The multiple dimensions of interaction networks
Event
REGULAR SEMINAR IN BIODIVERSITY AND EVOLUTION
March 28th, 2025
Sérgio Timóteo, Centre for Functional Ecology, University of Coimbra | 15h30 | Hybrid Seminar
REGULAR SEMINAR IN BIODIVERSITY AND EVOLUTION
The use of network approaches to the study of biotic interactions, has seen a noticeable increase since its introduction into the field of ecology. It helped us to understand structure and functioning of whole communities, their ability to withstand or predict responses to disturbances, and even evolutionary insights. However, networks were often looked at as separate entities. Undoubtedly, the study them interactions between plants and animals has benefited from such approach. In recent years, multilayer networks have been adopted as a way to bridge this gap, allowing the connect and incorporate dependencies across time, space and also other types of biotic interactions. This new approach to ecological networks brings however new challenges. How do we connect these different layers? What should we measure and how much? How do we standardize interactions within and between layers? I will present different approaches to distinct systems, to show how ecological multilayer networks provided us with a different understanding about community functioning and species roles.
Ecologist with focus on community ecology to understand ecosystem processes that rule the world around us, and how this knowledge can be used in the context of conservation. The core of my research revolves around the application of network theory to understand the consequences of species interaction patterns on ecological functions. I am interested in understanding how different sources of disturbance (e.g., invasions, species loss, habitat loss and fragmentation) can affect natural systems and how these systems can recover or evolve into novel states. I have been exploring different aspects of ecological networks, to identify drivers that promote or constrain the establishment of interactions, which can bring important insights into the routes of community assembling and disassembling. Most recently I have been applying a multilayer approach to study ecological networks in their multiple dimensions: space, time and considering several types of interactions simultaneously, bringing recent developments in the field of multilayer network analysis and gathering knowledge from a range of seemingly unrelated research areas (e.g., neurosciences, social sciences, physics).
[Host: Luke L. Powell, Ecology and Conservation of Tropical Rainforests - RAINFORESTS]
Zoom Link: https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/j/99797933081
Zoom Link: https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/j/99797933081