Anthropod responses to changing environments

本研究探讨了驱动节肢动物种群动态的动态因素，并将这种理解与节肢动物生活史，栖息地亲和力和组合组成的进化工作相结合。我们研究了节肢动物在生态系统功能中的作用，并预测了群落对压力和扰动的反应。重点是将生态主题编织成与焦点生物的生物学细节密切相关的进化背景。我们有助于一般的解释框架，在进化生态学和应用这些景观和可再生资源管理。此外，该计划有助于有关生活史理论，种间杂交的意义和新的，新兴的生物多样性科学的科学综合。建议的工作符合7个项目主题：1）城市-农村梯度上的昆虫群落以及面对外来入侵物种的发展和影响如何保护它们; 2）林业实践与节肢动物多样性之间的关系，比较林业与自然干扰的影响，并主要使用实验方法来阐明生物多样性与其他价值之间的权衡;（3）森林害虫与其寄主和天敌特征之间的关系，以及气候变化对这些特征的影响;（4）自上而下和自下而上的食物网联系如何影响生活史的演变，以及生活史特征如何与可变密度、天敌和非生物条件的关系演变; 5）为什么有些物种没有表现出一般生活史的逻辑权衡; 6）北美西部半水生昆虫的杂交，特别是张力带模型的种群遗传学方面如何最好地应用于因运动和可能的栖息地选择而复杂化的镶嵌带;以及7）使用节肢动物作为湿地健康和恢复的指示器，包括可能使用水蜘蛛作为污染和全球变化的生物指示器，例如紫外线辐射和降水模式的变化。这项工作有助于履行加拿大根据《里约生物多样性公约》所作的承诺，并有助于制定可持续森林管理和虫害物种管理的创新战略。

This research explores the dynamic factors driving arthropod population dynamics and integrates that understanding with work about evolution of arthropod life histories, habitat affinities and assemblage composition. We study arthropod roles in ecosystem function and predict community responses to stress and perturbation. Emphasis is on knitting ecological themes into an evolutionary context well connected to biological details of the focal organisms. We contribute to general explanatory frameworks in evolutionary ecology and apply these to landscape and renewable resource management. In addition, the program contributes to scientific syntheses about life-history theory, significance of interspecific hybridization and the new, and emerging science of biodiversity. Work proposed fits into 7 project themes: 1) insect assemblages on urban-rural gradients and how they may be conserved in the face of development and impact of invasive exotic species; 2) relationships between forestry practices and arthropod diversity, comparing effects of forestry with those of natural disturbances, and use mainly experimental approaches to elucidate tradeoffs between biodiversity and other values; 3) relationships between forest pests and characteristics of their hosts and natural enemies, and how these are affected by climate change; 4) how top-down and bottom-up food-web linkages affect evolution of life histories and how life-history traits evolve in relation to variable density, natural enemies and abiotic conditions; 5) why some species do not show the logical trade-offs basic to general life-history; 6) hybridization in semi-aquatic bugs in western North America, especially how population genetic aspects of tension zone models are best applied in mosaic zones complicated by movement and possible habitat selection; and 7) use of arthropods as indicators of wetland health and restoration, including the potential use of waterstriders as bioindicators of pollution and global change, such as changes in UV radiation and precipitation patterns. This work contributes to meeting Canada's commitments under the Rio biodiversity convention and to developing innovative strategies for sustainable forest management and management of pest species.