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The spatial patterns of disruption of plant-animal interactions within a population dynamic approach
His study system comprises the shrub
Daphne rodriguezii
Teixidor (Thymelaeaceae) and its seed disperser,
Podarcis lilfordi
Gunter (Lacertidae), both endemic to the Balearic Islands (Western
Mediterranean). This system is well suited for investigations on the disruption
of a mutualistic plant-animal interactions because the spatial distribution and
demography of the plant are directly influenced by the presence of its unique
seed disperser and because both intact and disrupted populations (i.e., with and
without the seed disperser) exist.
Postdoc project in Leipzig
The methodological innovation of his project is
the integration of previously collected data during Javier’s Ph.D into two
interacting Spatial-Explicit Population Models which describe an explicit
plant-animal interaction. This type of simulation model allows for taking a
first principle approach in which natural history and field observations are
used to deduce the causal relationships among components of the natural systems
and the resulting system dynamics.
The study site
The study plant Daphne rodriguezii ...
...and its seed disperser, Podarcis lilfordi. Both are endemic to the Balearic Islands (Western Mediterranean).
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Modified: 06.04.2009 | Resp.: Thorsten Wiegand | webmaster |