Species assembly in vegetation under a changing climate: plant traits, contested resources, and community consequences

气候变化下植被的物种组装：植物性状、有争议的资源和群落后果

• 批准号: 291-2009
• 负责人: Aarssen, Lonnie
• 金额: $ 2.48万
• 依托单位: Queen's University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2012-01-01 至 2013-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=497644
• 关键词: Species; assembly; vegetation; under; changing

A fundamental goal for conservation and restoration ecology is to understand the mechanisms that explain why the species richness and productivity of vegetation are greater in some places than in others. Answers to this question are essential for making informed predictions and recommendations associated with vegetation response to rapid climate change. In the first major component of my research program, I will explore a new way of thinking about competitive ability in plants - one that recognizes that fitness under competition involves more than just growth (plant size) and survival; it also involves, most importantly, producing offspring. Projects will examine how the deployment and allocation of plant meristems / buds affects all three components of fitness under competition - plant size, survival and fecundity, and they will test predictions about how these can be used to define a theory for the coexistence of many species without requiring that they compete weakly, and without requiring a heterogeneous physical environment. In the second component of my research program, the above multi-trait-based approach to plant competitive ability will be tested in the specific context of competition for water using resource manipulation experiments within long-term field plots in natural vegetation along environmental gradients. On a world-wide scale, water is the most significant limiting resource and object of competition in cropping systems. Forecasters predict that, because of climate change and other anthropogenic effects, concerns for water supply in the 21st century will be what oil supply was in the last century. I predict that water is the most limiting resource affecting plant competition and plant community structure and assembly even in non-arid environments, yet the vast majority of studies and theory in vegetation ecology emphasize competition for light and nutrients as the most important objects of competition and limitation on biomass production in natural vegetation. This research program will address this imbalance.

保护和恢复生态学的一个基本目标是了解解释为什么物种丰富度和植被生产力在某些地方比在其他地方更大的机制。 这个问题的答案是必不可少的作出明智的预测和建议与植被对快速气候变化的反应。 在我的研究计划的第一个主要组成部分，我将探索一种新的方式来思考植物的竞争能力-一种认识到竞争下的适应性不仅仅涉及生长（植物大小）和生存;它还涉及，最重要的是，产生后代。 项目将研究植物分生组织/芽的部署和分配如何影响竞争下的健身的所有三个组成部分-植物大小，生存和繁殖力，他们将测试这些预测如何被用来定义一个理论，许多物种的共存，而不需要他们竞争弱，不需要一个异质的物理环境。 在我的研究计划的第二个组成部分，上述多性状为基础的方法，植物竞争力将在特定的背景下进行测试，竞争水资源操作实验在长期的野外地块内的自然植被沿着环境梯度。 在世界范围内，水是最重要的限制性资源，也是种植系统竞争的对象。 预测者预测，由于气候变化和其他人为影响，21世纪对水供应的担忧将与上个世纪的石油供应一样。 我预测，即使在非干旱环境中，水也是影响植物竞争和植物群落结构和组装的最有限资源，但植被生态学的绝大多数研究和理论强调对光和养分的竞争是自然植被生物量生产竞争和限制的最重要对象。这项研究计划将解决这种不平衡。