Collaborative Research:Plant-herbivore interactions mediated by toxin-determined functional response

该奖项是根据2009年《美国复苏和再投资法案》(公法111-5)提供资金的。这项跨学科的研究结合了数学家和生态学家的努力，以开发更合适的模型和建模方法，以解决生态学家和资源管理者都感兴趣的问题。该项目的具体目标有三个方面。第一个目标是扩展建模方法的数学开发，用于评估多种植物物种和草食动物之间由毒素介导的相互作用的影响。第二个目标是将毒素介导的浏览动力学整合到已有的北方森林群落动力学理论中。最后的目标是探索景观干扰、斑块模式和适应性浏览在塑造植物群落中所起的作用。开发这些模型是为了反映植物-草食系统的生物学复杂性，并将提供独特的洞察力，了解草食因素、植物因素和环境因素如何影响自然系统中有毒植物的建立和传播。由于驼鹿和其他草食动物在北方森林土著社会中扮演的关键角色，该项目的建模研究具有关键的社会意义。驼鹿是阿拉斯加最大的食草动物，是阿拉斯加内陆居民蛋白质的主要来源。几代人以来，阿萨巴斯坎印第安人一直在收获驼鹿，这提供了一种宝贵的营养和文化资源，因此驼鹿数量和分布的变化可能会对自给自足的用户产生很大影响。在农村地区尤其如此，那里可获得的替代资源有限，缺乏就业机会和贫困程度高，使自给自足的收获成为农村经济的重要组成部分。众所周知，植物中的毒素会影响草食动物的摄取和植物选择，进而影响生态系统过程，如演替。演替反过来影响驼鹿栖息地、分布和最终收获的质量。这项研究项目将提高对毒素如何影响驼鹿在北方森林演替过程中的植物选择性的理解。开发的模型将探索植被、食草动物及其对生存的影响的未来情景。此外，将改善对近期气候变暖和野火增加对驼鹿数量和分布的影响的基于过程的了解，从而改善阿拉斯加土著居民的生存机会。最后，这些信息可以帮助更好地为野生动物管理者提供信息，并允许制定更积极主动的管理政策。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). This interdisciplinary study combines efforts from mathematicians and ecologists to develop more suitable models and modeling approaches that address issues of interest to both ecologists and resource managers. The specific objectives of this project are threefold. The first objective is to extend mathematical development of a modeling approach for assessing the impact of toxin-mediated interactions between multiple plant species and herbivores. The second objective is to integrate toxin-mediated browsing dynamics into the existent theory of boreal forest community dynamics. The final objective is to explore the roles that landscape disturbance, patterns of patchiness, and adaptive browsing play in shaping the plant community. These models are developed to reflect the biological complexity of plant-herbivore systems and will provide unique insight into how herbivore factors, plant factors, and environmental factors impact the establishment and spread of toxic plants in natural systems.The modeling studies in this project have critical societal importance because of the key role that moose and other herbivores play in indigenous societies in the boreal forest. Moose, the largest herbivore in Alaska, are a major source of protein for residents in interior Alaska. For generations, Athabascan Indians have harvested moose, which provide a valuable nutritional and cultural resource, so changes in moose abundance and distribution can have large impacts on subsistence users. This is especially true in rural areas where availability of alternative resources can be limited, and lack of job opportunities and high poverty levels make subsistence harvest an essential component of rural economies. Toxins in plants are known to affect intake and plant selection in herbivores which in turn can influence ecosystem processes such as succession. Succession in turn influences the quality of moose habitat, distribution, and ultimately harvest. This research project will improve understanding of how toxins influence plant selectivity by moose during succession in the boreal forest. Models developed will explore future scenarios of vegetation, herbivores, and their consequences for subsistence. Additionally, process-based understanding of the impacts of recent climate warming and increases in wildfire on moose abundance and distribution will be improved, and therefore subsistence opportunities for indigenous residents of Alaska. Lastly, such information can help better inform wildlife managers and allow for more proactive management policies.