CAREER: Life after death in coral reefs: Testing the pivotal role of dead corals in ecosystem resilience

许多生态系统，包括珊瑚礁、铁杉林、海带床和海草草甸，都是由“基础物种”定义的，这些物种是创造栖息地的大型和显眼的生物。几十年的研究揭示了基础物种对维持生物多样性和生态系统功能的重要性，这些功能是关键生态系统服务的基础，包括水净化、风暴保护和食物供应。虽然基础物种通常通过它们的物理存在而不是它们的行动来改善压力，创造栖息地和改变资源的可用性，并且许多基础物种在死后仍然作为物理结构存在，但我们对它们死后的生态作用知之甚少。该项目的研究部分集中在珊瑚上，因为它们在死后留下了明显的珊瑚礁结构，这些珊瑚礁结构对热带沿海生态系统的恢复力和功能具有重要价值。该项目的教育和推广部分通过三种方式培养学术能力，并在代表性不足的利益相关者群体中广泛了解基础物种对沿海复原力的重要性：首先，该项目增加了参与者的多样性，从代表性不足的群体中招募教师和高中生参加教师研讨会，其中包括前往研究地点和虚拟大学预科课程，将全国的学生与佛罗里达大学的研究人员联系起来。第二，该项目通过佛罗里达大学本科生在加勒比地区实地进行国际研究经验，佛罗里达大学研究生在巴拿马与保护非政府组织开展外展活动，为有效的世界公民促进全球化。第三，该项目通过培养师徒关系，邀请学生和教师参加区域海洋科学研讨会，提高了保留率，并提供了交流机会。由于当地和全球人为压力，世界各地的沿海生态系统正在以前所未有的速度变化。其中最明显和最重要的变化是主导的、形成栖息地的生物（称为基础物种）组成的变化，它们通过驱动生物多样性和生态系统功能的模式来定义许多生态系统。珊瑚礁一直是探索状态变化和生态系统恢复力的模型系统，该项目在珊瑚礁中工作，探索死亡的基础物种如何在决定群落是否以及如何从干扰中恢复方面发挥关键作用。该项目的目标有三个方面：(1)探索死珊瑚的特征及其与活珊瑚的对比；(2)跟踪海景中死珊瑚的命运（即返回珊瑚或转向新的生态系统）；(3)测试消费者如何调解死珊瑚在设置生态系统轨迹中的作用。这些目标正在通过一项国际研究计划来实现，该计划采用了一套补充的实地调查、实验和建模。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Many ecosystems including coral reefs, hemlock forests, kelp beds, and seagrass meadows are defined by ‘foundation species’ which are the large and conspicuous organisms that create habitat. Decades of research reveal the importance of foundation species for sustaining the biodiversity and ecosystem functions that underlie critical ecosystem services including water purification, storm protection, and food provision. Although foundation species commonly ameliorate stress, create habitat, and modify resource availability through their physical presence rather than their actions, and many foundation species remain as physical structures after death, we know surprising little about their ecological role after death. The research component of this project focuses on corals because of the conspicuous reef structures they leave behind after death and the value of these reef structures for the resilience and function of tropical coastal ecosystems. The education and outreach component of the project build academic capacity and a broad understanding of the importance of foundation species for coastal resilience among underrepresented stakeholder groups in three ways: First, the project increases diversity of participants by recruiting teachers and high school students from underrepresented groups for teacher workshops that involve trips to research sites and virtual precollege courses that connect students nationwide to researchers at the University of Florida. Second, the project promotes globalization for effective world citizens by leading University of Florida undergraduates in international research experiences at Caribbean field sites, and University of Florida graduate students in outreach activities with conservation NGOs in Panama. Third, the project improves retention and provide networking opportunities by fostering mentorship relationships and inviting students and teachers to participate in a regional marine science symposiumCoastal ecosystems around the world are changing at an unprecedented rate due to local and global anthropogenic stressors. Among the most obvious and important changes are shifts in the composition of the dominant, habitat-forming organisms (known as foundation species) that define many ecosystems by driving patterns of biodiversity and ecosystem functions. Working in coral reefs, which have been a model system for exploring state shifts and ecosystem resilience, this project explores how dead foundation species play a pivotal role in determining whether and how communities recover from disturbance. The goals of the project are three-fold: (1) Explore the traits of dead corals and how they contrast with living corals, (2) Track the fate of dead coral in the seascape (i.e., return to coral or shift to novel ecosystem), and (3) Test how consumers mediate the role of dead coral in setting ecosystem trajectories. These goals are being pursued through an international research program that employs a complementary set of field surveys, experiments, and modeling.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.