2020 WINNER: Anna Thonis
PROJECT: Climate change and competition: Using multi-species experimental and observational data to inform conservation planning in a changing world
Project Introduction:
Anna's projects focuses on species distribution models (SDMs), which in the midst of today's global biodiversity crisis, are important tools that can aid conservationists and policy makers in making long-term decisions regarding the conservation of species. SDMs are tools for predicting species' distributions into novel conditions (i.e. different time periods, locations). Because of their predictive capabilities, SDMs are frequently used to predict species distributions under various climate change scenarios. Using SDMs, researchers can inform conservation policy decisions, advise where to establish reserves, or provide insight on which species are (or will be) of the greatest conservation concern under climate change. Despite recent advances in predicting species distributions, there remain two weak links in our ability to predict species' responses to climate change: biotic interactions (i.e. competition, predation) and responses to extreme events (i.e. hurricanes, droughts). The goal of this project is to address these limitations using Puerto Rican Anolis lizards as a study system.
Anna's projects focuses on species distribution models (SDMs), which in the midst of today's global biodiversity crisis, are important tools that can aid conservationists and policy makers in making long-term decisions regarding the conservation of species. SDMs are tools for predicting species' distributions into novel conditions (i.e. different time periods, locations). Because of their predictive capabilities, SDMs are frequently used to predict species distributions under various climate change scenarios. Using SDMs, researchers can inform conservation policy decisions, advise where to establish reserves, or provide insight on which species are (or will be) of the greatest conservation concern under climate change. Despite recent advances in predicting species distributions, there remain two weak links in our ability to predict species' responses to climate change: biotic interactions (i.e. competition, predation) and responses to extreme events (i.e. hurricanes, droughts). The goal of this project is to address these limitations using Puerto Rican Anolis lizards as a study system.
HCI Q&A With Anna ThonisAnna Thonis is a PhD candidate at Stony Brook University in New York and one of this year's Michael Dee Conservation Grant recipients. For her dissertation project Anna is focusing on issues of species interactions and climate change by looking at the interactions of numerous Anole species in Puerto Rico. Anna obviously knows a ton about lizards and ecology, what do we know about her? Let’s get to know one of this year's awesome grant recipients.
Where are you from? I am originally from New hampshire and spent a lot of time in swamps playing with different herps. |
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What set you on this path to becoming a reptile conservationist?
When I was growing up we owned a good amount of reptiles and that got me interested initially. One thing that was triggering to me was this one specific swamp - we'd bring food, eat lunch, catch turtles, snakes, and frogs. It was technically private property, and something happened that the swamp was somehow going to be destroyed. This made me want to read more about environmental issues. I wanted to study environmental engineering and work on renewable energy to mitigate the impacts of deforestation on wildlife. Later, in undergrad when I was studying environmental engineering, I was working in a freshwater ecology lab and ended up switching my major to environmental science and sustainability studies. Lizards were always my favorite taxonomic group and my research advisor worked with Puerto Rican anoles and so I ended up working on them, too! I also had the opportunity to work in Madagascar, and fell further in love with reptiles.
Why look at anoles at all?
So there’s a few things about anoles. With respect to lizards, they are the most species rich vertebrate genera. Anoles as a genus make up 10% of all lizard species on earth. Super diverse with a super wide range. We know so much about them evolutionarily, it’s incredible. But the amount of ecological information we have on them is really quite low. You need more ecological data than evolutionary data to understand their conservation status. All that data we need is ecological data. It’s appalling to me how little we actually know about them. They are really important in the ecosystem but like where do they sleep? Nobody knows!
When I was growing up we owned a good amount of reptiles and that got me interested initially. One thing that was triggering to me was this one specific swamp - we'd bring food, eat lunch, catch turtles, snakes, and frogs. It was technically private property, and something happened that the swamp was somehow going to be destroyed. This made me want to read more about environmental issues. I wanted to study environmental engineering and work on renewable energy to mitigate the impacts of deforestation on wildlife. Later, in undergrad when I was studying environmental engineering, I was working in a freshwater ecology lab and ended up switching my major to environmental science and sustainability studies. Lizards were always my favorite taxonomic group and my research advisor worked with Puerto Rican anoles and so I ended up working on them, too! I also had the opportunity to work in Madagascar, and fell further in love with reptiles.
Why look at anoles at all?
So there’s a few things about anoles. With respect to lizards, they are the most species rich vertebrate genera. Anoles as a genus make up 10% of all lizard species on earth. Super diverse with a super wide range. We know so much about them evolutionarily, it’s incredible. But the amount of ecological information we have on them is really quite low. You need more ecological data than evolutionary data to understand their conservation status. All that data we need is ecological data. It’s appalling to me how little we actually know about them. They are really important in the ecosystem but like where do they sleep? Nobody knows!
How does looking at competition in puerto rican anole species and climate change help us understand a work toward the future of other reptile species?
There is a class of models called “species distribution models” which predict habitat suitability for a species. The models can
be used to predict how habitat suitability for a species may change with a changing climate. These models are useful, but they don’t incorporate any data on biotic interactions (i.e. competition, predation) which could be important for understanding how species distributions may shift under
climate change. Because anoles are easy to manipulate in the field and because they are lacking the ecological data that is required to understand if the various Puerto Rican species are
of conservation concern, they represent an ideal study group
for answering these questions.
Can you explain what an SDM (Species Distribution Model) actually is?
