Collaborative Research: Ecosystem Dynamics in Hawaii: An Experimental Analysis Along Gradients of State Factors

Vitousek博士和Mueller-Dombois博士将进行一项综合研究， 调节的观察和实验研究 沿着独立梯度的生态系统级地球化学 夏威夷的土壤年龄、温度、湿度和生物群 群岛 生物、地质和气候特征联合收割机 使夏威夷群岛成为一个独特的系统， 生态系统理论的某些方面可以通过实验来检验。 的 广泛的优势本地物种和惊人的影响， 外来物种的入侵提供了一个机会， 明确的生态系统层面的后果的人口和 生理水平的过程。 这项研究旨在确定生态系统如何 在土壤发育过程中， 气候。 生理过程的相互作用 生态系统功能和人口运行， 群落过程（生物入侵，林分枯死） 改变生态系统动力学的因素被纳入其中。 修饰的 世纪模型的版本将被评估和改进， 观察和实验，以及由此产生的衍生模型 将用于进一步的田间实验设计， 整合和外推工具。的结果 努力将有助于解决热带生物多样性问题， 全球变化 来自斯坦福大学和 夏威夷大学很出色。 维陶塞克和穆勒博士 Dombois是该领域的创造性和生产力的研究人员， 热带生态系统研究

Drs. Vitousek and Mueller-Dombois will conduct an integrated observational and experimental study of the regulation of ecosystem-level biogeochemistry along independent gradients of soil age, temperature, moisture, and biota in the Hawaiian Islands. Biological, geological, and climatic features combine to make the Hawaiian Islands a unique system in which many aspects of ecosystem theory can be tested experimentally. The broad range of dominant native species and the striking impact of invasions by exotic species offer the opportunity to determine unambiguously the ecosystem level consequences of population and physiological-level processes. This research is designed to determine how ecosystem dynamics are regulated during soil development and as a function of climate. Both the interactions of physiological processes with ecosystem functions and the operation of population and community processes (biological invasions, stand-level die-back) that alter ecosystem dynamics are incorporated. A modified version of the CENTURY model will be evaluated and improved using observations and experiments, and the resulting derivative models will be used in the design of further field experiments and as tools for integration and extrapolation. The results of this effort will contribute to issues of tropical biodiversity and global change. University support from Stanford and the University of Hawaii is outstanding. Drs. Vitousek and Mueller- Dombois are creative and productive researchers in the area of tropical ecosystem research.