February 6, 2023

12:00pm, PST 1100 TLSB

Nicole Rafferty
Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology; UC Riverside

" Plant-Pollinator Interactions in a Changing Climate "

*Please note the date of this seminar. 

Climate change is altering the timing of life history events, as well as the morphological, physiological, and behavioral traits of populations. As a result, interactions among species are modified, communities are restructured, and ecosystem services may be diminished. Understanding how changing climatic conditions affect plant-pollinator interactions has both ecological and economic importance, as nearly 90% of flowering plants rely on animals for pollination, and pollination is a valuable ecosystem service. Focusing on these interactions, I investigate questions central to a more predictive understanding of the effects of climate change on populations, mediated by species interactions. Specifically, I will illustrate how my research on plant-pollinator interactions in a changing climate addresses (1) the temporal ecology of populations and communities, (2) the traits that structure species interactions, and (3) the evolutionary ecology of mutualisms. Using long-term observational data, network models, and experiments, I will present evidence that climate change is affecting plants, pollinators, and their interactions in ways both subtle and profound.

 

Host: Nathan Kraft