Dissertation Research: The Effect of Seaweed Subsidy on an Ant-plant Mutualism

有证据表明，由于全球气候变化，飓风等大型风暴正变得越来越频繁。风暴活动增加的一个后果是，更多来自海洋的物质最终会落到陆地上，例如，海藻沉积在海滩上。这种生物量的转移代表着资源从海洋向陆地生态系统的流动。了解生态系统对海洋资源变化的反应有助于预测飓风频率的增加将如何影响沿海生态系统。该研究项目调查了因风暴而大量沉积在陆地上的海藻如何影响岛屿上蚂蚁和树木之间重要的生态相互作用。在这种互利的互动中，树木以花蜜的形式为蚂蚁提供食物，作为回报，蚂蚁保护树木免受攻击。没有了蚂蚁的守卫，树木就会被各种各样的昆虫吃掉，这可能会带来毁灭性的后果。在增加或减少海藻的岛屿上，将把蚂蚁排除在树木之外，以确定海洋资源如何影响蚂蚁对植物的积极影响。调查人员将在这项研究中包括一个不同的本科生群体，并且在与代表各种种族背景的男性和女性本科生合作方面有着良好的记录。该项目还将支持一名博士生在社区生态学方面的研究。

There is evidence that large storms, such as hurricanes, are becoming more frequent due to global climate change. One consequence of increased storm activity is that more material from the ocean ends up on land, for example, seaweed deposited onto beaches. This transfer of biomass represents a flow of resources from the marine to the terrestrial ecosystem. Understanding the ecological responses to this flux of marine resources can help predict how increasing hurricane frequencies will affect coastal ecosystems. This research project investigates how seaweed, which is deposited on land in large amounts by storms, influences an ecologically important interaction between ants and trees on islands. In this mutually beneficial interaction the trees provide food in the form of nectar for the ants, and in return the ants protect the trees from attack. Without their ant guards, trees are eaten by a variety of other insects, with potentially devastating consequences. Ants will be excluded from trees on islands with seaweed added or removed to determine how marine resources influence the positive effect of ants on plants. The investigators will include a diverse group of undergraduate students in this research and have a strong record of working with both male and female undergraduates representing a variety of ethnic backgrounds. This project will also support the research of a doctoral student in community ecology.