Re: [ECOLOG-L] Need advice on Interaction Networks between herbivorous insects and woody plants using the R package bipartite
Hi, Kevin, I think statistics are the least of your problems. Depending on the forest type you choose, your tree crowns are going to be 40 to 200 feet in the air. How are you going climb hundreds of trees, get collecting sheets under representative branches where their foliage is (i.e., out on thin twigs far from the trunk), whack them with a stick, and get the critters rounded up and into your cages before the end of time? I hope you have access to an all-terrain vehicle with a very tall cherry-picker arm. In addition to these logistical difficulties, your comparisons will only be meaningful if the samples are collected at the same time of day, at about the same time of year, and in about the same weather conditions. Do you have 45 of those cherry pickers and an army of volunteers so you can get all of your samples in a short period of time? And what about insects that hang on tight, fly away, or resent having their branch whacked? And while you're dealing with these issues, who's going to be feeding the perhaps many thousands of specimens in their individual containers and recording the their behavior, growth, and mortality? Martin Meiss 2010/5/9 Etienne Laliberté etiennelalibe...@gmail.com Dear Kevin, In the future, r-sig-eco (https://stat.ethz.ch/mailman/listinfo/r-sig-ecology) might be a better list for R-related ecological questions, although you didn't really have questions on bipartite itself (but if that's what you want to know, yes, it's the package you want to use for this kind of stuff). Some hints: Question 1) have a look at: Nielsen, A. and J. Bascompte. 2007. Ecological networks, nestedness, and sampling effort. Journal of Ecology 95:1134-1141. and this one also discusses this sampling issue: Tylianakis, J. M., E. Laliberté, A. Nielsen, and J. Bascompte. 2010. Conservation of species interaction networks. Biological Conservation (in press; see www.elaliberte.info/publications for a PDF). Webs are often pooled in analyses. But bear in mind webs from different habitats can be more spatially / temporally variable than others, and pooling will obscure this. For example see: Laliberté, E. and J. M. Tylianakis. 2010. Deforestation homogenizes tropical parasitoid-host networks. Ecology (in press; see www.elaliberte.info/publications for a PDF). Question 2) Field constraints are always a tough call. A rule-of-thumb is that you should have at least 10 replicates per level, so maybe you could drop a few replicates. Then again, a 20m X 50m also plot seems pretty big to me. A small pilot study could help you decide how to optimize sampling effort. Question 3) Go for abundance. You can always convert back abundance to presence-absence, but not the opposite. It can be a good idea to look at differences in both binary and quantitative webs, because you can get different answers, e.g. Tylianakis, J. M., T. Tscharntke, and O. T. Lewis. 2007. Habitat modification alters the structure of tropical host-parasitoid food webs. Nature 445:202-205. or, sometimes, similar answers, such as Laliberté and Tylianakis (2010) (see above reference). Hope that helps, Etienne -- Etienne Laliberté School of Forestry University of Canterbury Private Bag 4800 Christchurch 8140, New Zealand Phone: +64 3 366 7001 ext. 8365 Fax: +64 3 364 2124 www.elaliberte.info
[ECOLOG-L] Two Post-Doc positions on Climate Change and Forests in the Alps
Two Post-Doctoral research positions. Climate Change, Forest diversity and Changes of productivity in the Alps: an analysis of tree growth and mortality responses. Laboratory: Cemagref Grenoble (France). Mountain Ecosystem Research Unit Description: These two positions are part of the EU FP7 project BACCARA (Biodiversity And Climate Change: A Risk Analysis). The goal of this project is to evaluate risks of European forest biodiversity and productivity loss under climate change focussing on forest trees and associated species (mainly insects and pathogens). In this project our team focuses on the relations between climate, tree demography, tree functional diversity and productivity in the Alps. We participate both to the observational/experimental and to the modelling effort in this project. The objective of these post-doc projects are to assess the risk of change in productivity and mortality due to climate changes in mountain forests. More specifically the goal is to rate the risks of dysfunction (loss of forest cover) and loss of productivity due to the effects of climate change in forest of different functional and phylogenetic compositions. The project will be organised around the diversity-stability paradigm. Adapted to our context, this paradigm states that more diverse communities should experience less risks of dysfunction and loss of productivity due to climate change. Functional diversity will be analysed based on traits related to climate stress tolerance (for instance a low tolerance of water stress), but we will also consider traits related to competitive ability (for instance shade tolerance). We consider that tree-tree interactions are keys to understand the response of forest communities to global change. Our approach will be based both on a retrospective analysis of National Forest Inventory (NFI) data covering a 50 years period and the development of an individual based model of growth and mortality. The model will be used to forecast future change in tree growth and mortality based on climate scenarios. We will make use of recent advance in Hierarchical Bayesian statistic to analyse this large data set. We have developed non manipulative methods to analyse tree growth and mortality response to tree-tree interaction and to climate effects. These growth and mortality model will be used to forecast changes of stand productivity and mortality of virtual communities of varying functional composition. These two post-doctoral fellowships are proposed in the Mountain Ecosystem Research Unit, Cemagref Grenoble. The unit studies mountain forest and grassland ecosystems of the Alps, to develop basis for their sound and sustainable management. We develop a multifunctional approach of forest ecosystem services with special focus on forest diversity and protection efficiency against natural hazards. The work of the team is based on Samsara a simulation model in the simulation software Capsis, which used to train forest managers. Education: Required qualifications include a PhD degree in the fields of ecology, forestry, environmental science or related field. Preference will be given to candidates who have experience in R statistical software, modelling, or Hierarchical Bayesian statistics. Conditions: Work will be located in Cemagref in Saint-Martin-dHères near Grenoble. Gross salary will be of 2200 /month. Duration of appointment 19 months for one position and 14 months for the second position. To start as soon as possible . Contact: Applicants should send a cover letter summarizing their research background, suitability and interest in the position, a CV including a publication list, and contact information for two referees (everything as one PDF document) no later than 18 June 2010 by e-mail using the keyword Post-doc position to Dr. Georges Kunstler Dr. Benoît Courbaud (georges.kunst...@cemagref.fr, benoit.courb...@cemagref.fr), Research Unit Mountain Ecosystems, Cemagref de Grenoble, 2, rue de la Papeterie - BP 76, F-38402 Saint-Martin-d'Hères cedex (France), Tel : +33 4 76 76 27 61.
