Integrating consumer mediated nutrient dynamics into models of coastal ecosystem function
A fundamental challenge in ecology is to understand what processes underlie the how ecosystems are structured. Consumer-mediated nutrient dynamics are a critical but often overlooked process in tropical coastal ecosystems that may provide needed insight to address this challenge. These dynamics integrate behavioral, community, and ecosystem ecology, and I will show through a hierarchical research approach how they can reveal important drivers and mechanisms of ecosystem function at multiple spatial scales. First, I will show how artificial reefs enhance local ecosystem processes and initiate biogeochemical hotspots at the patch scale. I will then explain a series of studies that identify drivers by which fish communities regulate nutrient supply and storage at the ecosystem scale. These processes in turn may be essential for maintaining the structure and function of habitats (e.g., coral reefs) that in turn are critical for supporting fish communities. Finally, I will discuss how consumer behavior can spatially couple energy and nutrient dynamics at the landscape scale.Throughout, I will provide examples of how this research also bridges science with conservation efforts, underscoring how a theory-driven approach to ecology can be directly applied to help solve real-world conservation problems in highly impaired coastal tropical ecosystems.
Host: Thomas Mehner