Collaborative Research: Trait evolution and the stability of ecological communities

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Environmental changes, such as those associated with global climate change, can affect the stability of natural communities. These same changes may also affect how species evolve, especially on very short time scales (months to decades). The goal of this project is to understand how to measure and predict the stability of natural communities, particularly when species evolve in response to environmental changes. While ecological and evolutionary processes were traditionally not studied together, there is mounting evidence that these processes interact and affect present-day communities (i.e. eco-evo feedbacks). A fundamental challenge facing evolutionary ecologists is to determine the extent to which these eco-evo feedbacks affect species abundances and the stability of communities. This project tackles this challenge by developing a mathematical framework for analyzing eco-evo feedbacks, and applying this framework to species in a natural community. Specifically, the investigators will use pitcher plant communities to evaluate the applicability of the mathematical framework and to provide an empirical basis for extrapolating theoretical results to other natural communities. These combined theoretical and empirical efforts will provide insights into when eco-evo feedbacks stabilize or destabilize ecological communities. Understanding eco-evo feedbacks is particularly important in ecosystems where human activities are a dominant ecological and evolutionary force. Society depends on many ecosystem services, in the form of food, medicine, and energy, which in turn depend on the stability of natural communities. In analyzing the role of eco-evo feedbacks on community stability, the project will provide a framework to better understand how ecosystems respond to anthropogenic disturbances and how to potentially minimize their impact on ecosystem services. This project will also support multiple outreach activities to K-12 education. Particularly, the investigators on this project will continue their extensive work with the California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science (COSMOS) at Davis, the GK-12 program to develop Data Nuggets for use in K-12 classrooms, and continued outreach to a number of organizations aimed at promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education for young women at Davis. Undergraduate students will be supported by this project and recruiting efforts will target traditionally underrepresented groups in the sciences by interfacing with Biology Undergraduate Scholars Program (BUSP), the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP), the McNair Scholars, and the California Alliance for Minority Participation (CAMP) at Davis.