Re: [ECOLOG-L] evolution for non-scientists textbook
I'd look at The Tangled Bank: An Introduction to Evolution by Carl Zimmer. Here's the Amazon page for the book: http://amzn.to/acUSiw. On 5/10/10 7:01 AM, jbowen wrote: Hi All: In the fall I am going to be teaching an Evolutionary Biology course for students in the social sciences and humanities. No prior coursework in the natural sciences is required. I am curious if the list might have recommendations for a textbook that is appropriate for this audience. Thanks in advance for your input. -- __ Madhusudan Katti Assistant Professor of Vertebrate Biology Department of Biology, M/S SB 73 California State University, Fresno Fresno, CA 93740-8034 +1.559.278.2460 mka...@csufresno.edu http://www.reconciliationecology.org/ __
[ECOLOG-L] Global Change and Fire Ecology Post-doc
Global Change and Fire Ecology: A postdoctoral position is available at the University of California, Davis, Department of Environmental Policy to work with a diverse team on aspects of global change as it affects the Sierra Nevada and its forest resources and processes. Working with USDA Forest Service and the Information Center for the Environment (http://ice.ucdavis.edu/) principal investigators, the postdoctoral scholar will take the lead on a number of ongoing ecological studies, and help develop and synthesize models of fire ecology for California, with a specific focus on the Sierra Nevada. The models will be used to answer questions relating to fire and resource management, including but not limited to historical and current conditions, potential changes with regional climate warming, and forest planning. We seek a recent PhD with a degree in ecology, geography, or related field with the following qualifications: GIS/RS expertise; database management proficiency; one or more programming languages (e.g., AML, IDL, Python, C++, VB/VBA/.NET); statistical and quantitative skills (e.g., R); strong background in landscape ecology and/or fire ecology; superb communication skills; and proven collegiality. Some experience in science application to resource management is preferred. The scholar will be responsible for taking the lead on a number of ongoing as well as incipient projects. Ongoing projects include a study of fire rotation, high severity fire and generation of snag habitat in the Sierra Nevada; a study evaluating the effects of low productivity soils on fire regimes in northern California; and a study comparing fire regimes in unmanaged conifer forests of NW Mexico and heavily managed forests in the eastern Sierra Nevada and southern California. New projects will include the development of spatially explicit models of current fire regime and fire behavior and linking these to landscape variables, climate models, and priority management areas for National Forest planning. The position is under the direction of lead investigators Dr. Hugh Safford (USDA FS Region 5 and UC Davis) and Dr. Josh Viers (UC Davis), but will involve interaction with other professional scientists on and off campus. Collaborators include the USDA FS Pacific Southwest Region Remote Sensing Lab (http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/rsl/), the Sierra Nevada Research Center (http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/programs/snrc/), the Center for Watershed Sciences (http://watershed.ucdavis.edu/), the Center for Spatial Technologies and Remote Sensing (http://cstars.ucdavis.edu/), and the Harrison Lab (http://www.des.ucdavis.edu/faculty/Harrison/). There is one year of guaranteed funding for the position, with an additional year possible. The salary range is $36-45k per year, depending on experience, with full benefits. The start date is flexible, but preferred on or before July 1st, 2010. Email an electronic application package including full CV, a cover letter addressing your research interests and qualifications, relevant publications, contact information for 4 references. Please send application materials to: Dr. Josh Viers (jhvi...@ucdavis.edu). Review of applications will begin June 1, 2010, and continue until the position is filled.
Re: [ECOLOG-L] evolution for non-scientists textbook
Hi, What a fun opportunity! I would recommend Evolution for Dummies and supplement this book with some other readings (Gould - Hen's teeth Horse's toes?). The UC Berkeley evolution site is also great resource for this sort of class. There are a couple of cartoons I found especially effective (evolutionary baggage - Mantis shrimp example) the meaning of fitness (alternative mating strategies of crickets). I just finished teaching a non-science majors course in Evolution/Animal behavior and relating evolutionary principles to animals clearly sparked my students' interests. I am curious to hear what other folks on this listserve recommend. Best, Eva-Maria Muecke On May 10, 2010, at 7:01 AM, jbowen wrote: Hi All: In the fall I am going to be teaching an Evolutionary Biology course for students in the social sciences and humanities. No prior coursework in the natural sciences is required. I am curious if the list might have recommendations for a textbook that is appropriate for this audience. Thanks in advance for your input.
