Spatio-Temporal Connectivity of Species, Communities and Ecosystems

在接下来的五年里，我的研究小组(本科生、博士和博士后)将研究个体层面的过程(碎片化景观中的有机体运动)、物种层面的过程(出生扩散、元种群动力学)、群落层面的过程(种间相互作用、捕食者-猎物营养动力学和群落变化、元群落动力学)以及生态系统层面的过程(生态系统服务、陆地和水生生态系统之间的界面、元生态系统)如何受到直接和间接全球变化的影响。将使用空间生态框架来处理这些调查。具体地说，我的研究小组将侧重于生态网络，并将开发时空方法，这些方法可分为两个主要研究主题：(1)概念性和分析性发展[项目1、2、3]和(2)元种群应用和验证研究[项目4]、元社区[项目5]和元生态系统空间分析[项目6]。特别是，这些研究项目的目标是：(1)开发一个元模型框架，将空间尺度上的关键过程从一个空间尺度整合到另一个空间尺度，以对温带和北部针叶林的气候和土地利用变化作出空间上明确的森林响应；(2)开发时空和定向连通性措施，以模拟河流网络(Riverscape)对鱼类运动的作用，因为河流温度变暖将成为鱼类在河流中移动的障碍；(3)开发一个显著性测试，以确定拓扑网络结构可以缓解景观空间动态的阈值；(4)利用微观实验测试在动态和变暖的环境中时空连通性如何变化；(5)量化沿气候梯度和景观空间异质性范围的齿形动物的范围移动；以及(6)将景观水平的空间显式干扰模型与基于个体的鸟类运动模型相结合，以确定维持生物多样性和生态系统服务所需的时空连通性阈值。这些研究项目将为未来的几个研究途径和分析发展奠定基础。它们将有助于确定空间在维持物种方面的重要性，以及如何在不断变化的世界中恢复生态系统服务。

Over the next five years, my research group (undergraduate students, PhDs and Post-docs) will investigate how individual-level processes (organism movement in fragmented landscapes), species-level processes (natal dispersal, meta-population dynamics), community-level processes (inter-specific interactions, predator-prey trophic dynamics and community shifts, meta-community dynamics), and ecosystem-level processes (ecosystem services, interface between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, meta-ecosystems) are affected by direct and indirect global change. A spatial ecology framework will be used to tackle these investigations. Specifically, my research team will focus on ecological networks and will develop spatio-temporal methods that can be regrouped into two overarching research themes: (i) Conceptual and analytical developments [projects 1, 2, 3] and (ii) Application and validation studies in meta-population [project 4], meta-community [project 5] and meta-ecosystem spatial analysis [project 6]. In particular, these research projects aim to: (1) develop a meta-modelling framework to integrate the key processes from one spatial scale to another in spatially-explicit forest response to climate and land use changes in temperate and boreal forests; (2) develop spatio-temporal and directional connectivity measures to model stream network (riverscape) functions on fish movement in light of warmer stream temperatures that will act as barriers to fish movement within streams; (3) develop a significance test to determine thresholds at which topological network structures can mitigate landscape spatial dynamics; (4) test how spatio-temporal connectivity varies in a dynamic and warming environment using a microcosm experiment; (5) quantify range shifts of odonates along a climatic gradient and range of landscape spatial heterogeneity; and (6) combine spatially explicit disturbance models at the landscape level with an individual based model of bird movement to determine the spatio-temporal connectivity thresholds needed to maintain biodiversity and ecosystem services. These research projects will set the foundation for several future research avenues and analytical developments. They will help to determine in which ways space matters to maintain species and how to restore ecosystems services in a changing world.