Using ecological theory to restore invaded Mediterranean-climate ecosystems

入侵物种是全球范围内对植被群落组成和生态系统功能最严重的威胁之一。 然而，缺乏恢复这些被入侵社区所需的科学技术。 一个具体的假设是，可以通过选择在资源利用上与入侵物种相似的本地物种来加强群落对入侵的抵抗力，从而增加竞争。 这是基于有限相似性理论，该理论假定共存物种的资源利用之间的相似性有一个有限的限制。 阐明限制相似性方法恢复的效用的第一步是量化各种入侵系统中本地和入侵物种之间的资源利用差异。 通过该项目，将从西班牙两个植被群落的本地和入侵植物物种中收集功能性状数据。 这些数据将与其他三个地中海气候生态系统（MCE）的现有数据相结合，以测试一个生态理论如何？限制相似性？可以用来恢复被入侵的植被群落。 目前催化研究的结果将被纳入随后的提案中，该提案将使用这些性状数据来选择与入侵者功能相似的本地物种，并随着时间的推移监测这些恢复系统中的群落组成。 这项研究的结果将有助于了解MCE中的保护问题，MCE具有高度多样性，并日益受到人类活动的威胁。 这项工作将直接有助于恢复的实践，探索如何容易测量的植物性状可以用来选择本地植物，这将增加恢复社区的入侵抵抗力。 此外，该项目还将促进一位早期职业生涯的美国女科学家与西班牙一位国际知名植物生态学家之间的新合作。 一名本科生将参加在西班牙的活动，从密切的师生指导和机会，在学术生涯的早期阶段从事国际研究受益。

Invasive species represent one of the most serious threats to vegetation community composition and ecosystem function worldwide. However, science-driven techniques needed to restore these invaded communities are lacking. One specific hypothesis is that community resistance to invasion can be strengthened by selecting native species that are similar to invasive species in resource use, thus increasing competition. This is based on the theory of limiting similarity, which posits that there is a finite limit to the similarity between the resource-use of co-existing species. The first step in elucidating the utility of limiting similarity approach to restoration is quantifying differences in resource use between native and invasive species across a variety of invaded systems. Through this project, functional trait data will be collected from native and invasive plant species in two vegetation communities in Spain. The data will be combined with existing data from three other mediterranean-climate ecosystems (MCEs) to test how one ecological theory ? limiting similarity ? can be used to restore invaded vegetation communities. Results from the present Catalyzing research will be incorporated into a subsequent proposal that will use these trait data to select native species that are functionally similar to invaders and to monitor community composition in these restored systems over time. Results from this research will contribute to an understanding of conservation issues in MCEs, which are highly diverse and increasingly threatened by human activity. The work will directly contribute to the practice of restoration by exploring how easy-to-measure plant traits can be used to select native plants that will increase invasion resistance of restored communities. In addition, this project will promote a new collaboration between an early career, female U.S. scientist at an undergraduate institution and an internationally renowned plant ecologist in Spain. An undergraduate student will participate in the activities in Spain, benefitting from close faculty-student mentoring and the opportunity to engage in international research at the early stage of an academic career.