Practical evaluation of the relationship between community biodiversity and ecosystem productivity using a simple plant model
This educational activity aims to test the relationship between the biodiversity of plant communities and their productivity. In two laboratory sessions, students will assemble duckweed communities at different levels of species richness, determine their productivity and measure the traits of the different species. The data collected will be interpreted by applying a biodiversity partitioning metric to assess the roles of complementarity and selection on driving the observed relationship between diversity and productivity. This activity also offers the possibility to measure species morphological traits which can be used to quantify the functional diversity of communities in addition to species richness, investigate its effect on community productivity, and monitor phenotypic plasticity as a possible mechanism. This activity includes a theoretical aspect investigating the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, and a practical aspect involving the cultivation of experimental plant communities and the measurement of quantitative traits.
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| Primary or BEN resource type | |
| Secondary resource type | |
| General Biology Core Concepts | |
| Discipline Specific Core Concepts | |
| General Biology Competencies | |
| Life science discipline (subject) | |
| Keywords | Biodiversity Ecosystem functioning productivity community ecology |
| Key taxa | Lemnaceae |
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| Intended End User Role | |
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| Pedagogical Use Category | |
| Pedagogical Use Description | This submission describes a laboratory exercise using aquatic plants to demonstrate basic principles in community ecology |
| Uniqueness | The use of small, fast reproducing macroscopic organisms like duckweed allow for the demonstration and experimental test of complex ecological concepts in short and feasible time frames, well adapted to a teaching context. |
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| Full Name of Primary Author | Alex-Anne Couture |
| Primary Author Affiliation | Université du Québec à Montréal |
| Primary Author email | alex-annecouture@outlook.com |
| Secondary Author Name(s) | Mark Davidson Jewell; Alain Paquette |
| Secondary Author Affiliation(s) | McGill University; Université du Québec à Montréal |
| Secondary Author Email(s) | markdavidsonjewell@gmail.com; alain.paquette@gmail.com |
| Added By Id |
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| Submitter Name | Mark Davidson Jewell |
| Submitter Email | markdavidsonjewell@gmail.com |
| Rights | Authors |
| License | |
| Publisher | |
| Review type | |
| Drought and Water Ecosystem Services Collection | Off |
| Conservation Targets Under Global Change Collection | Off |
| Big Data Collection | Off |
| Editors Choice | No |
| Resource Status | |
| Date Of Record Submission | 0000-00-00 |
| I Agree to EcoEdDL's Copyright Policy & Terms of Use | Yes |
| Date Of Record Release | 2024-05-17 12:31:24 |
| Last Modified By Id |
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| Date Last Modified | 2024-05-24 10:53:19 |
| Release Flag | Published |
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