What it is, is a model or color map that shows habitat suitability for a species to see if it’s likely that the species can live there. High suitability means a species can probably survive in that habitat, low suitability means a species cannot survive there sustainably. To build one we need actual locations (points) of where species have been found, ideally 50 or more points depending on the rarity of the species. You also need environmental data like climatic variables and soil chemistry. You take all of those points and try and pick the environmental data that will be most ecologically relevant to that species.
Why is that so important to conservationists?
When it comes to conservation management and planning it’s really valuable to have an understanding of what a species sees as suitable habitat. It allows us to see what land to preserve and if it represents what that species needs. A very cool reason they are important is that you can use them to predict habitat suitability for multiple species you’ve already found, and see what is most suitable in the future. Some researchers in Madagascar have actually gone and surveyed these predicted areas and found new species.
Are there any issues with them (SDM’s)?
A lot of these models are predicting how they should be, they don’t factor in conditions like competition or climate change. Which could be important, because when we are thinking about climate change, there are predictions that species will shift their ranges to fit their suitability, SDMs don’t have that data.
How is your research going to improve them (SDM’s)?
Directly incorporating data into these models, we are going to see if it actually improves the model by adding the competition data.
Who are some of your influences/motivators?
That's an interesting question. I am always motivated by people around me doing important conservation work. I feel like when I hear of people doing cool work, I find that really inspiring. I've alway been a fan of Jane Goodall and Rachel Carson, she's probably my number one.
What are some of the challenges you are anticipating?
It's gonna be tough, I have to go get this data. A big challenge is going to be getting there (Puerto Rico) with all the COVID restrictions. I have to be really careful about where I go. I have field assistants and we all have to wear masks in the field in 85% humidity which is going to be miserable. In the study, time is going to be an issue, it's a big study and ecological studies are subject to environmental conditions, if it’s raining the anoles are hiding, we don't know where. There are just challenges we can't anticipate and control.
What’s the future looking like for you (Think 5-10 years)?
Ultimately, I probably have three years of my PhD left, assuming things go okay. Once that's finished I am committed to staying in lizard conservation possibly in the Carribean, or the Amazon, lots of lizards need help down there. I just want to be able to engage with the public and do outreach to the public, while conducting the research I like. I am definitely one of those people that is happy in a lot of different conditions.
RESULTING PUBLICATIONS:
Thonis, A., Akçakaya, H.R. Experimental evidence that competition strength scales with ecological similarity: a case study using Anolis lizards. Oecologia 204, 451–465 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-023-05507-6
There is a class of models called “species distribution models” which predict habitat suitability for a species. The models can
be used to predict how habitat suitability for a species may change with a changing climate. These models are useful, but they don’t incorporate any data on biotic interactions (i.e. competition, predation) which could be important for understanding how species distributions may shift under
climate change. Because anoles are easy to manipulate in the field and because they are lacking the ecological data that is required to understand if the various Puerto Rican species are
of conservation concern, they represent an ideal study group
for answering these questions.
Can you explain what an SDM (Species Distribution Model) actually is?
What it is, is a model or color map that shows habitat suitability for a species to see if it’s likely that the species can live there. High suitability means a species can probably survive in that habitat, low suitability means a species cannot survive there sustainably. To build one we need actual locations (points) of where species have been found, ideally 50 or more points depending on the rarity of the species. You also need environmental data like climatic variables and soil chemistry. You take all of those points and try and pick the environmental data that will be most ecologically relevant to that species.
Why is that so important to conservationists?
When it comes to conservation management and planning it’s really valuable to have an understanding of what a species sees as suitable habitat. It allows us to see what land to preserve and if it represents what that species needs. A very cool reason they are important is that you can use them to predict habitat suitability for multiple species you’ve already found, and see what is most suitable in the future. Some researchers in Madagascar have actually gone and surveyed these predicted areas and found new species.
Are there any issues with them (SDM’s)?
A lot of these models are predicting how they should be, they don’t factor in conditions like competition or climate change. Which could be important, because when we are thinking about climate change, there are predictions that species will shift their ranges to fit their suitability, SDMs don’t have that data.
How is your research going to improve them (SDM’s)?
Directly incorporating data into these models, we are going to see if it actually improves the model by adding the competition data.
Who are some of your influences/motivators?
That's an interesting question. I am always motivated by people around me doing important conservation work. I feel like when I hear of people doing cool work, I find that really inspiring. I've alway been a fan of Jane Goodall and Rachel Carson, she's probably my number one.
What are some of the challenges you are anticipating?
It's gonna be tough, I have to go get this data. A big challenge is going to be getting there (Puerto Rico) with all the COVID restrictions. I have to be really careful about where I go. I have field assistants and we all have to wear masks in the field in 85% humidity which is going to be miserable. In the study, time is going to be an issue, it's a big study and ecological studies are subject to environmental conditions, if it’s raining the anoles are hiding, we don't know where. There are just challenges we can't anticipate and control.
What’s the future looking like for you (Think 5-10 years)?
Ultimately, I probably have three years of my PhD left, assuming things go okay. Once that's finished I am committed to staying in lizard conservation possibly in the Carribean, or the Amazon, lots of lizards need help down there. I just want to be able to engage with the public and do outreach to the public, while conducting the research I like. I am definitely one of those people that is happy in a lot of different conditions.
RESULTING PUBLICATIONS:
Thonis, A., Akçakaya, H.R. Experimental evidence that competition strength scales with ecological similarity: a case study using Anolis lizards. Oecologia 204, 451–465 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-023-05507-6
