Daniel Simberloff

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Daniel Simberloff
Daniel Simberloff Porto 20091027.jpg
Daniel Simberloff in 2009.
NationalityAmerican
Alma mater Harvard University (BA, PhD)
Known forInvasion biology
Scientific career
Fields Ecology
Biology
Institutions University of Tennessee
Florida State University
Doctoral advisor E. O. Wilson

Daniel Simberloff is an American biologist and ecologist. He earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1969. [1] He is currently Gore Hunger Professor of Environmental Science at the University of Tennessee, [1] editor-in-chief of the journal Biological Invasions , [2] and a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

Contents

Early life and education

Simberloff received his Bachelor of Arts from Harvard College in 1964, and his Ph.D. in biology from Harvard University in 1969. [1] He wanted to go to graduate school for mathematics, but changed his mind after taking a major biology course from future Nobel Prize winner, George Wald. [3]

Career

Simberloff was a faculty member at Florida State University from 1968-1997 before relocating to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He is currently a distinguished professor there in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. His more recent work focuses on the presence of invasive species, and raises the "specter of 'invasional meltdown'". At present, Simberloff has a long-term project in Patagonia on the invasion of conifer trees, involving introduced deer, boar, and fungi. Simberloff has a total of over 350 publications, and he is currently working on several papers on invasive biology.[ citation needed ]

Academic Work

Simberloff's doctoral dissertation tested the theory of island biogeography proposed by Robert H. MacArthur and Edward O. Wilson, [4] resulting in a paper [5] that won the Ecological Society of America's Mercer Award in 1971 [6] and was included as one of forty classic papers that represented the foundations of ecology. [7] He began to be concerned that most mathematical models "more or less fit some data but had no reason to be the preferred explanation." [8] He showed that a random draw could explain some patterns having to do with island biota. [9] Meanwhile, a number of biologists, such as Jared Diamond, began calling for island biogeography theory to be applied in conservation. [10] This became a controversy in ecology known as the SLOSS debate. In his 1976 Science paper, Simberloff contradicted his own theory, claiming that most of the insect turnover in the assemblages studied was ephemeral and did not, therefore, confirm island biogeography theory in general. In fact, two smaller areas could mathematically support more species than a single area of the same size, and he had experimental data from his mangrove studies to support it. [11] A leading proponent of the theory now writes that "the species-area curve is a blunt tool in many contexts" and "now seems simplistic to the point of being cartoonish" when it comes to management of nature preserves. [12]

Simberloff then took on the MacArthurian paradigm of competitively structured communities, championing the use of null models in community ecology. [13] Debate on the subject in the ecological literature became so heated that it inspired the name of "Tallahassee mafia" for Simberloff and his associates at Florida State University. [14] Its high points were a set of papers in a philosophical journal, [15] an entire issue of The American Naturalist , [16] and a published symposium at Wakulla Springs, Florida, [17] that changed the face of the field.[ citation needed ] Simberloff caused ecologists to ask "what would happen if one mechanism were removed?" He preached, "rely on the data to tell you how nature operates; don't simply find the patterns that you're supposed to find." The Ecological Society of America conferred on him its 2006 Eminent Ecologist Award for his "outstanding body of ecological work" and "contributions of extraordinary merit," citing him in particular for having been "the quintessential ecological iconoclast." [18]

Other professional work

Simberloff was instrumental in the promulgation of presidential Executive Order 13112 on invasive species, and also serves on the IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group and the IUCN Species Survival Commission. He has served on the Board of Governors of the Nature Conservancy, the federal Invasive Species Advisory Committee, and the editorial boards of Biodiversity and Conservation, Oecologia, Biological Invasions, BioScience and Ecology.

