Ecology in spatially structured environments

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Determining the processes, and their relative importances, underlying complex spatial patterns of biodiversity has been one of the most popular, vibrant, challenging and well-cited areas of research in ecology. Complexities in spatial patterns of biodiversity are recognized, in large part, to be a product of the interactions between the processes that influence species distributions at different spatial scales, and spatial and temporal environmental variation (heterogeneity). Remarkable progress has been made in our understanding of how ecological communities are structured in space, yet major gaps and related challenges remain. Environmental heterogeneity is composed of multiple components even within the same spatial scale. These components should act and interact with different ecological and evolutionary mechanisms to influence the large variety of spatial biodiversity patterns we observe in nature. Spatial environmental heterogeneity is widely recognized as a mechanism underlying the structure of ecological communities. To date, however, research on spatial heterogeneity has almost exclusively focused on the variation (how much) component. For example, how do species composition among different geographical locations vary as a function of their environmental differences (variation)? Similar levels of environmental variation among locations, however, are often structured differently in space (where variation occurs), likely affecting species distributions and the ways they interact. It is critical to stress that environmental heterogeneity has random and non-random spatial components. And that these components differ across important environment features as well as in the way these features correlate in space. The structural components of environmental features can be directly equated to how abruptly or smoothly they change across geographical localities. Because species vary in their responses to and abilities to cope with variation in their environments (e.g. dispersal and life history differences), species distributions and their coexistence should be affected by the spatial structure of their environments. This research program seeks to answer novel and fundamental questions about how the spatial structure of the environment influence species distributions and their interactions. We will combine fieldwork, statistical and theoretical approaches to understand and quantify how the patterns of spatial structure in the environment affect spatial patterns of biodiversity. My research team will work on various taxa, as their differences should allow to generate insights about how they are influenced by different components of environmental heterogeneity. The proposed program will generate a training environment that builds highly transferable skills, linking conceptual, statistical and empirical approaches. This research will also have relevance for our ongoing research with government partners on climate change and ecosystem services.