Zooplankton control of climate change impacts on ocean food-webs

浮游动物是海洋食物网中浮游植物(微型植物)和更高层次的消费者(如鱼、海鸟)之间的关键环节。虽然人们普遍认为，气候驱动的浮游动物群落变化在渔业和海洋鸟类和哺乳动物数量下降中发挥了关键作用，但推动浮游动物对气候变化反应的过程仍然没有得到很好的解决。填补这一知识空白对于了解气候变化对生态系统的影响、可持续资源管理以及渔业保护和政策至关重要，也是我的长期计划目标。*本申请是为了支持三个相互关联的短期目标，以支持这一目标。*目标1：建立一个基于大小的测量浮游动物食物网动态的框架，以绕过浮游动物群落复杂性带来的挑战。这种方法将改变浮游动物食物网的研究，实现1)捕食者-猎物联系的测量的全球标准化；2)生化特性的转移；以及3)最终决定生产力的食物链长度。不列颠哥伦比亚省生态系统将作为案例研究，利用渔业和海洋部和Hakai研究所的海洋观测平台。*目标2：提出一种新的经验方法，结合生物化学和生物量大小光谱理论来衡量食物网组成部分之间的能量转移效率(ETE)。气候驱动的生态系统生产力变化，包括渔业，只有在ETE估计可用时才能得到充分理解。这一开创性的方法将应用于全球不同海洋生态系统的生产力气候预测，并使之成为可能。*目标3：引领食物网模型的范式转变。目前的模型过于简单化，并不一致地将浮游生物种群参数化，并使用ETE的理论估计。目标1和目标2的成果将被纳入具有Ecosim的生态系统模型框架，以彻底改变生态系统动态的表示、模拟食物网对气候变化的反应以及资源管理。*由于浮游动物在海洋食物网中的基本联系功能，浮游动物是气候变化影响的关键控制因素。我的研究计划将为从机制上理解浮游动物对气候变化的反应做出重要贡献，并最终产生更有效的基于生态系统的管理。我独特的全球经验和证明的结合原始分析方法的能力为实现所述目标提供了所需的背景。这些将在一个充满活力的实验室中实现，为HQP提供一个特殊的学习环境，他们将使用尖端工具，在国家和国际团队中工作，并为食物网络生态的前沿做出贡献。

Zooplankton are the critical link in marine food-webs between phytoplankton (microscopic plants) and higher level consumers (e.g., fish, seabirds). While widely accepted that climate-driven changes in zooplankton communities have played a key role in declines of fisheries and populations of marine birds and mammals, the processes that drive zooplankton response to climate change remain weakly resolved. Filling this knowledge gap is fundamental to: understanding ecosystem impacts of climate change, sustainable resource management, and fisheries conservation and policy, and represents my long-term program goal. ******This application is in support of three interlinked short-term objectives in support of this goal. ******Objective 1: Build a size-based framework for measurement of zooplankton food-web dynamics that will circumvent the challenges posed zooplankton community complexity. This approach will transform zooplankton food-web research, enabling global standardization of measurements of 1) predator-prey linkages; 2) transfer of biochemical properties; and 3) food-chain length, which ultimately determines productivity. British Columbia ecosystems will be used as case studies, taking advantage of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and Hakai Institute's ocean observation platforms.******Objective 2: Advance a new empirical approach, lacking to date, combining biochemistry and biomass size spectrum theory to measure Energy Transfer Efficiency (ETE) between food-web components. Climate-driven changes to ecosystem productivity, including fisheries, will only be fully understood once ETE estimates are available. This ground breaking approach will be applied to and enable climate projections of productivity across contrasting ocean ecosystems globally.******Objective 3: Lead a paradigm shift in food-web models. Current models grossly oversimplify and inconsistently parameterize plankton groups, and use theoretical estimates of ETE. The outcomes of Objectives 1 and 2 will be incorporated into the Ecopath with Ecosim model framework, to revolutionize the representation of ecosystem dynamics, simulation of food web response to climate change, and resource management. ******Due to their essential linking function in marine food-webs, zooplankton are a key control of climate change impacts. My research program is poised to make a critical contribution to the mechanistic understanding of zooplankton response to climate change, and will ultimately yield more effective ecosystem-based management. My unique global experience and demonstrated ability to combine original analytical methods provide the background required to achieve the outlined objectives. These will be achieved in a dynamic laboratory offering an exceptional learning environment for HQP who will use cutting edge tools, work in national and international teams, and contribute to the leading edge of food web ecology.