Collaborative Research: Vulnerable host stages, development time and host-parasitoid stability - The first experimental test

一千多年来，生态学家、哲学家和经济学家一直对捕食者及其猎物的盛衰周期感兴趣。令人惊讶的是，循环的原因，或者更一般地说，是什么使捕食者和猎物在自然界中长期共存，仍然没有完全理解。在这个合作方案中，生态学家和数学家合力实现了两个目标。第一个目标涉及一对实验，旨在测试是否使特定猎物的生活史阶段相对于未被操纵的（控制）种群更长或更长，会影响捕食者和猎物种群的长期共存或周期性行为。第二个目标是将数学和经验数据结合起来，开发更现实的捕食者-猎物模型，该模型可以普遍适用于各种捕食者-猎物相互作用。这项研究的结果将表明捕食者-猎物共存与两个物种的生命周期密切相关的程度。它将加强理论家的观点，即人口模型应该包含关于每个物种不同生命阶段的发展时间的信息。这项研究的结果直接适用于农业，在释放或操纵捕食者来控制植物害虫的情况下。通过选择具有特定发育阶段的捕食者，可以加强害虫的抑制。这些pi将为路易斯安那州立大学和南伊利诺伊大学的3名研究生、1名技术员和最多6名本科生提供研究经验、指导和培训。这些私人学院将参与各种促进研究的本科生研究项目，其中大部分优先招收少数族裔。

For more than a millennium, ecologists, philosophers and economists have been intrigued by boom and bust cycles of predators and their prey. Surprisingly, the cause for cycles, or more generally, what enables predators and prey to coexist in nature for long periods of time is still not fully understood. In this collaborative proposal, ecologists and mathematicians combine forces to achieve two objectives. The first objective involves a pair of experiments designed to test whether making a particular prey life history stage longer or more variable in length, relative to unmanipulated (control) populations, affects the long-term coexistence or cyclical behavior of predator and prey populations. The second objective involves combining mathematics and empirical data to develop more realistic predator-prey models that can be generally applicable to diverse predator-prey interactions. Results from this research will indicate the extent to which predator-prey coexistence is closely tied to the life cycle of the two species. It will strengthen the viewpoint of theorists that population models should incorporate information about the development times of the various life stages of each species.Results from this research apply directly to agriculture in cases where predators are released or manipulated to control plant pests. Pest suppression may be enhanced by selecting predators with certain stage-specific development times. The PIs will provide research experience, mentorship and training for 3 graduate students, 1 technician and up to 6 undergraduates at Louisiana State and Southern Illinois Universities. The PIs will participate in a variety of undergraduate research programs that promote research, most of which place a priority on recruiting minorities.