[ECOLOG-L] SERDP Student Travel Awards Deadline June 1, 2010
SERDP Student Travel Awards 2010 The Ecological Society of America (ESA) announces the availability of ten (10) travel awards of $500 each to students presenting papers at ESA's 2010 Annual Meeting in Pittsburgh, PA. These awards are sponsored by the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP). SERDP is the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) environmental science and technology program, executed in partnership with DOE and EPA. SERDP invests in basic and applied research, and exploratory development. Students with abstracts accepted in one of four areas are eligible to apply: • Ecological Systems Ecology and Management • Living Marine Resources Ecology and Management • Watershed Processes and Management • Species Ecology and Management Eligibility Please note that students whose research or research assistantship position is currently being funded by DOD SERDP are not eligible for this award. Students whose research involves ecological systems or species that are relevant to a DoD natural resource management concern have preference, though the research does not need to have been conducted on a DoD installation. For full application information, please go to http://www.esa.org/education_diversity/serdp_awards.php
[ECOLOG-L] evolution for non-scientists textbook
I teach evolution to non-majors and agree with the Tangled Bank suggestion. As a supplement I suggest The Evolution Dialogues printed by the AAAS. The later is particularly useful for students who have the perception that evolution conflicts with religion. Madhusudan Katti wrote: I'd look at The Tangled Bank: An Introduction to Evolution by Carl Zimmer. Here's the Amazon page for the book: http://amzn.to/acUSiw. On 5/10/10 7:01 AM, jbowen wrote: Hi All: In the fall I am going to be teaching an Evolutionary Biology course for students in the social sciences and humanities. No prior coursework in the natural sciences is required. I am curious if the list might have recommendations for a textbook that is appropriate for this audience. Thanks in advance for your input.
Re: [ECOLOG-L] Ecology Terminology and associated phenomena Colonizing species etc
Is a species (possibly) exotic only if introduced by humans? Certainly invasive species can come by natural means -- presumably when the land bridge between Siberia and N. America emerged from the sea there was an invasion of new species (including humans). Less dramatic natural events can bring in new species, or they may arrive because they evolve longer flight ranges or greater temperature tolerances. I think that we are getting too wrapped up with irrelevant rigor in this discussion. A species is exotic if it is outside its normal range, and it is invasive if its local population is growing. Those of you familiar with my work on fuzzy logic may detect that this is a fuzzy definition -- we cannot draw a sharp distinction between native and exotic, some species are more exotic than others, and there are degrees of invasiveness. Is the distinction ecologically meaningless? Not if it has value in understanding an ecosystem. For example, sometimes tropical species show up off the Atlantic coast of Canada due to entrainment in warm-core rings in the Gulf Stream. They are exotics, rarely found, but they can have an impact on the ecosystem. Bill Silvert - Original Message - From: James Crants jcra...@gmail.com To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU Sent: segunda-feira, 10 de Maio de 2010 16:51 Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] Ecology Terminology and associated phenomena Colonizing species etc In our conversation, Matthew Chew argued that the distinction between native and exotic species is ecologically meaningless. A species does not have higher fitness because it is dispersed by humans instead of other agents. Most species dispersed by humans fail utterly in the new environment to which they were dispersed. Very few species are evolutionarily specialized for human-mediated dispersal ...
Re: [ECOLOG-L] evolution for non-scientists textbook
I had great success using two books: 1) David Quammen's book The Reluctant Mr. Darwin; and 2) Jerry Coyne's Why Evolution is True. Although Quammen’s book is succinct, it provides a wonderfully explicit portrait of Darwin’s life from 1837 until his death in 1882. Coyne’s book is replete with empirical evidence for evolution from a broad range of perspectives and, in my opinion, is very well suited persons without specialized knowledge of the biological sciences. Dale D. Edwards, PhD Department of Biology University of Evansville Evansville, IN 47722 Ph: 812.488.2645 On May 10, 2010, at 9:01 AM, jbowen wrote: Hi All: In the fall I am going to be teaching an Evolutionary Biology course for students in the social sciences and humanities. No prior coursework in the natural sciences is required. I am curious if the list might have recommendations for a textbook that is appropriate for this audience. Thanks in advance for your input.
Re: [ECOLOG-L] evolution for non-scientists textbook
I use the Selfish Gene in my lower-level genetics class and Diversity of Life in Ecology. A lot depends on the reading level of the folks you are dealing with. Malcolm On Mon, May 10, 2010 at 9:55 AM, Michael Cooperman michael.cooper...@noaa.gov wrote: Hello - Although not a text book per se, Richard Dawkins' book The Selfish Gene would provide an excellent description of evolution and ample discussion material. Its been several years since I read it, but I think it was written to be easily accessible to a lay audience. Alongthe same lines, E.O. Wilson's Diversity of Life would also merit consideration. Michael Cooperman jbowen wrote: Hi All: In the fall I am going to be teaching an Evolutionary Biology course for students in the social sciences and humanities. No prior coursework in the natural sciences is required. I am curious if the list might have recommendations for a textbook that is appropriate for this audience. Thanks in advance for your input. -- Malcolm L. McCallum Associate Professor of Biology Managing Editor, Herpetological Conservation and Biology Texas AM University-Texarkana Fall (odd years) Teaching Schedule: Vertebrate Biology - TR 10-11:40; General Ecology - MW 1-2:40pm; Forensic Science - W 6-9:40pm Spring (even) years: Vertebrate Histology - TR 1-2:40pm Genetics - MW 1-2:40pm Herpetology - W 6-10pm Summer (even years): Wildlife Biology Wildlife Techniques Fall (even years): Ecology Molecular Cell Biology Vertebrate Biology Spring (odd) years: Genetics Landscape ecology GIS Environmental Physiology Summer (odd years): Vertebrate Field Biology 1880's: There's lots of good fish in the sea W.S. Gilbert 1990's: Many fish stocks depleted due to overfishing, habitat loss, and pollution. 2000: Marine reserves, ecosystem restoration, and pollution reduction MAY help restore populations. 2022: Soylent Green is People! Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.
