Are wood ants ecosystem engineers? Assessing impacts during range expansion

该项目将结合联合收割机土壤地球化学场数据和生态模型，以量化和预测木蚁如何影响区域森林土壤功能。学生将享受与来自不同背景的学者和利益相关者的互动，并希望将他们的科学训练应用于一个重要的应用问题。林业，主要是种植园，占英国土地面积的13%。英国林地的破碎化增加了进一步的挑战，特别是对当地分散的栖息地专家，如木蚁（Formica rufa组）。这些物种在整个欧洲受到威胁，是林地生态系统的关键组成部分。最近的研究表明，北约克沼泽地区的木蚁种群正在从古老的林地扩展到种植园。这一持续的扩展使我们能够探索蚂蚁行为对森林功能的影响，无论是长期的，最近的还是没有蚁巢存在的森林。蚂蚁制图数据，包括3年的种群边缘扩展，将用于确定收集蚂蚁行为和一系列土壤功能数据的采样点（例如-土壤pH值、痕量气体通量、体积密度和养分负荷）。这些数据将用于量化蚂蚁存在对土壤质量和功能的影响，这可能用于预测入侵影响。有一个显着的实地工作的组成部分，将与大量的实验室分析相结合。Objectivesa）预测的影响，土壤功能的蔓延到新的栖息地的林地specialistSpecifically量化：i。在短期和长期时间尺度上对土壤化学/物理性质的影响。对土壤微生物群落的影响在短期和较长的时间scalesb）提供有关生态和气候影响的管理活动的森林管理人员的建议应用和效益学生将接受全面的研究生培训，由具有强大的研究背景和研究生监督经验的多学科导师团队支持。学生将获得生态研究技能，包括：经验领域技术;尖端的实验室设备技术;空间分析方法。这项研究将提供林地物种扩散影响的新数据：它将有利于学术生态/进化社区，政策制定者和森林管理者。

This project will combine biogeochemical field data and ecological modelling to quantify and predict how wood ants affect regional forest soil function. Thestudent will enjoy interacting with academics and stakeholders from a range of backgrounds and want to apply their scientific training to an importantapplied question.Forestry, mainly plantations, occupies 13% of British land area. The fragmentation of British woodlands adds further challenges, particularly forlocally dispersing habitat specialists, e.g. wood ants (Formica rufa group). These species, threatened across Europe, are key components of woodlandecosystems. Recent work indicates wood ant populations in the North York Moors are expanding from ancient woodland into plantations. This ongoingexpansion allows us to explore the impact of ant behavior on forest function within forests with long-term, recent and no ant nest presence.Ant mapping data, including 3 years' expansion at population margins, will be used to identify sampling sites in which ant behavior and a range of soilfunctional data will be collected (e.g.- soil pH, trace gas fluxes, bulk density and nutrient loading). These data will be used to quantify the impact of ant presenceon soil qualities and function and this may be used to predict invasive impacts. There is a significant field work component that will be combined withsubstantial laboratory analyses.Objectivesa) To predict the impact on soil function of the spread into new habitat of a woodland specialistSpecifically to quantify:i. The impact on soil chemical/physical properties over short and longer-term time scalesii. The impact on soil microbial community over short and longer time scalesb) To provide advice for forest managers regarding ecological and climate impact of management activitiesApplications and benefitsThe student will receive thorough postgraduate training supported by a multidisciplinary team of supervisors with strong research backgrounds andexperience in postgraduate supervision. The student will gain ecological research skills including: empirical field techniques; cutting-edge laboratoryequipment techniques; spatial analysis methods. This study will provide novel data on dispersal impacts in woodland species: it will benefit the academicecology/evolution communities, policy-makers and forest managers.