Collaborative Research: Environmental Variability, Functional Redundancy, and the Maintenance of Ecological Processes: Experiments in a Model Ecosystem

物种的功能性状是那些决定物种对环境条件的特异性反应或它们对生态过程的影响的性状。目前的理论表明，具有许多物种的社区以类似的方式执行给定的功能，但对环境条件具有不同的敏感性，将表现出更大的生态系统特性的时间稳定性。所谓的功能冗余应该导致物种之间的补偿，因为一些物种会做得更好，而另一些物种则会对环境变化做出反应。人为全球变暖是当前和预期的人口动态变化，物种相互作用和社区结构从地方到全球规模的主要驱动力。因此，由此产生的生物多样性变化有可能大大改变重要的生态系统特性，如生产力、养分循环和抗干扰或入侵能力。虽然生态学家通常强调人口和社区对气候平均值变化的反应（例如，全球环流模型还预测，在世界许多地区，极端天气和气候事件的强度、频率和持续时间将显著增加，即物理环境的变异性将增加。不幸的是，我们目前对日益增加的气候变化对自然生态系统的影响的认识普遍相当贫乏。因此，预测社区将可能如何应对不断变化的环境变异性已被公认为一个关键的研究priority.Intellectual MeritThis项目将推进我们的理解如何预测温度变化将影响的行为，人口统计学和岩石海岸的关键类群的相互作用？一个模型系统，用于通过实地实验来检验理论生态预测。环境温度强烈地影响大多数生物的生理、行为和人口统计学，并且平均温度的变化已经与许多物种的地理范围变化有关。一种新的操作技术将被用来测试的影响，在热变率的变化对性能的一个公会的同类放牧帽贝，其底栖微藻食物的生产力，以及由此产生的两个类群之间的相互作用强度。营养级之间的能量转移是一个关键的生态系统过程，与当地食物网支持和养分循环速率有关。这项研究将评估不仅是物种的热变率对帽贝生存，生长和放牧活动的影响，但也有可能帽贝物种之间的功能冗余，以维持生态系统功能随着时间的推移，环境的变化增加。从这项研究产生的数据将提供一个框架，为未来的调查气候变化的后果，在这个多样化和生产力的habitation.Broader ImpactsThis项目将大大提高研究和教育的基础设施在加州州立大学，长滩（CSULB）-少数（西班牙裔）服务，主要是本科院校。至少有两名硕士生和12名本科生从CSULB将参加这项研究在三年的资金。每个学生将在夏季在霍普金斯海洋站度过十周的生活和工作，获得密集的实践研究经验。该项目还将为斯坦福大学的一名博士后科学家提供培训，他将通过积极参与拟定和实施拟议研究的所有方面而获得研究经验和熟练程度。这两个PI特别致力于提供研究经验和机会，以妇女和少数民族传统上在科学中代表性不足：丹尼目前的三名学生之一是一名妇女，并在艾伦的实验室工作的四名本科生，三名是妇女和一个是路易斯斯托克斯联盟少数民族参与（LSAMP）研究员。LSAMP计划（部分由NSF资助）旨在提高成功完成科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）学士学位课程的代表性不足的学生的质量和数量，并增加对研究生学习课程感兴趣，学术资格和录取的学生数量。丹尼将使用这个项目的数据和见解作为为期一周的“生物力学模块”的一部分，他每年在海洋发现研究所（前身为水上冒险）举办的一个密集的夏季实地项目中授课。该计划（也部分由NSF资助）旨在吸引圣地亚哥市中心的高中学生对科学感兴趣，并为他们提供进入4年制大学所需的技能。

Functional traits of species are those that determine either species-specific responses to environmental conditions or their influence on ecological processes. Current theory suggests that communities with many species that perform a given function in a similar way but have different sensitivities to environmental conditions will exhibit greater temporal stability of ecosystem properties. So-called functional redundancy should lead to compensation among species, as some will do better when others do worse in response to environmental variability. Anthropogenic global warming is a major driver of current and anticipated changes in population dynamics, species interactions, and community structure from local to global scales. Resulting changes in biodiversity therefore have the potential to significantly alter important ecosystem properties such as productivity, nutrient cycling, and resistance to disturbance or invasion. Although ecologists have typically emphasized the response of populations and communities to changing climatic averages (e.g., increasing temperature and rainfall), global circulation models also predict significant increases in the intensity, frequency and duration of extreme weather and climate events in many parts of the world; that is, increases in the variability of the physical environment. Unfortunately, our current knowledge about the effects of increasing climatic variation on natural ecosystems is generally quite poor. Predicting how communities will likely respond to changing environmental variability has therefore been recognized as a critical research priority.Intellectual MeritThis project will advance our understanding of how projected changes in temperature variability will affect the behavior, demography, and interactions of key taxa on rocky shores ? a model system for testing theoretical ecological predictions with field experiments. Environmental temperatures strongly influence the physiology, behavior, and demography of most organisms, and changes in average temperature have already been implicated in geographic range shifts of many species. A novel manipulative technique will be used to test the effects of changes in thermal variability on performance by a guild of congeneric grazing limpets, the productivity of their benthic microalgal food, and the resulting interaction strengths between the two taxa. Energy transfer among trophic levels is a key ecosystem process linked to local food-web support and rates of nutrient cycling. This research will evaluate not only species-specific effects of thermal variability on limpet survival, growth, and grazing activity, but also the potential for functional redundancy among limpet species to maintain that ecosystem function over time as environmental variability increases. Data generated from this study will provide a framework for future investigations of the consequences of climate change in this diverse and productive habitat.Broader ImpactsThis project will significantly enhance the infrastructure of research and education at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) - a minority (Hispanic) serving, predominantly undergraduate institution. At least two master's students and twelve undergraduates from CSULB will participate in this study over the three years of funding. Each student will spend ten weeks living and working during the summer at Hopkins Marine Station, gaining an intensive hands-on research experience. This project will also provide training for a postdoctoral scientist at Stanford University, who will gain research experience and proficiency by actively participating in the development and implementation of all aspects of the proposed study. Both PIs are especially committed to providing research experiences and opportunities to women and minorities traditionally underrepresented in science: one of Denny's current three students is a woman, and of the four undergraduate students working in Allen's lab, three are women and one is a Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) Research Fellow. The LSAMP program (funded in part by NSF) is designed to increase the quality and quantity of underrepresented students successfully completing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) baccalaureate degree programs, and to increase the number of students interested in, academically qualified for, and matriculated into programs of graduate study. Denny will use data and insight from this project as part of a week-long "biomechanics module" he teaches annually in an intensive summer field program run by the Ocean Discovery Institute (formerly Aquatic Adventures). This program (also funded in part by NSF) seeks to interest inner-city high school students from San Diego in science, and to provide them with the skills needed to gain access to 4-year colleges.