CRUI: Collaborative Research on Mechanisms Underlying Salamander Population Fluctuations

本研究的目的是了解机制负责戏剧性波动的蝾螈数量在亚高山湿地中部科罗拉多。 繁荣和萧条周期经常在动物种群中观察到，但对两栖动物的这种周期了解甚少。 将采用各种方法，包括长期监测蝾螈在自然种群中的繁殖和生存情况、操纵食物（水生无脊椎动物）和其他资源的实地实验以及实验室研究，来研究可能导致种群周期的机制。 这些数据将被用来构建数学模型，以确定哪些机制能够产生长期的种群规模的波动，在这种两栖动物中观察到。世界各地两栖动物的减少是生态学家非常关注的问题，能够区分两栖动物种群变化的自然原因和与人类活动有关的原因是很重要的。 蝾螈是亚高山湿地的原生顶级捕食者，有充分的证据表明，它们在决定有多少无脊椎动物共存于食物网中以及哪些无脊椎动物共存方面发挥着关键作用。 这项研究是了解蝾螈数量周期如何影响食物网以及最终影响这些偏远原始生态系统功能的第一步。

The purpose of this research is to understand the mechanisms responsible for dramatic fluctuations in the number of salamanders in subalpine wetlands in central Colorado. Boom and bust cycles are often observed in animal populations, but such cycles are poorly understood in amphibians. A combination of approaches including long-term monitoring of salamander reproduction and survival in natural populations, field experiments that manipulate food (aquatic invertebrates) and other resources, and laboratory studies will be used to study mechanisms that could lead to population cycles. These data will be used to construct mathematical models to determine which mechanisms are capable of producing long-term the fluctuations in population size observed in this amphibian. The decline of amphibians around the world is of great concern to ecologists, and it is important to be able to distinguish natural causes of change in amphibian populations from those related to human activities. Salamanders are the native top predators in subalpine wetlands and it is well documented that they play a key role in determining how many and which invertebrates coexist in the food web. This research is a first step towards understanding how cycles in the number of salamanders will affect the foodwebs and ultimately the functioning of these remote, pristine, ecosystems.