Re: [ECOLOG-L] evolution for non-scientists textbook
I'll throw 'The Beak of the Finch' by Jonathan Weiner into the mix. In addition to a very cogent explanation of natural selection, it continues the case study usage of finches in the Galapagos and personalizes the story with anecdotes of the scientists making the observations, which may also interest those in the social science/humanities crowd. Very good science writing IMHO. Ben On May 10, 2010, at 11:58 AM, malcolm McCallum wrote: I use the Selfish Gene in my lower-level genetics class and Diversity of Life in Ecology. A lot depends on the reading level of the folks you are dealing with. Malcolm On Mon, May 10, 2010 at 9:55 AM, Michael Cooperman michael.cooper...@noaa.gov wrote: Hello - Although not a text book per se, Richard Dawkins' book The Selfish Gene would provide an excellent description of evolution and ample discussion material. Its been several years since I read it, but I think it was written to be easily accessible to a lay audience. Alongthe same lines, E.O. Wilson's Diversity of Life would also merit consideration. Michael Cooperman jbowen wrote: Hi All: In the fall I am going to be teaching an Evolutionary Biology course for students in the social sciences and humanities. No prior coursework in the natural sciences is required. I am curious if the list might have recommendations for a textbook that is appropriate for this audience. Thanks in advance for your input. Ben Fertig Graduate Research Assistant University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Integration and Application Network Annapolis Synthesis Center 111 Cathedral St Suite 302 Annapolis, MD 21401 office: 410 263 5240 cell: 301 785 7614 email: bfer...@umces.edu web: www.ian.umces.edu
Re: [ECOLOG-L] Ecology Terminology and associated phenomena Colonizing species etc
There is no way to avoid a value judgement in the whole IAS issue, a certain amount of objectivity is useful but really it is a management orientated discipline, you are not interested in whether a species is alien per se but whether it is having a negative impact on values you hold dear. Usually I focus on valued native biodiversity. That is the point! In the same way extinctions are natural at some level you could say that a human mediated extinctions are no less natural, but for me I can say it doesn't seem the same, even if there were a functionally equivalent alien species to take its place? I could explain why it seems important to save species and ecosystems but you would have heard it all before. I would say we don't know enough to define functional equivalence with confidence. Dr Chew is known for his critcisms of the invasive species concept, issue and science and he puts up some solid arguments. Somehow after having worked in NZ, Galapagos and Hawaii it really does seem to be an issue of importance and a scientific approach adds value, and is therefore valid whether or not the semantics and terms are agreed. Define your question, terms and your assumptions and go for it, probably most fields of science are heavily value driven. Avoiding bias will only take you so far, its a worthy goal that we strive for probably without ever quite reaching it. PS: There is no evidence that the proportion of aliens that naturalize or become widespread will not increase for the forseeable future as long as we continue to move spp to new site, after all if it grows in a location (outside) the real question is why wouldn't it reproduce, establish and spread? On 5/10/10, James Crants jcra...@gmail.com wrote: Jim and others, In the discussion off-forum, we were unable to come to any conclusions because we could not agree on answer to even the most fundamental question: is the distinction between exotic and native species ecologically meaningful? If you can't agree on that, there's no point in going on to ask whether there's such a thing as an invasive exotic species, whethere invasive exotics are a problem, and what, if anything, we should do about it. In our conversation, Matthew Chew argued that the distinction between native and exotic species is ecologically meaningless. A species does not have higher fitness because it is dispersed by humans instead of other agents. Most species dispersed by humans fail utterly in the new environment to which they were dispersed. Very few species are evolutionarily specialized for human-mediated dispersal (I think exceptions would be some of those species we use as crops, pets, and livestock, and some agricultural weeds that have evolved such that their seeds are difficult to separate from crop seeds). An invasive exotic species shows the population dynamics you would expect for any species that is rapidly expanding its range, regardless of its origin. If exotic and native species are not biologically distinguishable, then the distinction is merely historically incidental. The categories are not ecologically meaningful, and they are only useful for marshalling support for one group of plants (natives) and opposition to another (exotics). Actually, Dr. Chew adhered strictly to the term alien. Many people write and talk about alien species, and this term, as well as the term invasive, provoke hostility. They do not serve us well if we want to discuss these things rationally. On the other hand, since Dr. Chew considers these terms to be ecologically meaningless, he is not obliged to suggest alternatives, and he does not. I use exotic instead of alien because it seems less inflammatory, but Dr. Chew and I agree (I think) that there is no way to discuss exotic and native species without ending up favoring one category over the other, regardless of what labels we put on them. That's my summary of Dr. Chew's arguments, as I understand them. As he amply demonstrated in the off-forum discussion, he can make his case much better than I can. I have CC'ed him because I don't think he's on this forum, and he might want to make his point in his own words. Initially, my argument was on moral grounds: whatever negative effects invasive species have on native species are the fault of our species (unless a non-human disperser was responsible for the intial long-distance-dispersal event, which very rarely happens), and, as moral agents, we are obligated to try to undo or mitigate the harm we cause to others. That's my Catholic upbringing speaking, I guess, and it's apparently not a compelling argument to someone who hasn't already reached the same moral conclusion on exotic invasives. I was working on a factual argument against the assertion that exotic species are not ecologically different from native species, but I have not had time to check what I believe to be true against the evidence. Maybe others can help on
