Forums | HES 健康与环境科学

19 October 2023, 12:54 PM

Speaker: Dr. Qiang Zhang, Researcher, Institute of Zoology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences

Host: Prof. Eben Goodale

Date: 2023-10-24

Time: 11:00 am-12:00 pm

Room: ES354

Title: 10 Issues of Concern for Theoretical Ecology of Chinese Birds Associated with the Evolution of Cooperative Behavior

Abstract:

Ecology is one of the sciences that explores the causality of natural patterns, but we must explain what biological and ecological processes lead to such observed natural patterns. "Theoretical ecology" explores ecological issues through the use of mathematical and computational models, extending from individual behavior, through the complexity of intertwined communities, to global-scale phenomena, which is the meaning of the term as used by Robert May in Theory Ecology in 1976. For current ornithological research in China, there is an urgent need to strengthen original innovations and practical applications in the field of "Theoretical Ecology of Birds" as global climate change, habitat loss, population growth and urbanization intensify. In this report, we summarize and discuss with 10 fundamental theoretical issues in the ecology of birds in China that the authors believe need to be investigated, including: 1) evolutionary stabilization strategies for cooperative behaviors; 2) integration of population dynamics and evolutionary dynamics; 3) food web structure and function; 4) biodiversity and ecosystem function; 5) the importance of temporal and spatial scales; 6) analysis of ecosystem Complexity; 7) Diseases, Microbes and Infectious Disease Dynamics; 8) Conservation Biology; 9) Human Impact and Global Change; and 10) Ecological Methods. Finally, we suggest that all active Chinese avian ecologists should be concerned with the future development of a unified and integrated theory of ecology, from traditional diversity coexistence theory to network analysis, to embracing stochasticity, hysteresis and transient dynamics, to subtle fundamental theoretical issues such as key individual traits and population structure; and at the same time, be concerned with the theoretical innovations of our national avifauna in the areas of infectious disease dynamics, conservation of endangered species, construction of nature reserves, response to global climate change, and other aspects of application support.

Key words: species coexistence, population dynamics, system stability, complex network, evolutionary strategy

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I look forward to seeing you there!

Best Regards,

Lu