Nutritional ecology of carnivorous pitcher plants.

肉食性猪笼草瓶子草在由变异的叶子形成的猪笼草中捕捉昆虫猎物。猎物被生活在投手体内的简单碎屑食物网消化。被消化的猎物的营养物质被植物的组织吸收，用于生长和繁殖。生活在瓶子草罐中的水生群落是典型的“微生态系统”。特别是，比较植物和猪笼草群落在其本地（北美）与引进（欧洲）范围内的功能可能是了解生态系统功能的有力方法。该博士将通过研究猎物捕获，消化和营养转移到植物中来研究这些猪笼草的营养生态学。这将通过简单的方法和使用分子标记（稳定同位素）来跟踪系统中的营养物质来实现。您也可以使用DNA条形码来确定微生物群落组成。植物将在温室的受控条件下进行研究，并在欧洲和可能的北美进行原位研究。

The carnivorous pitcher plant Sarracenia purpurea captures insect prey in pitchers formed from modified leaves. Prey are digested by a simple detritus-based food web that lives inside the pitchers. The nutrients from digested prey are then absorbed into the plant's tissues and used for growth and reproduction. The aquatic communities which live in Sarracenia purpurea pitchers are model 'micro-ecosystems'. In particular, comparison of how the plant and the pitcher community function in their native (North America) vs introduced (Europe) range is potentially a powerful approach for understanding how ecosystems function.This PhD will investigate the nutritional ecology of these pitcher plants by studying prey capture, digestion and nutrient transfer to the plants. This will be achieved using simple approaches and by using molecular markers (stable isotopes) to track nutrients through the system. You may also use DNA barcoding to determine microbial community composition. Plants will be studied in controlled conditions in greenhouses, and in-situ in Europe and potentially North America.