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Metapopulation persistence has long been a topic of study, yet with the increased use of “protected areas” as conservation approaches, it is more important than ever. For many species in these protected areas, dispersal links subpopulations and the species is viewed as a metapopulation with dispersal induced connectivity. In my thesis, I extend current work that examines the effects of autocorrelation in dispersal on metapopulation persistence and connect it to conservation management questions. I explore the relationship between dispersal’s autocorrelation and the metapopulation growth rate under homogeneous and heterogeneous conditions. Under both conditions, I argue that perfectly negative autocorrelated dispersal maximizes the metapopulation growth rate. For homogeneous conditions, I explore lower bounds for metapopulation persistence. In addition, I examine how changing the autocorrelation in dispersal or changing subpopulation retention and dispersal rates affect the metapopulation growth rate. For heterogeneous systems, I focus on how changes to an individual patch’s growth rate impact the metapopulation growth rate. Increasing one or more neighbor patches’ growth rates in the middle of a system affects the metapopulation the most. For conservation efforts, this work helps inform decisions around patch placement and connectivity, as well as where restoration efforts should take place in a protected area network to increase a species population.   

 

Also on zoom: https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/98969645841
GGAM PhD Exit Seminar