[ECOLOG-L] Measuring interstitial flow velocity
Hi everyone, I'm looking for an inexpensive means of estimating or measuring mean interstitial flow velocity within gravel/cobble sized benthic stream sediments. I've looked into heat-pulse groundwater flow meters, but they are expensive, tough to calibrate and not widely used. I'm currently considering deploying gypsum tablets and recording dissolution rates, but these interstitial flow velocities are so low (0.04-0.22 cm/s) that I am not sure this will prove a valuable approach. Does anyone have any other clever tricks I may not have heard about? I'll consider anything! Many thanks, Ryan Utz Postdoctoral researcher Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology University of California, Santa Barbara
[ECOLOG-L] Looking for JOBS in US
Dear All, Thank you so much for reading my mail. My name is Ziyan Chu, 2nd year Master Student in Environment Science at Yale University. I am graduating this May, 2010. I am writing to look for any jobs in US after graduation. I am available late August. I have a strong scientific background and have gained my first master degree in Ecology in China. And I also have GIS, remote sensing skills and basic knowledge on US law and policy on Environment issues. I am interested in climate change, carbon sequestration, and energy efficiency. My master thesis project at Yale is focusing on the impact of land use change on the carbon sequestration in Northeastern US. I know it's a hard time to find a job now especially I need the sponsor of H1B visa. But I really hope I can find any position in research institution, consulting companies or NGO. Thank you for your consideration. I am looking forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, Ziyan Chu -- Ziyan Chu, Master of Environment Science Forestry Environmental Studies Yale University 195 Prospect St. New Haven, CT 06511 Email: ziyan@yale.edu
[ECOLOG-L] Postdoc: Changes in European plant-pollinator communities
Faculty of Biological Sciences Institute of Integrative and Comparative Biology Research Fellow (Full-time, fixed term for 36 months) Project Title: Changes in European plant-pollinator communities You will assess recent change in pollinator (bee, hoverfly, butterfly) and wild plant communities across Europe using existing databases. The work will explore aspects of species diversity and community ecology, focussing on patterns of change in plant-pollinator communities, possible linkage between changes in pollinator and plant populations, functional diversity and species traits, and some of the drivers of change. The work will involve data gathering and statistical analysis, to address (for example) biodiversity change at different spatial scales, changes in plant-pollinator networks, impact of loss of food resources on pollinators and impact of pollinator loss on pollination services for wild plants. Extensive knowledge of statistical and spatial analysis of large biodiversity databases would be essential for this post; excellent communication and good leadership skills are also essential given the need to set-up collaborations with various data-holders across Europe. The post is part of the EU-FP7 STEP (Status and Trends in European Pollinators) project, and so would involve collaborations with an interdisciplinary team of scientists from across Europe (and beyond). You will have a first degree and PhD in population or community ecology, spatial ecology or a closely allied discipline and a strong background in population and community ecology. University Grade 7 (£29,853 - £35,646 p.a.) Informal enquiries to Dr. Jacobus Biesmeijer, mailto:j.c.biesmei...@leeds.ac.ukj.c.biesmei...@leeds.ac.uk, tel +44 (0)113 343 2815 or Dr. William Kunin, mailto:w.e.ku...@leeds.ac.ukw.e.ku...@leeds.ac.uk, tel +44 (0)113 343 2857 To download an application form and job details please visit http://hr.leeds.ac.uk/jobs/http://hr.leeds.ac.uk/jobs/. Alternatively these may be obtained from the Faculty HR Office, tel + 44 (0)113 343 2250, email mailto:fbsj...@leeds.ac.ukfbsj...@leeds.ac.uk Job ref 313348 Closing date 26 May 2010 Further Details Reports to: Dr Jacobus Biesmeijer Responsible to: Director of Institute of Integrative and Comparative Biology Background to the post This post is part of an EU FP7 project STEP (Status and Trends in European Pollinators), which involves 21 partner organisations across Europe. Within this project, the Leeds team is responsible for coordinating the work package on documenting the state of European pollinators and animal-pollinated plants. This work package includes work on population and community ecology of (wild and managed) pollinators, functional diversity and species traits, pollinator monitoring and conservation. Summary of the research programme The Leeds team will be involved in several areas of the STEP research programme, but will have a particularly key role in the following: * Documenting change in wild pollinator diversity at different scales and resolution. * Documenting change in animal-pollinated plants at different scales and resolution. * Documenting simultaneous changes in the distribution of pollinator and plant traits. * Assessing local changes in pollinator and plant biodiversity as a function of multiple drivers. * Exploring automated identification methods to support pollinator monitoring. In addition, the Leeds team will play a key role in other research within STEP, with particular involvement in the following: * Developing pollinator monitoring protocols. * Developing a Red Data Book for European bees. * Assessing combined effects of climate, land use, fragmentation, nitrogen deposition and pesticide pressure on pollinators. * Synthesising current knowledge about relevant environmental pressures on European pollinators and animal-pollinated plants at the landscape scale. * Assessing the impacts of pollinator shifts on wild plant pollination and of plants shifts on pollinators. Research environment Two academic staff members at Leeds will be involved in the STEP project: Koos Biesmeijer and Bill Kunin. Koos Biesmeijer is a community ecologist with particular interest in plant-pollinator interactions and ecosystem services. Bill Kunin is a spatial ecologist with a particular interest in plant and insect populations and their interactions at multiple scales. Both have active research groups, with a total of 10 postdoctoral fellows and PhD students. They are members of the Genetics, Ecology and Evolution research group (with 33 academic staff) within the Institute for Integrative and Comparative Biology. Both also have extensive collaborations across the University within the Earth and Biosphere Institute (of which WEK is acting director) and the mathb...@leeds group, and much more broadly through the
