The blue mussel Mytilus edulis as an indicator species for modelling marine connectivity in Scotland

贻贝提供一系列生态系统服务，但种群数量正在下降，潜在的压力来源包括海洋酸化、全球变暖和不断变化的捕食者-猎物动态。了解这一关键物种的复原力、恢复和重新定居的能力，以及对这些和其他威胁的潜在反应，是至关重要的。该项目研究了蓝贻贝在大空间尺度上的复原力，模型能够代表物种在区域内的种群动态，也能够在区域间扩散。模型将使用“社会”网络模型和集合种群动态方法相结合来建立。通过识别存在风险或至关重要的网络特征作为补丁之间的走廊，将确定重点保护和监视的目标。这些模型将解决一个知识鸿沟：水文模型通常专注于详细的水流，计算复杂性很高，而不考虑长期的人口动态。我们将使用水文模型的输出来为我们的集合种群模型提供信息，并在可用的情况下使用遗传数据和采样数据进行参数化，特别是来自相关项目的数据。

Mussels provide a range of ecosystem services, however populations are declining, with potential stressors including ocean acidification, global warming, and changing predator-prey dynamics. It is crucial to understand the resilience of this key species, its ability to recover and recolonise, and its potential response to these and other threats. This project addresses the resilience of blue mussel at large spatial scales with models capable of representing the population dynamics of the species within locales and also dispersal between locales.Models will be built using a combination of "social" network modelling and metapopulation dynamic approaches. By identifying network features which are at risk or crucial as corridors between patches, targets for focus conservation and surveillance will be identified. These models will address a knowledge gap: Hydrological models typically focus in detail and with high computational complexity on water flow, without addressing long-term population dynamics. We will use outputs from hydrological models to inform our metapopulation model, and parameterise using genetic data and sampling data where available, particularly from related projects.