Disturbance Theory: The effects of different types of environmental perturbation on species invasion and coexistence

所有生态系统都会发生干扰，但没有通用的理论框架来涵盖干扰的各个方面及其对生物群落的个体和相互作用的影响。干扰的频率、强度、持续时间、程度和时间都会影响物种共存的能力和新物种入侵现有群落的能力。干扰的这些方面之间的相互作用使其影响进一步复杂化，因此需要一个可以应用于许多生态系统以及个人、人口和社区的强大理论框架。将利用分析和模拟模型开发基于生态位的干扰理论，将物种特征与干扰机制和种群动态联系起来。如果成功，该项目将为有关干扰的多样化文献创建一个共同框架，从而显着增进我们对干扰作为生物多样性驱动因素的理解。将通过将所得模型应用于三个案例研究来测试其实用性：非本地蓟的入侵和管理、澳大利亚的火灾和放牧干扰相互作用以及深海热液喷口系统中物种的共存。该项目之所以具有更广泛的影响，是因为人类活动正在改变几乎所有生态系统的干扰机制，对物种共存和多样性造成未知的后果，而且干扰在许多入侵物种的传播中发挥了关键作用。全面的干扰理论将告知科学家和自然资源管理者，干扰的变化何时何地可能对多样性构成威胁或改变生态系统对入侵物种的敏感性。

Disturbances occur in all ecosystems, but there is no general theoretical framework that encompasses the various aspects of disturbance and their individual and interacting effects on biological communities. The frequency, intensity, duration, extent, and timing of disturbance can each influence the ability of species to coexist and the ability of new species to invade existing communities. Interactions among these aspects of disturbance further complicate their impacts, creating a need for a robust theoretical framework that can be applied to many ecosystems and to individuals, populations, and communities. An ecological niche-based theory of disturbance will be developed using analytical and simulation models, linking species traits to disturbance regimes and population dynamics. If successful, the project will create a common framework for a diverse literature on disturbance, significantly advancing our understanding of disturbance as a driver of biological diversity. The utility of the resulting models will be tested by applying them to three case studies: invasion and management of non-native thistles, fire and grazing disturbance interactions in Australia, and coexistence of species in deep-sea hydrothermal vent systems. Broader impacts of this project are present because human activities are changing disturbance regimes in virtually all ecosystems, with unknown consequences for species coexistence and diversity, and because disturbance has played a key role in the spread of many invasive species. A comprehensive theory of disturbance will inform scientists and natural resource managers when and where changes in disturbance are likely to pose threats to diversity or change the susceptibility of an ecosystem to invasive species.