Micro to mega-landscapes: scaling arboreal lichen pattern and processes in the boreal rainforest

作为一个景观生态学家，我想知道为什么物种会在它们所在的地方被发现。景观生态学家使用观察物种的出现与地理信息系统数据（数字地图）开发分布模型，以帮助这种理解。这些模型的一个挑战可能是缺乏关于生物体的数据。同样，强有力的科学实验需要重复实验。然而，在景观生态学中，很难有可复制的景观来进行实验。我的目标是克服这些挑战。我将使用纽芬兰岛上的树栖（树居）地衣作为模型系统（具有大量个体），以更好地了解是什么驱动了跨尺度的生物多样性空间格局。纽芬兰因其丰富的地衣多样性而被称为“北方雨林”。我将克服缺乏复制的挑战，在多个空间尺度上使用林分和树木作为“景观”。这将有助于验证和改进统计模型，从而有助于改进其他物种的生境模型。这将有助于我正在进行的研究，以获得深入了解物种栖息地动态的北方物种。最后，我将研究如何树栖地衣可以作为森林生态完整性的指标。拟议的计划将包括实地工作，地理信息系统分析和统计建模项目在三个不同的空间尺度，调查空间多样性模式和栖息地的要求，为多种树木地衣物种。该计划将涉及9名HQP（2名博士，2名硕士，5名本科生）。在微观尺度上，我将把一个林分内的个别树木作为复制景观，并测试如何沿沿着树干的细尺度变化影响地衣分布。在中观尺度，我将在林分之间和林分内部工作，比较影响地衣分布的林分水平属性。在大尺度上，我将比较两个地理上分离的地衣“热点”的地衣分布模式。最后，一个综合的，基于桌面的项目将使用多个尺度的预测分布来确定地衣如何作为生态指标发挥作用。这项工作是新颖的，因为它采用了跨尺度的角度来看，并适用于明确的景观生态学原则地衣生态。跨尺度抽样设计允许一个非常清楚的空间尺度如何影响多样性模式的检查。这些见解将有助于统计建模技术，以分析跨尺度的其他物种的多样性模式。地衣是一种重要的研究生物，因为它们是大气污染和森林完整性的指标。这项工作将在我们对北方地区树木地衣多样性模式的理解方面开辟新的天地，并有助于提供可用于森林管理的信息，以确保森林生态不受人类活动的负面影响。

As a landscape ecologist, I want to know why species are found where they are. Landscape ecologists use observations about species occurrences together with GIS data (digital maps) to develop distribution models to aid with this understanding. A challenge with these models can be lack of data on organisms. As well, robust scientific experimentation requires experiments to be replicated. However, in landscape ecology it is very difficult to have replicate landscapes on which to experiment. My goal is to overcome these challenges. I will use arboreal (tree-dwelling) lichens on the island of Newfoundland as a model system (with high numbers of individuals) to better understand what drives spatial patterns of biodiversity across scales. Newfoundland is known as the "boreal rainforest" because of its high lichen diversity. I will overcome the challenge of lack of replication using stands and trees as "landscapes" at multiple spatial scales. This will allow for validation and improvement of statistical models and thereby help to improve habitat models for other species. This will contribute to my on-going research to gain insights into species-habitat dynamics for boreal species. Finally, I will investigate how arboreal lichens can be used as an indicator for forest ecological integrity.******The proposed program will include field work, GIS analysis and statistical modelling projects at three different spatial scales to investigate spatial diversity patterns and habitat requirements for multiple arboreal lichen species. The program will involve 9 HQP (2 PhD, 2 MSc, 5 Undergraduates). At the micro-scale I will treat individual trees within a stand as replicate landscapes and test how fine-scale changes along the trunk of a tree affect lichen distribution. At the meso-scale I will work within and between stands to compare stand level attributes that influence lichen distribution. At the mega-scale I will compare lichen distribution patterns in two geographically separated lichen "hot-spots". Finally, an integrative, desk-based project will use predictive distributions at multiple scales to determine how lichens can function as ecological indicators.******This work is novel in that it adopts a cross-scale perspective and applies explicit landscape ecology principles to lichen ecology. The cross-scale sampling design allows for a very clear examination of how spatial scale influences diversity patterns. These insights will contribute to statistical modelling techniques for analysing diversity patterns of other species across scales. Lichens are an important organism for study because they are indicators of atmospheric pollution and forest integrity. The work will break new ground in our understanding of arboreal lichen diversity patterns in the boreal region and help provide information that can be used in forest management to ensure forest ecology is not negatively affected by human activities.