Causes and consequences of global pollinator biodiversity change in the Anthropocene
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PhD Title
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Causes and consequences of global pollinator biodiversity change in the Anthropocene |
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Research Theme
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Biodiversity and Ecology |
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Primary Supervisor
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Primary Institution
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Secondary Supervisor
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Secondary Institution
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CASE Partner
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CASE Supervisor
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Prof Richard Gregory |
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Abstract
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87.5% of wild and crop plant species are thought to be pollinated to some extent by animals, with an estimated global value of $230-410 billion dollars. Across North America and Europe, numerous studies have documented declines in pollinating animals. A number of anthropogenic drivers—primarily land-use modification and climate change—have been associated with these losses. However, the extent to which pollinators may decline in the future, and how this might influence communities of species, is largely unknown. This project will collate current knowledge on pollinator decline, distribution, and functional traits, before building statistical models to predict the response of pollinating animals to future environmental change. The project will also explore developments in the novel field of conservation culturomics, using web-scraping and text mining to develop metrics for pollinator awareness, and in turn progress on Aichi Biodiversity Target 1. The outputs of this PhD project will contribute towards efforts to model future biodiversity scenarios, as well as the current debate on indicators for biodiversity awareness. |
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Policy Impact
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Background Reading
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Publications
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