I tend to be even fuzzier-- Fuzzy Philosophy: A Foundation for Interneted Ecology? This became my retirement talk at the SERCAL annual meeting.
WT ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nicolas PERU" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012 12:57 AM Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] Visualizing functional diversity Dear Wayne, In my point of viewn, ecosystem functions directly refer to how energy flows are shaped through ecosystem and how they allow ecosystem to maintain by themselves (without human intervention this time). So, when we measure a functional diversity we try to evaluate the number of different ways a given energy flow can be realized. One aim is to link living communities diversities to ecosystem functioning (energy flow) and so define how organisms participate to the success of energy transfer. This is a quite fuzzy and very general definition but I hope this helps. Regards, Nicolas Le Fri, 28 Sep 2012 02:43:00 +0200, Wayne Tyson <[email protected]> a écrit: > Thanks, Juan; I do appreciate the reference, but I am looking for a > simper answer than that--a scientifically-based explanation of what > ecosystem function means as an actual or theoretical feature of actual > ecosystems. I am definitely not interested in ". . . an anthropocentric > concept (as humans depend on ecosystems to survive) because is described > as the capacity of the natural processes to provide an array of direct > or indirect services or benefits to humans." I would be delighted to > hear a discussion of benefits to humans some other time, however, but I > do not want this discussion to wander off the central, very basic > question now. > > WT > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Juan Alvez > To: Wayne Tyson > Cc: [email protected] > Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2012 10:25 AM > Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] Visualizing functional diversity > > > Hi Wayne, > > You can best visualize ecosystem functions in a paper written 10 years > ago by De Groot and others, > (Ref: de Groot, R.S., Wilson, M.A., Boumans, R.M.J., 2002. A typology > for the classification, description and valuation of ecosystem > functions, goods and services. Ecological Economics 41, 393-408.). > It describes four main ecosystem functions (regulation [climate, > nutrient cycling, polination], habitat [refugia, nursery, etc.], > information [scientific info, recreation, cultural and aesthetic] and > production [food, genetic and medicinal resources, raw materials, etc.] > functions). > It is certainly an anthropocentric concept (as humans depend on > ecosystems to survive) because is described as the capacity of the > natural processes to provide an array of direct or indirect services or > benefits to humans. > > Best, > Juan > > > On 9/26/2012 10:11 PM, Wayne Tyson wrote: > > Please describe function in ecosystems. > > WT > > ----- Original Message ----- From: "Katharine Miller" > <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2012 4:07 PM > Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Visualizing functional diversity > > > Hello, > > I have used Rao's quadratic entropy to evaluate functional diversity > between > a number of estuaries for which I also have a GIS database. I would > like to > be able to visualize which sites are more functionally similar > across the > region to evaluate patterns in dispersal, etc. > > I know it is possible to use the pairwise functional beta diversity > values > as a distance matrix in a Mantel test or multivariate regression on > distances matrices (MRM) when comparing functional diversity to, for > example, environmental data. Would it also be appropriate to use > these > values in a PAM or other clustering method to identify estuaries > that are > more/less similar in functional diversity? > > This is likely to sound like a very naive question, but I have done > an > extensive literature search and have not found where this has been > done > before - perhaps because it is a bad idea for other reasons? > > Any insights and/or references on this approach would be greatly > appreciated. > > Thank you > > > ----- > No virus found in this message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com > Version: 10.0.1427 / Virus Database: 2441/5293 - Release Date: > 09/26/12 > > > -- Nicolas PERU, PhD 33-(0)4 72 43 28 94 06-88-15-23-10 CNRS, UMR 5023 - LEHNA Université Claude Bernard - Lyon 1 43 Bld du 11 novembre 1918 Rdc Bât Forel 69622 VILLEURBANNE cedex FRANCE ----- No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 10.0.1427 / Virus Database: 2441/5295 - Release Date: 09/27/12