Re: [ECOLOG-L] evolution for non-scientists textbook
The Greatest Show on Earth, by Richard Dawkins. Enjoy. Jim jbowen wrote on 10-May-10 11:01: Hi All: In the fall I am going to be teaching an Evolutionary Biology course for students in the social sciences and humanities. No prior coursework in the natural sciences is required. I am curious if the list might have recommendations for a textbook that is appropriate for this audience. Thanks in advance for your input. -- James J. Roper, Ph.D. Ecologia, Evolução e Dinâmicas Populacionais de Vertebrados Terrestres Caixa Postal 19034 81531-990 Curitiba, Paraná, Brasil E-mail: jjro...@gmail.com mailto:jjro...@gmail.com Telefone: 55 41 36730409 Celular: 55 41 98182559 Skype-in (USA):+1 706 5501064 Skype-in (Brazil):+55 41 39415715 Ecologia e Conservação na UFPR http://www.bio.ufpr.br/ecologia/ Home Page http://jjroper.googlespages.com Ars Artium Consulting http://arsartium.googlespages.com In Google Earth, copy and paste - 25 31'18.14 S, 49 05'32.98 W
Re: [ECOLOG-L] Ecology Terminology and associated phenomena Colonizing species etc
Ah Jim, But that question is easy to answer. If humans put the species in a place or it arrived in a place that it would not have gotten to on its own, then it is introduced, otherwise it is native or natural. Clearly this is a mere consequence of the short history of humans as dispersal agents on the planet, but it is a good enough definition for 99% of the cases - just check the classic by Elton. We already have the term naturalized which basically means it's here to stay and there is nothing we can do about it. I personally think that for almost all intents and purposes, those definitions work. When they don't work, we are either splitting hairs or don't have clear objectives. I think a clear consequence of this, is that humans should avoid introducing and we should often actively eliminate introductions. But, that idea is based on the premise that we want nature to run its course without human help - but that is not a universally accepted premise. And, a second premise is that evolution by natural selection and how nature may have influenced that through genetic drift, lateral gene transfer or what have you, is what is interesting about nature. I can see a future in which ecologists merely study how natural selection influenced organisms after their introduction, or as a consequence of the introduction of other species. Boring. After all, those will always be on a short term scale and will only illustrate what we probably already know about evolution. The big picture, long term consequence of continental drift, punctuated equilibrium and so on, which have resulted in the fascinating diversity of life, do not occur in one or two human generations - but we can certainly wipe out the evidence of them in the same short time frame. Extinctions and introduced species will do just that. Cheers, Jim James Crants wrote on 10-May-10 12:51: Jim and others, In the discussion off-forum, we were unable to come to any conclusions because we could not agree on answer to even the most fundamental question: is the distinction between exotic and native species ecologically meaningful? If you can't agree on that, there's no point in going on to ask whether there's such a thing as an invasive exotic species, whethere invasive exotics are a problem, and what, if anything, we should do about it. In our conversation, Matthew Chew argued that the distinction between native and exotic species is ecologically meaningless. A species does not have higher fitness because it is dispersed by humans instead of other agents. Most species dispersed by humans fail utterly in the new environment to which they were dispersed. Very few species are evolutionarily specialized for human-mediated dispersal (I think exceptions would be some of those species we use as crops, pets, and livestock, and some agricultural weeds that have evolved such that their seeds are difficult to separate from crop seeds). An invasive exotic species shows the population dynamics you would expect for any species that is rapidly expanding its range, regardless of its origin. If exotic and native species are not biologically distinguishable, then the distinction is merely historically incidental. The categories are not ecologically meaningful, and they are only useful for marshalling support for one group of plants (natives) and opposition to another (exotics). Actually, Dr. Chew adhered strictly to the term alien. Many people write and talk about alien species, and this term, as well as the term invasive, provoke hostility. They do not serve us well if we want to discuss these things rationally. On the other hand, since Dr. Chew considers these terms to be ecologically meaningless, he is not obliged to suggest alternatives, and he does not. I use exotic instead of alien because it seems less inflammatory, but Dr. Chew and I agree (I think) that there is no way to discuss exotic and native species without ending up favoring one category over the other, regardless of what labels we put on them. That's my summary of Dr. Chew's arguments, as I understand them. As he amply demonstrated in the off-forum discussion, he can make his case much better than I can. I have CC'ed him because I don't think he's on this forum, and he might want to make his point in his own words. Initially, my argument was on moral grounds: whatever negative effects invasive species have on native species are the fault of our species (unless a non-human disperser was responsible for the intial long-distance-dispersal event, which very rarely happens), and, as moral agents, we are obligated to try to undo or mitigate the harm we cause to others. That's my Catholic upbringing speaking, I guess, and it's apparently not a compelling argument to someone who hasn't already reached the same moral conclusion on exotic invasives. I was working on a factual argument against the assertion that exotic species are not ecologically different from
