The Future Keepers: Assessing effects of thermal stress and differential resource limitation on ecosystem function providers

 

ARC Discovery Project DP160101561

 

Nigel Andrew (University of New England);

Alan Andersen (CSIRO);

Nate Sanders (Copenhagen);

Rob Dunn (North Carolina State University).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The key aim of this project is to predict how key species that provide core ecosystem functions may change under thermal stress and differential resource limitation. Any changes to the biology and roles that these core species contribute (e.g. population dynamics, competition, mutualisms, metabolic rates, seed dispersal) could have substantial ramifications within an ecosystem. Ecologically important, ubiquitous and diverse organisms, such as ants, also represent ideal subjects for citizen science research.

Our project will reveal how species that provide core ecosystem functions will respond to a changing climate. In most parts of Australia, ants are the dominant ecosystem function providers. We will assess ant responses to a warmer climate at sites across Australia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure: Sampling sites as of March 2017.

 

The sampling methodology we use is shown here