Natural Science and Mathematics Colloquium

Natural Science and Mathematics Colloquium

From Micro To Macro: The Importance Of Biodiversity Across Scales

Dr. Jonathan Lefcheck, Smithsonian Institution

Wednesday, October 16,  4:45 PM

Schaefer Hall 106

This lecture is co-sponsored with the Environmental Studies Department

Species are going extinct at a rate that is unprecedented in the history of planet Earth, yet it remains unclear what the loss of biodiversity means for the goods and services we value as human begins. From microscopic invertebrates to the scale of the entire globe, I demonstrate the key role different aspects of biodiversity play in our oceans, including examples from seagrass, coral, kelp, and rocky reef ecosystems. These results integrate across broad disciplines, including metabolic theory and ecophysiology, behavioral, community and ecosystem ecology, macroecology, and global change biology. An emerging ‘next generation of biodiversity science may provide the tools to better understand the role of diverse life in promoting healthy and productive coastal communities.

This talk is free and open to the public; it is meant for a general audience.  If you are an instructor, please announce this talk to your classes.