2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference

March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH

6/08/2017 | 2:45 PM - 3:00 PM | PROGRESS IN USING TRAITS IN CLIMATE CHANGE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT | 302B

PROGRESS IN USING TRAITS IN CLIMATE CHANGE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT

Vulnerability assessment is a practical tool supporting development and prioritization of adaptations to climate change, for which the value of integrating the use of species traits has been recognized. Traits are characterized to reflect functional relationships, enabling inference on linkages between trait group patterns and processes potentially driving those patterns. If hypotheses regarding trait responses to climate change effects prove accurate, insights can be derived regarding why vulnerability patterns are observed, and potentially support comparisons across geographic regions that may have differing species pools. Recent traits work show meaningful outcomes using traits can depend on complex considerations. Context and scale may be important; some responses apparent at local (habitat) scales may not be demonstrable at larger (regional) scales. Confounding factors potentially affecting assessment outcomes include intra-specific trait variability, acclimation, and interactions with other stressors. Many traits are inter-correlated (e.g., trait syndromes), potentially leading to miss-interpretation of univariate relationships. And taxa can occupy non-preferred habitats. Simultaneous consideration of multiple traits, quantitative estimation of environmental traits, evaluation of trait diversity/redundancy, and conjunctive methods such as rarity may strengthen the classic traits-based approach.

C20 Climate Change
C11 Community Ecology
S30 The future of trait-based approaches in research and management

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Presenters/Authors

Anna Hamilton (), Tetra Tech Center for Ecological Sciences, Anna.Hamilton@tetratech.com;