RUI/ROA: Myxomycetes in the Litter Microhabitat

拟议的研究有三个主要目标： (1)研究了黏菌（疟原虫粘液）的生态学 霉菌）与温带森林的森林地面凋落物有关 生态系统 (2)为了增加我们对相对重要性的认识， 黏菌作为碎屑食物链成员的确切作用。 (3)评估其生态意义 与陆地生态系统中其他生物的相互作用。 重点放在拟议的研究分析（使用 多变量分析技术）物种模式 凋落物中黏菌的组成和物种多样性 微生境 拟议的研究旨在 包括P.I.的一些生物学本科专业。的 本国机构作为积极参与者， 关于一个关键但知之甚少的组件的新信息， 许多森林生态系统，以及产量基线数据， 可以开展黏菌生态学的研究。

The proposed research has three major objectives: (1) To investigate the ecology of myxomycetes (Plasmodial slime molds) associated with forest floor litter in temperate forest ecosystem. (2) To increase our knowledge of the relative importance and exact role of myxomycetes as memebers of the detritus food chain. (3) To assess the ecological significance of their interactions with other organisms in terrestrial ecosystems. Emphasis on the proposed research in on analyzing (using the techniques of multivariate analysis) patterns of species composition and species diversity of myxomycetes in the litter microhabitat. The proposed research, which is designed to include a number of undergraduate biology majors at the P.I.'s home institution as active participants, will provide important new information about a critical but poorly known component of many forest ecosystem, and yield baseline data from which further studies of myxomycete ecology can be launched.