Tim Seastedt got the good news of a new, large NSF grant. "Ecosystem transformations along the Colorado Front Range: Prairie dog interactions with multiple components of global environmental change", $851,704.00 (3 years), Tim Seastedt PI, Jesse Nippert (KSU) and Laurel Hartley (CU-Denver) Co-PIs.
In a nutshell: This study will measure how the new plant species are exploiting climate and resource changes, measure how grazing activities by prairie dogs are influenced by these new species, and assess the effects of these interactions on plant communities and soils. This research is important because it evaluates the contention that directional changes in climate and concurrent changes in plant species can alter the role of an animal from one that contributes to community resilience and diversity (i.e., a keystone species) to one that can alter community structure in previously undocumented ways (i.e., an ecosystem transformer).
Congratulations Tim!