[ECOLOG-L] Post Doc position
I recently qualified for a PhD in pasture science, my research work was on communal rangeland management in South Africa, specifically investigating social institutions determining rangeland use, factors affecting grazing patterns observed in cattle grazing communal areas and some soil and vegetation characteristics presumed to have an influence in the observed grazing patterns. My research involved survey work, and also used participatory research instrument. Cattle grazing pattern studies in relation to vegetation composition was also a component of my research. I wish to broaden my research skills by enrolling for post doctoral studies. I would therefore be grateful if anyone in the list can advise on any post-doctoral positions in rangeland management and ecology . With Kind regards * Bethwell Moyo (PhD) (Pasture Science) +27724643759 *
[ECOLOG-L] SERDP STUDENT TRAVEL AWARDS 2010
SERDP STUDENT TRAVEL AWARDS 2010 The Ecological Society of America (ESA) announces the availability of ten (10) travel awards of $500 each to students presenting papers at ESA's 2010 Annual Meeting in Pittsburgh, PA. These awards are sponsored by the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP). SERDP is the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) environmental science and technology program, executed in partnership with DOE and EPA. SERDP invests in basic and applied research, and exploratory development. Students with abstracts accepted in one of four areas are eligible to apply: -Ecological Systems Ecology and Management -Living Marine Resources Ecology and Management -Watershed Processes and Management -Species Ecology and Management Eligibility Please note that students whose research or research assistantship position is currently being funded by DoD SERDP are not eligible for this award. Students whose research involves ecological systems or species that are relevant to a DoD natural resource management concern have preference, though the research does not need to have been conducted on a DoD installation. To apply, please submit the following by June 1, 2010: 1. complete contact information, including email and phone # 2. your accepted abstract, 3. a letter of recommendation from your advisor, 4. a brief statement (maximum 200 words) responding to the question How will your research contribute to management of natural resources on federal lands? 5. proof of student status Please submit these materials to Dr. Scott Roberts, ESA Applied Ecology Section Vice Chair at srobe...@cfr.msstate.edumailto:srobe...@cfr.msstate.edu Please place as much of your application as possible directly in the text of an email message, minimizing attachments. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered. Winners will be notified around June 15. Awards will be presented in person at the SERDP booth at the ESA Annual Meeting at a time to be announced. For information on other student travel awards to ESA 2010, see http://www.esa.org/aboutesa/awards.php. Also on http://www.esa.org/education_diversity/studentResources.php Nicole Beetle Education Intern Ecological Society of America
[ECOLOG-L] Employment - Science Analyst, FishWise
FishWise, Science Analyst Job Description May 10th, 2010 FishWise (http://fishwise.org) is expanding our science-based work to improve the sustainability and financial performance of seafood retailers, distributors, and producers. A detailed job description of our Science Analyst position can be found at http://fishwise.org/resources. The application period is open until COB Pacific time, May 28th 2010. Key attributes of the hiree will include: - Master degree in a related discipline (aquaculture, seafood business, fisheries, policy, economics etc.) - 3-5 years professional experience - with networks relevant to sustainable seafood - proven track record of publishing and fund-raising - excited to work in a small, entrepreneurial ENGO/consulting team - comfortable taking the initiative and using remote communications tools - based in Santa Cruz, California, USA For queries, or further information, please contact s.mor...@fishwise.org
Re: [ECOLOG-L] Ecology Terminology and associated phenomena Colonizing species etc
Okay, I've taken the bait - or at least, I'm nibbling at it. Earlier today Jim Crants pretty accurately summarized the points I made off-list, for which I thank him. Here I'm responding to his paragraph regarding 'moral grounds' and to his numbered paragraphs (1-4). In order to minimize repeated replies, I've deleted previous material, leaving only specifically relevant passages. I apologize for the inconvenience of having to look up the rest, but it's probably still in your inbox. JC: Initially, my argument was on moral grounds: whatever negative effects invasive species have on native species are the fault of our species (unless a non-human disperser was responsible for the intial long-distance-dispersal event, which very rarely happens), and, as moral agents, we are obligated to try to undo or mitigate the harm we cause to others. That's my Catholic upbringing speaking, I guess, and it's apparently not a compelling argument to someone who hasn't already reached the same moral conclusion on exotic invasives. MC: I think it's safe to assume many or most ecologists feel similarly duty-bound, regardless of their particular religious or ethical training. I suspect (but cannot bring data to bear) that (again) many or most of us now active became ecologists partly because we were already convinced that ethics extend beyond human-human interactions. As a child of the 60s and 70s, I can say that fits my experience, and seems to apply to almost every ecologist I've talked to. Relatively fewer of us have tried to articulate our moral convictions in ways philosophers or theologians would consider to be 'principled', and in my view none of us have really succeeded. Whatever else we are, we're animals with limited capacities. To be very 60s indeed, 'there's nothing [we] can do that can't be done', and evidently quite a