Speaker:  Daniel Allen, Postdoctoral Research Fellow,School of Natural Resources & Environment, University of Michigan

Because of the complexity of the environmental challenges facing us today, interdisciplinary approaches are often required to obtain a better understanding the consequences of global change.  In his research, Daniel merges ecosystem ecology, community ecology, and the earth sciences to understand the how changes in biological community structure affect the transport of materials through ecosystems and landscapes.  In this talk, he will present three vignettes that present research on this theme.  The first will describe the how a single species plays a keystone role in delivering groundwater from aquifers to above-ground food webs in dryland floodplains.  The second and third will discuss how multiple species can interact to affect the flow of energy between aquatic and terrestrial habitats, as well as sediment erosion in streams.  In sum these research projects highlight the complex interactions that link habitats with their communities and have strong implications for the consequences of global environmental change.

Refreshments provided.