CAREER: Butterflies on the move: integrating biogeography, physiology and citizen science towards a mechanistic understanding of contemporary range shifts

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Species are on the move, appearing in places they never used to be and disappearing from areas where they once were common. Many species are shifting in space towards the poles or up mountains but not all species do so. Some stay put and others shrink their range, presumably unable to move somewhere better. Ecologists are trying to understand these differences. This award harnesses the power of long-term, citizen science monitoring of butterflies in the Midwestern United States to explore whether traits unique to different butterfly species explain each species' range shifts over the last several decades. Traits include how well the species flies, the habitat and food it needs, and its physiology. The research considers not only what the traits are now but how each can change within and across generations. In other words, to what extent are the traits fixed or flexible? If fixed, a species may be forced to move to new places when conditions change. If flexible, the species may be more able to adapt to new conditions and make do without moving. This project will test these ideas. The project will provide research and educational/outreach opportunities to a diverse array of early-career researchers and students including post-doctoral researchers and graduate, undergraduate and high school students.The award will advance fundamental research on the determinants of species ranges and range shifts. A combination of empirical assessments of butterfly traits, geographic range modeling, and trait-based statistical approaches will be used to explore the linkages between range shifts and species traits. Multi-temperature common garden experiments will allow the assessment of phenotypic plasticity and evolutionary change in physiological traits to be incorporated in the trait-based models. The project will directly involve citizen scientists, K-12 students and teachers, and undergraduate and graduate students in the research. New tools and resources focused on quantifying the thermal environment of butterflies will be developed for citizen scientists to engage with their study organisms in novel ways and expand the range of data collected from the monitoring of butterflies. The results of the project will be regularly disseminated to citizen scientists through local meetings and public presentations. These events will build a conduit for direct interface between citizen scientists and research scientists. Project personnel will collaborate to develop hands-on, inquiry-based modules for primary school (grades 2-5) teachers and students to interact with local butterflies, and to understand how and why butterflies are moving. The modules will be focused around the theme of bringing the scientific method into the classroom. These activities will dovetail with Case Western Reserve University's Introduction to Innovation program, a cross-disciplinary endeavor to develop STEM-focused teaching modules.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.