Beta diversity of plant-insect food webs along an altitudinal gradient in the tropics

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。食物网描述了资源在生态系统中的流动，从生产者（植物）到初级消费者（食草动物），再到次级消费者（食肉动物）。在众多物种共享共同资源的热带雨林中，食物网尤其复杂。植物-昆虫食物网是地球生物多样性的主要组成部分，但人们对热带雨林的相互联系的食物网知之甚少，因为它们比简单的生态系统更难研究。新几内亚岛上刀耕火种的农业实践为解开复杂的食物网提供了一个独特的机会。与自然保护区的生态研究不同，当新几内亚农民扩大他们的花园时，科学家可以从原始森林中提取活的植物和昆虫用于实验目的。之前的一个项目实验测试了大约250种低地热带森林树木的害虫的食性。目前的项目建立在早期工作的基础上，通过检查高海拔地区的森林，可以评估对复杂食物网形状的预测。本研究旨在确定影响树皮甲虫和毛虫等木材害虫食用量的捕食者和寄生虫。对植物-昆虫食物网的研究可为管理森林从破坏性昆虫爆发中恢复提供信息。最近在美国西部爆发的山松甲虫疫情比该地区以往任何记录都要大十倍，造成的经济影响以数十亿美元计。不同森林的食物网，如在新几内亚岛，为了解限制木材害虫饮食和范围的因素提供了无与伦比的机会。新几内亚还是世界上第三大热带森林荒野的所在地，目前正在国际上考虑建立温室气体减排市场。该项目支持培训年轻科学家，包括几名研究生，并在一个具有全球重要性的地区发展自然资源专业知识。此外，物种发现和生态信息将为未来监测森林对持续全球变化的反应建立基线。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). Food webs describe the flow of resources through ecosystems from producers (plants) to primary consumers (herbivores) and on to secondary consumers (predators). Food webs are especially complex in diverse tropical rainforests where numerous species share common resources. Plant-insect food webs are a major component of Earth's biodiversity, but little is known about the interconnected webs of tropical rain forests because they are more difficult to study than simpler ecosystems. Slash-and-burn agricultural practices on the island of New Guinea provide a unique opportunity to disentangle complex food webs. Unlike ecological research in protected natural areas, scientists can extract living plants and insects from pristine forests for experimental purposes when New Guinea farmers expand their gardens. A previous project experimentally tested the feeding habits of insect pests attacking approximately 250 species of lowland tropical forest trees. The present project builds upon the earlier work by examining forests at higher elevations where predictions about the shape of complex food webs can be evaluated. This research aims to identify predators and parasites influencing the dietary limits of timber pests including bark beetles and caterpillars.Recovery of managed forests from outbreaks of damaging insects can be informed by studies of plant-insect food webs. The recent mountain pine beetle outbreak in the western U.S. is ten times larger than any previously recorded in the region, with an economic impact that is measured in billions of dollars. Food webs of diverse forests, as on the island of New Guinea, offer unparalleled opportunities to understand the factors limiting the diet and range of timber pests. New Guinea is also home to the world's third largest remaining tropical forest wilderness and is under international consideration for markets in greenhouse gas mitigation. This project supports the training of young scientists including several graduate students and develops natural resource expertise in a region of global importance. In addition, species discovery and ecological information will establish a baseline for future monitoring of forest response to continuing global change.