REU: Spatial Position and Fitness: A Dynamic Optimization Model

在自然界中，有社会性的优势（增加食物 收集潜力，保护免受捕食者），然而， 社会环境成本（竞争加剧） 食物和/或空间，寄生虫传播的可能性， 疾病，增加捕食者的可见度）。 不是所有的动物 在一个殖民地或社会群体中体验到这些好处和/或 同样的费用。 例如，在殖民地边缘的动物可能 更容易被天敌捕食， 中心的其他动物可能面临更大的食物竞争。 博士 Uetz的研究旨在了解动物是如何 决定（独自生活或在一个群体中生活;在一个 菌落等），以及这些决定的累积效应 影响生存和繁殖成功。 研究关注 空间行为，以及蜘蛛的位置如何在三- 维网菌落影响摄食之间的平衡 成功和掠夺风险。 利用这些信息，Uetz博士 将开发一个数学模型来预测 最佳生存机会的决策策略 繁殖成功。 社会行为的进化受到了很多 注意，科学家们继续研究成本， 根据自然选择理论，群体生活的好处。 这个话题引起了兴趣和争议，因为 在动物中观察到的社会行为的多样性， 人类也是社会性的。 这项研究将有助于 越来越多地了解行为的成本和收益 策略塑造了动物社会的进化， 提供洞察社会行为如何演变， 不合群的动物，如蜘蛛。

In nature, there are advantages of sociality (increased food gathering potential, protection from predators), yet there are also costs of the social environment (increased competition for food and/or space, potential for spread of parasites and diseases, increased visibility to predators). Not all animals within a colony or social group experience these benefits and/or costs equally. For example, animals on the edge of colonies may be at greater risk of predation from their natural enemies, while others in the center may face greater competition for food. Dr. Uetz's research is directed at understanding how animals make decisions (live alone or in a group; change location within a colony, etc.), and how the cumulative effects of those decisions affect survival and reproductive success. The studies concern spacing behavior, and how location of spiders within three- dimensional web colonies affects the balance between feeding success and predation risk. Using this information, Dr. Uetz will develop a mathematical model to predict the optimal decision-making strategies yielding the best chance of survival and reproductive success. The evolution of social behavior has received much attention, and scientists continue to examine the costs and benefits of group-living in light of natural selection theory. This topic arouses both interest and controversy, because of the diversity of social behaviors observed in animals, and because humans as well are social. This research will contribute to growing knowledge of how costs and benefits of behavioral strategies shape the evolution of animal societies, and also provide insight into how social behavior can evolve in typically asocial animals such as spiders.