Thesis supervisor: András Abonyi
co-supervisor: Judit Padisák
Location of studies (in Hungarian): Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Centre for Ecological Research Abbreviation of location of studies: ELTE
Description of the research topic:
"The phytoplankton (algae that live in suspension) community structure is an effective ecological indicator. Understanding the environmental response of species-based communities can be challenging due to their complexity. However, functional approaches can help simplify this complexity, minimising the loss of ecological information. Functional classifications of co-occurring taxa based on similar environmental responses are called functional response groups. One widely used classification is Reynolds' phytoplankton functional classification (Reynolds et al., 2002; Padisák et al., 2009). Despite its widespread usage, this method cannot currently interpret the functional groups that coexist in the same spatial and temporal context. Consequently, it remains unclear what specific quantifiable effects the species belonging to each functional unit have or can have on the functioning of aquatic ecosystems.
The PhD subject, ""Functional organisation of phytoplankton communities: functional groups as units of community response to the environment and ecosystem functioning"", aims to address this issue. The starting point of this research is the recognition that groups of species (functional units) appearing together do not necessarily indicate a homogeneous environment but rather reflect the heterogeneity of the local environment. The PhD student will utilise extensive data sets of natural phytoplankton assemblages from fluvial (Abonyi et al., 2021; Borics et al., 2007) and lake environments (Abonyi et al., 2018; Padisák et al., 2009; Reynolds et al., 2002) for further developing Reynolds' functional concept. The PhD work involves
• establishing a hierarchy of functional groups,
• identifying mechanisms underlying the dominance of particular functional groups under specific environmental conditions, and
• quantifying their impact on the ecosystem functioning of the respective ecosystems.
References:
Abonyi, A., Horváth, Z., & Ptacnik, R. (2018). Functional richness outperforms taxonomic richness in predicting ecosystem functioning in natural phytoplankton communities. Freshwater Biology, 63(2), 178-186.
Abonyi, A., Descy, J. P., Borics, G., & Smeti, E. (2021). From historical backgrounds towards the functional classification of river phytoplankton sensu Colin S. Reynolds: what future merits the approach may hold?. Hydrobiologia, 848, 131-142.
Borics, G., Várbíró, G., Grigorszky, I., Krasznai, E., Szabó, S., & Kiss, K. T. (2007). A new evaluation technique of potamo-plankton for the assessment of the ecological status of rivers. Large Rivers, 466-486.
Padisák, J., Crossetti, L. O., & Naselli-Flores, L. (2009). Use and misuse in the application of the phytoplankton functional classification: a critical review with updates. Hydrobiologia, 621, 1-19.
Reynolds, C. S., Huszar, V., Kruk, C., Naselli-Flores, L., & Melo, S. (2002). Towards a functional classification of the freshwater phytoplankton. Journal of Plankton Research, 24(5), 417-428.
"
Required language skills: English Further requirements: "- community ecology knowledge
- knowledge about phytoplankton ecology or other plankton groups
- basic knowledge of multivariate statistics
- R environment"
Number of students who can be accepted: 2
Deadline for application: 2024-05-31
2024. IV. 17. ODT ülés Az ODT következő ülésére 2024. június 14-én, pénteken 10.00 órakor kerül sor a Semmelweis Egyetem Szenátusi termében (Bp. Üllői út 26. I. emelet).
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