Awards

Selected publications (chronological order)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theoretical ecology</span>

Theoretical ecology is the scientific discipline devoted to the study of ecological systems using theoretical methods such as simple conceptual models, mathematical models, computational simulations, and advanced data analysis. Effective models improve understanding of the natural world by revealing how the dynamics of species populations are often based on fundamental biological conditions and processes. Further, the field aims to unify a diverse range of empirical observations by assuming that common, mechanistic processes generate observable phenomena across species and ecological environments. Based on biologically realistic assumptions, theoretical ecologists are able to uncover novel, non-intuitive insights about natural processes. Theoretical results are often verified by empirical and observational studies, revealing the power of theoretical methods in both predicting and understanding the noisy, diverse biological world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biogeography</span> Study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evolutionary ecology</span> Interaction of biology and evolution

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Ecology is a new science and considered as an important branch of biological science, having only become prominent during the second half of the 20th century. Ecological thought is derivative of established currents in philosophy, particularly from ethics and politics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zoogeography</span> Science of the geographic distribution of animal species

Zoogeography is the branch of the science of biogeography that is concerned with geographic distribution of animal species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecological restoration</span> Scientific study of renewing and restoring ecosystems

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Michael L. Rosenzweig is a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Arizona. He developed and popularized the concept of Reconciliation ecology. He received his Ph.D in zoology at the University of Pennsylvania in 1966 and then held a number of academic positions around the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SLOSS debate</span>

The SLOSS debate was a debate in ecology and conservation biology during the 1970's and 1980's as to whether a single large or several small (SLOSS) reserves were a superior means of conserving biodiversity in a fragmented habitat. Since its inception, multiple alternate theories have been proposed. There have been applications of the concept outside of the original context of habitat conservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Island restoration</span>

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<i>The Theory of Island Biogeography</i> 1967 book by Robert MacArthur and Edward O. Wilson

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Daniel Simberloff | Ecology & Evolutionary Biology" . Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  2. "Biological Invasions". Springer. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  3. Dritschilo, W. (2019). Earth Days Reprised
  4. MacArthur, R.H., and E. O. Wilson. (1967). The Theory of Island Biogeography. Princeton University Press.
  5. Simberloff, Daniel; Wilson, Edward O. (March 1969). "Experimental Zoogeography of islands - colonization of empty islands" (PDF). Ecology . 50 (2). Ecological Society of America: 278–296. doi:10.2307/1934856. JSTOR   1934856. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 December 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
  6. 1 2 "George Mercer Award – Historical Records Committee | Ecological Society of America".
  7. Real, L. A., and J. H. Brown.(1991). Foundations of Ecology: Classic Papers with Commentaries. The University of Chicago Press.
  8. Dritschilo, W. (2008). Bringing Statistical Methods to Community and Evolutionary Ecology: Daniel S. Simberloff. P. 360.
  9. Simberloff, D. S., (1970). Taxonomic Diversity of Island Biota. Evolution24:23-47.
  10. Diamond, J. M. (1975). The Island Dilemma: Lessons of Island Biogeography for the Design of Nature Reserves. Biological Conservation. 7:129-146.
  11. Simberloff, D. S., and L, G. Abele. (1976). Science191:285-286.
  12. Laurance, W. F. (2008). Theory Meets reality: How Habitat Fragmentation Research has Transcended Island Biogeographic Theory. Biological Conservation141:1731-44.
  13. Gotelli, N. J., and R. G. Graves. (1996). Null Models in Ecology. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C.
  14. Lewin, R. (1983). Santa Rosalia Was a Goat. Science221:636-9.
  15. Multiple authors. (1980). Synthese 43:3-93.
  16. A Round Table on Research in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. (1983). The American Naturalist122:583-705.
  17. Strong, D. R., Jr., Simberloff, D., Abele, L. G., and A. B Thistle. (1984). Editors, Ecological Communities: Conceptual Issues and the Evidence. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, .
  18. 1 2 "Eminent Ecologist Award Daniel Simberloff" (PDF). esa.org. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  19. "2012. Daniel Simberloff". Ministry of the Presidency. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  20. Simberloff, Daniel; Martin, Jean-Louis; Genovesi, Piero; Maris, Virginie; Wardle, David A.; Aronson, James; Courchamp, Franck; Galil, Bella; García-Berthou, Emili; Pascal, Michel; Pyšek, Petr; Sousa, Ronaldo; Tabacchi, Eric; Vilà, Montserrat (January 2013). "Impacts of biological invasions: what's what and the way forward". Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 28 (1): 58–66. doi:10.1016/j.tree.2012.07.013. hdl: 10256/12284 . PMID   22889499.