Life Sciences
Life Sciences
Filter Total Items: 25
Critical zone as a mediator of hydroclimate-ecosystem asynchrony
Most regions across the continental United States are experiencing shifts in hydroclimate, such as snow transitioning to rain and changes in streamflow regimes, driven by rising air temperatures.
Scaling tropical wetland methane fluxes regionally and globally
Wetlands purify water and absorb carbon dioxide but release large amounts of methane. Tropical wetlands are also one of the least understood ecosystems on earth. This knowledge gap is unfortunate because science projects tropical methane emissions to rise. Determining if and when they do will require a baseline—a global synthesis of tropical emissions and their predictors.
Are we experiencing a riverine silicon surge? Implications for the global carbon cycle
The amounts of silicon (Si), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) in rivers are crucial for determining which types of algae grow.
Status of butterflies in the United States
The pervasive nature of insect species’ declines has led to the specter of an “Insect Armageddon” in the popular press. Insect-derived ecosystem services are valued at > $57 billion in the U.S. and thus the loss of insects has the potential to fundamentally disrupt natural and economic systems.The causes of insect declines have been linked to changes in climate, land use and pesticide...
Developing a macroecological understanding of invasive plant impacts based on abundance and trait data
Understanding invasive plant impacts can provide insight into community assembly and inform the development of successful management strategies. The impacts of invasive species depend on how they alter patterns of abundance within recipient communities and on the characteristics of the invaders and the affected species. Research has suggested that common species may be more impacted by...
Standardizing, aggregating, analyzing and disseminating global wildlife genetic and genomic data for improved management and advancement of community best practices
Global biodiversity is rapidly declining, threatening humans, ecosystems, and the services that society relies upon. Monitoring and understanding the extent of biodiversity declines can support policy decisions. Genetic diversity is the foundation of biodiversity, determining the capacity of populations to adapt to environmental changes and to sustain function and structure in all...
Translational science for renewable energy and its wildlife concerns: a synthesis of wind energy buildout, bat population ecology, and habitat constraints
Wind energy is poised for rapid growth over the next 2-3 decades yet fatalities to birds and bats is a leading concern that may constrain wind energy development in the US. This working group will integrate wind energy forecasting models with bat ecological models and management policy considerations to transform our ability to understand and manage renewable energy development while...
Forecasting Mosquito Phenology in a Shifting Climate: Synthesizing Continental-scale Monitoring Data
Climate change is expected to have significant effects on the phenology of vectors of arthropod-borne diseases, particularly mosquitoes. However, forecasting the direction and magnitude of future phenological shifts requires a more detailed understanding of the climate drivers of mosquito phenology. Addressing this knowledge gap is particularly salient for mosquitoes, as they have the...
Analyses of contaminant effects in freshwater systems: synthesizing abiotic and biotic stream datasets for long-term ecological research
Fresh water is arguably the most valuable resource on the planet, but human activities threaten freshwater ecosystems. For example, use of synthetic chemicals, such as pesticides, road salts, and nutrients, has led to the ubiquitous contamination of aquatic systems, jeopardizing the integrity of ecological communities. Given the importance biodiversity plays in maintaining ecosystem...
Capture-recapture meets big data: integrating statistical classification with ecological models of species abundance and occurrence
Advances in new technologies such as remote cameras, noninvasive genetics and bioacoustics provide massive quantities of electronic data. Much work has been done on automated (“machine learning”) methods of classification which produce “sample class designations” (e.g., identification of species or individuals) that are regarded as observed data in ecological models. However, these “data...
Global Evaluation of the Impacts of Storms on freshwater Habitat and Structure of phytoplankton Assemblages (GEISHA)
Climate change is expected to cause more intense and frequent extreme weather events, but we only have a basic understanding of how these events might alter freshwater systems. Storms are likely to impact lake systems through delivery of sediments from watersheds and mixing of the water column, both of which could have important consequences for phytoplankton. Phytoplankton are the base...
Completing the dryland puzzle: creating a predictive framework for biological soil crust function and response to climate change
Drylands are integral to the Earth system and the present and future of human society. Drylands encompass more than 40% of the terrestrial landmass and support 34% of the world’s human population. Biocrusts are the “living skin” of Earth’s drylands, sometimes dominating the ground cover and figuring prominently in ecosystem structure and function. Biocrusts are a biological aggregate of