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Research Project Title
How can poaching mediated habitat changes alter community composition and its role in nutrient cycling in the ecosystem?
Research Purpose:
PhD
Principle Investigator:
af58@rice.edu
Introduction
Nutrient cycling and redistribution are key functions that terrestrial mammals provide via defecation and carcass decomposition. Mammal loss or decline can remove critical nutrients thereby hindering nutrient recycling. Furthermore, extinction and local extirpation are typically non-random. Traits, such as large body size, are disproportionately lost, with possible implications for carbon sequestration and nutrient cycling. Both feeding interactions and energy flow among species within a community (i.e. energy flux) can be depicted by food webs. However, much of our current understanding of food webs comes from single-site or small-scale studies, making it difficult to generalize patterns at a global scale. Therefore, large-scale, multi-site studies are needed to identify drivers of food web structure and associated ecosystem functioning. The distribution of animal body sizes within communities affects the ratios of nutrients distributed to plants through animal feces and carcasses due to fixed stoichiometric ratios that vary with herbivore body size. Therefore, spatial variation in the mammal body sizes among locations may affect the redistribution of nutrients. Local-scale gradients in human pressure and plant productivity can enable tests of spatial variation in community composition on food web structure and nutrient cycling.
Problem Statment
As human activity drives species' extinctions, it is critical to identify the consequences of species loss and decline on ecosystem functioning
General Research Objective
I will examine the impact of poaching on mammal communities, including bats, and how this impacts nutrient cycling and ecosystem functioning.
Other Details
Clearance# Clearance Date Permit# Permit Date Commencement Date Completion Date
None CST00001092-2025-2025-00233 April 15, 2024, midnight May 26, 2025 July 31, 2026
Priority Research Theme & Areas
Priority Research Theme Research Area
HABITAT AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health Indicators - Priority ( H )
Project Location
Region Wildlife Area District Species

Udzungwa

U z u n g w a Scarp

Project Researchers
Researcher Role
STEVEN SHINYAMBALA Co-researcher
Victor Kakengi referee
Ann Finneran Principal Investigator
Caroline Pollan Co-researcher
Matthew McCary referee
Arafat Mtui Co-researcher
Reseach Objectives
Sn Objective Methods Description
1 Objective 1. Test how food web structure varies locally in response to anthropogenic pressure and plant productivity.
Other I will utilize 20 deployed (by colleagues) camera traps per forest at a density of 1.5 km2 for 30 days
2 Objective 2. Examine indirect impacts of poaching on bat species, which are vital to ecosystem health.
Other We will deploy acoustic monitors for three nights to record bat species present and use insect traps to see which insects are in the area for the bats to eat.
3 Objective 3. Quantify how food web structure affects nutrient and energy cycling.
Other I will model energy and nutrient fluxes through the food webs as a proxy for ecosystem functioning by using soil cores and plant samples.
Reseach Attachments
Attachment Name Attachment
Full Proposal Project_Proposal_Finneran.pdf