Animal community structure and dynamics under cumulative impacts of roads

环境条件可以影响生命史特征，如身体状况、生存概率和生殖产量。例如，严酷的冬季条件或低生境质量等可变环境条件造成的能量成本可能迫使个体将迁徙或繁殖推迟到下一年，而将资源用于生长。道路网的扩大以及这些基础设施对动植物种群的影响已引起全世界的注意。一些调查人员报告说，道路上的动物死亡率很高，但这些临时死亡率与实际人口参数之间的关系仍不清楚。在这个研究项目中，我将量化道路对繁殖物候、种群和群落结构的累积影响，以及生长或繁殖所消耗的能量之间的权衡，通过重复的标记-再捕获研究和实地实验。******我的短期目标是：1)量化道路建设对繁殖物候、生存和繁殖成功的影响；2)评估道路对群落动态和种间相互作用的影响；3)量化道路对长寿物种种群结构的影响。我的研究项目将以两栖动物和淡水龟为模式生物。这项工作将在两个研究领域进行。第一个研究区域将包括在曲海南部进行前后控制影响设计，在那里我们将在最近建成但尚未通车的高速公路附近挖掘池塘，同时也在计划建设道路的地区挖掘池塘。第二个研究区域将利用一个由108个路边池塘组成的网络，该网络自2012年以来一直在两个地区监测，这些地区沿着quacimbec西部的西北梯度相隔600公里。******我们预测：1)道路建设和车辆交通开放后，这些地点的生存概率、繁殖概率和繁殖产出显著降低（即时间x处理相互作用）；2)北纬地区的两栖动物群落相对于南纬地区更具活力（更大的定殖概率），道路的邻近性和类型加剧了这些变化（距离x道路类型相互作用）；在离公路最近的池塘中，巢存活率最低（道路类型x与道路相互作用的距离）。除了道路对生命史战略的影响之外，这项工作将有助于区分道路建设（栖息地丧失）和交通强度（道路死亡率）的影响。我的研究项目将为空间明确的基于个体的模型提供信息，以估计道路建设背景下的人口持久性。我的研究项目将为管理道路附近的野生动物种群提供有价值的工具，并为加拿大和国外的新道路建设项目提供信息。**

Environmental conditions can influence life history traits such as body condition, probability of survival, and reproductive output. For instance, energetic costs resulting from variable environmental conditions such as harsh winter conditions or low habitat quality may force individuals to defer migrations or reproduction to a subsequent year and devote resources to growth instead. The expansion of road networks and the effects of these infrastructures on animal and plant populations have received attention worldwide. Several investigators report high animal mortality rates on roads, but the relationship between these ad hoc mortality rates and actual demographic parameters remains unknown. In this research program, I will quantify the cumulative impacts of roads on breeding phenology, population and community structure, and trade-offs between the energy expended for growth or reproduction, through replicated mark-recapture studies and field experiments. ******My short-term objectives are 1) To quantify the impact of road construction on breeding phenology, survival, and reproductive success, 2) To assess the influence of roads on community dynamics and interspecific interactions, and 3) To quantify the impact of roads on the population structure of long-lived species. My research program will feature amphibians and freshwater turtles as model organisms. The work will be conducted in two study areas. The first study area will consist of a before-after control-impact design in southern Québec, where we will excavate ponds near highways recently constructed but not yet open to trafic, but also in areas projected for road construction. The second study area will take advantage of a network of 108 roadside ponds monitored since 2012 in two regions separated by 600 km along a north-west gradient in western Québec. ******We predict 1) a marked decrease in survival probability, breeding probability, and reproductive output at sites after road construction and opening to vehicular trafic (i.e., time x treatment interaction), 2) that amphibian communities are more dynamic (greater colonization probability) at northern latitudes relative to southern latitudes, and that the proximity and type of road exacerbates these changes (distance x road type interaction), 3) that turtle abundance, recruitment, and nest survival are lowest in ponds closest to highways (road type x distance to road interaction).***Beyond the effects of roads on life history strategies, this work will allow to distinguish between the effects of road construction (habitat loss) and trafic intensity (road mortality). My research program will inform spatially-explicit individual-based models to estimate population persistence in the context of road construction. My research program will provide valuable tools to manage wildlife populations near roads and inform new road construction projects in Canada and abroad. **