Population Dynamics in Variable Environments

促进种群在不确定环境中持续生存的三种机制是：1)成熟时的可变年龄，2)重复繁殖，3)种群间的扩散。该项目将研究在32个天然天坑池塘中繁殖的18种两栖动物。当它们被捕获时，7个物种的所有个体都会被拍摄下来。这些图像的计算机辅助匹配产生了用于捕获-重新捕获模型的数据，以估计种群规模和生命比率。这些估计将允许在现实假设下直接评估不确定环境中的种群动态和持久性。针对最常见的焦点物种--暗纹肌瘤的详细模型将指导虎纹盘虫个体模型的构建，虎纹盘虫是一种在几个州被列为濒危物种的物种。时空变化环境中的种群动力学是种群生物学的一个重要领域，因为它们决定了生活史、适应和种群分化的背景。这项研究也很重要，因为种群生态学是群落生态学的基础，也是制定种群管理计划以进行收获、虫害控制或保护行动的基础。该奖项支持成像设备的申请，作为NSF为残疾科学家和工程师提供便利奖的一部分，该资助机制使残疾科学家能够更充分地参与研究过程。该项目将支持博士和博士后研究。本科生将在暑假期间被聘为现场助理。

Three mechanisms that promote the persistence of populations in uncertain environments are: 1) a variable age at maturation, 2) repeated reproduction, and 3) dispersal between populations. The project will study 18 amphibian species that breed in a complex of 32 natural sinkhole ponds. All individuals of 7 species are photographed whenever they are captured. Computer-assisted matching of these images yields data for capture-recapture models to estimate population sizes and vital rates. These estimates will allow direct evaluation of population dynamics and persistence in uncertain environments under realistic assumptions. The detailed model for the most common focal species, Ambystoma opacum, will guide construction of an individual-based model for Ambystoma tigrinum, a species listed as endangered in several states. Population dynamics in spatially and temporally varying environments comprise an important area of population biology because they determine the context of life history adaptation and population differentiation. This study is also important because population ecology is the foundation for community ecology and for the development of plans for managing populations for harvest, pest control, or conservation action.The request for imaging equipment is supported within this award as part of NSF's Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities, a funding mechanism that enables scientists with disabilities to more fully engage in the research process. The project will support doctoral and post-doctoral research. Undergraduates will be employed as field assistants during the summer.