lot we can't do. Still, human activity has reconfigured the biosphere. Topologically, it's like wadding up a map of the Earth so that places once all but completely separated are now in all but direct contact. Every major port city touches every other. Every major airport likewise. It's not just the world we live in, it's the world everything else lives in, too. Fundamentally redrawing the map by creating wholly new 'currents of commerce' while expecting former 'rules' of dispersal to persist seems naive. Either our morals are outdated, or our actions are immoral. But neither has much effect on global commerce, and the distinction doesn't matter to anything else entrained in our wake. JC(1) Exotic species, on average, interact with fewer species than native species, and their interactions are weaker, on average. In particular, they have fewer parasites, pathogens, and predators, counted in either individuals or species. This is especially true of plants, and especially non-crop plants. I suspect, but have not heard, that exotic plants also have fewer mycorrhizal associates than native ones, but I doubt that they have significantly fewer pollinators or dispersers. Meanwhile, back in their native ranges, the same species have the same number of associations as any other native species. MC(1) Natural selection only produces interactions good enough to persist under prevailing conditions; there is no gold standard. By definition, 50% of all species interact with fewer species than average, and 50% of all interactions are weaker than average. Preferring stronger, more complex interactions means preferring more tightly-coupled (and therefore) 'riskier' systems with a higher likelihood of failure. JC(2) Very-long-distance dispersal by humans confers a fitness advantage over very-long-distance dispersal by other agents, on average, for two reasons. First, humans often disperse organisms in groups, such as containers of seeds, shipments of mature plants and animals, or large populations contained in ballast water, allowing them to overcome the Allee effects (lack of mates, inbreeding depression) their populations would face if introduced as one or a few individuals. We also often take pains to maximize the establishment success of organisms we disperse, by shipping healthy, mature plants and animals and propogating them when they arrive, while non-human dispersal agents usually introduce small numbers of organisms, often nowhere near their peak fitness potential (e.g., seeds, spores, starving and dehydrated animals). MC(2). JC appears to be arguing that once rare occurrences are no longer rare. I agree. But I draw the opposite conclusion, because he is arguing that to generate such changes is morally wrong, while I am just saying: when these conditions prevail, long distance dispersal becomes normal. JC(3) Although the population dynamics of invasive species do not differ by what agent introduced them (whether humans brought them, some other agent did, or they evolved in situ), it is ecologically consequential that human activities are generating so many more invasive species than
[ECOLOG-L] Primatology, Wildlife Ecology, and Conservation Field School in Kenya - a few spaces left
Dear Colleagues The Primatology, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Field School which is conducted in Kenya has a few more spaces for students! This is a unique and exciting opportunity. Conducted annually for 4 weeks in August, the Primate Behavior, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Field School (PFS) is a 6 credit summer course from Rutgers University. The first two weeks of the program are held in the Lakipia Plateau in Central Kenya. You will travel to the Mt. Kenya Animal Orphanage where you will be introduced to a plethora of Kenyan wildlife including Black and White Colobus Monkeys, the endemic Bongo and Cheetahs! At Mugie Ranch you will camp with Zebra, Buffalo, Elephants and radio-collared Lions. In the second part of the program you will collect field data on two endangered monkey species, the Tana River mangabey and the Tana River red colobus, as well as yellow baboons. This field school provides the distinctive opportunity for you to gain hands-on experience in field work methodologies and research on some of Kenya's most exquisite wildlife, including a variety of Old World primates. In addition students have access to cutting edge conservation programs and wildlife ecologists and biologists. This is the fourth year for this amazing program which earns students 6 upper division anthropology credits from Rutgers University. This program is collaborative between the National Museums of Kenya (Institute for Primate Research), The Kenyan Wildlife Service and Rutgers University. If you are interested please contact Dr. Jack Harris immediately at jwhar...@rci.rutgers.edu or Dr. Julie Wieczkowski at wiecz...@buffalostate.edu. Best, Dr. Jack Harris Rutgers University Julie Wieczkowski, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Anthropology CLAS B101 Buffalo State College 1300 Elmwood Avenue Buffalo, NY 14222 716.878.6424 (ph) 716.878.4009 (fax) wiecz...@buffalostate.edu
[ECOLOG-L] FIELD RESEARCH ASSISTANT: Vancouver Island
The Bolnick lab at the University of Texas at Austin is looking for a volunteer research assistant to help with field work on host-parasite relationships of threespine stickleback in lakes on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. We are looking for someone who enjoys field work, is willing to work long hours outside, and gets along well with other members of a field crew. The work will involve extensive snorkeling to observe and collect stickleback and their eggs, so basic proficiency with snorkeling and canoeing is useful. The volunteer must be able to bring their own good wetsuit or drysuit and related equipment to snorkel in ~55 degree (F) water. The volunteer must be available to help with work from (approximately) May 24th through June 24th. The cost of travel, lodging and food will be covered by the principal investigator. The volunteer is thus expected to incur minimal expenses during this time. If interested, contact Dan Bolnick at danboln...@mail.utexas.edu, with a brief coverletter describing your background and attach a copy of a CV. For more information about the Bolnick Lab, visit https://webspace.utexas.edu/dib73/TheBolnickLab/Home.html
