Climate warming and the collapse of trade-offs mediating species coexistence

这个项目将调查竞争和躲避捕食者之间的权衡可能如何受到气候变暖的影响。任何单一物种都不可能同时在为生存所必须做的每一件事上做到最好。事实上，在生活的一个方面做得好往往意味着在另一个方面做得更差。一个这样的权衡是，更善于躲避捕食者的物种往往是更贫穷的竞争者。同样，作为强大竞争对手的物种往往不善于躲避捕食者。这种权衡有助于维持群落中的生物多样性，因为它防止了任何一个物种占据主导地位。然而，竞争和捕食对温度很敏感，并不是所有物种对气候变暖的反应都相同。因此，在气候变暖的情况下，竞争和避免捕食者之间的权衡可能会发生变化。改变这种取舍可能会导致生物多样性和关键生态系统服务的损失。该项目将培训未来的K-12科学教育工作者进行科学探究。此外，该项目将让本科生参与研究，并向研究生传授现代研究技术。同时，教育和科学培训将为公民提供机会，批判性地思考为什么我们这个不断变化的星球上的生物多样性正在发生变化。许多研究表明，气候变暖可以改变共同生活在生态社区中的物种的数量和类型。然而，导致物种共存的这些变化的机制尚不清楚。这项研究将利用对淡水蜻蜓的实验，从机制上理解气候变暖如何影响竞争和捕食之间的权衡。该项目将使用实验室实验来确定温度升高如何影响竞争和捕食。在实验之后，将进行一项定量的遗传学研究，以评估参与竞争和捕食之间权衡的性状的遗传基础。最后，该项目将使用野外实验来测试气候变暖如何影响大型中生态系统中的物种共存。权衡取舍是群落生态学和进化生物学的中心原则。因此，这一结果将对理解社区的结构和原因以及未来可能发生的变化产生影响。此外，该项目将解决物种如何进化到在社区中持续存在的问题。总体而言，这些研究建立了一个全面的研究计划，建立了一个机制基础，以连接决定气候变暖将如何影响物种共存能力的行为、生理和进化过程。该项目由人口和社区生态学、既定的激励竞争研究计划(EPSCoR)和进化过程共同资助。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project will investigate how trade-offs between competition and avoiding predators may be affected by climate warming. No single species can simultaneously be best at everything it has to do to survive. Indeed, performing well at one facet of life often means doing poorer at another. One such trade-off is that species that are better at avoiding predators are often poorer competitors. Likewise, species that are strong competitors are often bad at avoiding predators. This trade-off helps maintain biodiversity in communities since it prevents any one species from dominating. However, competition and predation are sensitive to temperature and not all species may respond identically to warming. Consequently, the trade-off between competition and predator avoidance may change in a warming climate. Altering this trade-off may result in a loss of biodiversity and critical ecosystem services. This project will train future K-12 science educators in scientific inquiry. Additionally, the project will involve undergraduate students in research and will teach graduate students about modern research techniques. Together, the education and scientific training will provide opportunities for citizens to think critically about why biodiversity is being altered on our changing planet.Many studies have shown that climate warming can change the number and type of species that live together in ecological communities. Yet, the mechanisms that lead to these changes in species coexistence are unclear. This research will use experiments on freshwater damselflies to develop a mechanistic understanding of how climate warming affects trade-offs between competition and predation. The project will use laboratory experiments to determine how competition and predation are affected by increased temperature. The experiments will be followed by a quantitative genetic study that will assess the genetic basis of the traits involved in the trade-off between competition and predation. Last, the project will use field experiments to test how warming affects species coexistence in large mesocosms. Trade-offs are a central principle in both community ecology and evolutionary biology. As such, the results will have implications for understanding how and why communities are structured and may change in the future. Further, the project will address how species have evolved to persist in communities. Collectively, the studies establish a comprehensive research program that builds a mechanistic foundation to connect the behavioral, physiological, and evolutionary processes that determine how climate warming will impact the ability of species to coexist.This project is jointly funded by Population and Community Ecology, the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), and Evolutionary Processes.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.