Postdoctoral Fellowship: PRFB: Effect of interspecific interactions and local climate filters on species distributions under climate change

Mosley, Camille, Notre Dame IN

Investigators

Abstract

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2024, Broadening Participation of Groups Underrepresented in Biology. The Fellowship supports a research and training plan for the Fellow that will increase the participation of groups underrepresented in biology. Competition for resources and the local environment can influence how different species are distributed across the landscape. This research will investigate how these factors impact where two species of lake fish live and predict whether increasing water temperatures may change future distributions. Knowledge gained from this project will be important for understanding effects on species in other ecosystems and aid in the conservation of species sensitive to rising temperatures. As a component of the training plan, the fellow will broaden participation of diverse scholars in biology by providing mentoring to underrepresented postdoctoral associates and late-stage graduate students to build community and recruit diverse scholars to postdoctoral positions. This research will investigate the implications of interspecific interactions and local climate filters on species persistence under climate change scenarios by using a data-rich conservation-relevant system (warmwater and coolwater recreational fisheries). This research will address the hypothesis that competition and local climate filters will constrain current predictions of species distributions because differences in thermal tolerance and competitive ability will influence the niche overlap of coexisting species that create magnified competition factors reducing fitness of thermal specialist species. This research will first determine local niche overlap of coexisting species (Largemouth Bass, thermal generalist, and Walleye, thermal specialist) with varying thermal tolerances in lakes across a climate gradient in North America (Southern Canada to Ohio River Valley) then evaluate the role of biotic and abiotic factors in predicting current species distributions. Finally, this research will utilize joint species distribution models to predict future species distributions under climate change scenarios (water temperatures predicted for 2040-2089). The fellow will facilitate a mentoring program for the University of Minnesota Postdoctoral Association members and late-stage graduate students from underrepresented backgrounds pre-and-post program to learn how to recruit and maintain Postdoctoral associates in the biological sciences. The fellow will participate in community outreach through a mini-lecture series at the Bell Museum to display research and the importance of recreational fisheries. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.