：ARUSSEL 摘要人类活动极大地改变了地球的生态系统。这些变化中最主要的是栖息地的改变，以及森林、牧场和牧场转变为住宅、学校、商业和工业场所。特别是住房开发（以下称城市化）正在迅速蔓延。城市化的生态后果已受到相当大的关注，但什么是进化的影响？一些引人注目的例子表明，人类的直接行动，如过度捕捞、狩猎和害虫管理，会影响作为这些活动目标的物种的进化模式和速度。然而，城市化在多大程度上改变了自然选择对本地非目标物种（特别是植物）的方向和强度，这在很大程度上仍未得到探索。本研究的目的是了解城市化如何通过物种相互作用的变化，包括授粉，食花和花蜜掠夺，改变本地植物的自然选择模式。拟议的工作提供了一个强大的方法来记录由于城市化的物种相互作用的模式的变化，隔离的相互作用，负责自然选择的变化，使用实验研究，并预测和测试机制负责这种变化。与北卡罗来纳州植物园的合作将促进研究成果向公众传播，主要研究人员将每年向当地花园俱乐部发表一次演讲。该项目还为本科生和研究生提供培训机会。参与研究可以是许多学生教育中的一种重要学习经历，这项建议规定在多个学术级别进行人力资源开发。