How to translate text using browser tools
1 December 2003 Multiscale Experiments in Coastal Ecology: Improving Realism and Advancing Theory
JOHN E. PETERSEN, W. MICHAEL KEMP, RICK BARTLESON, WALTER R. BOYNTON, CHUNG-CHI CHEN, JEFFREY C. CORNWELL, ROBERT H. GARDNER, DEBORAH C. HINKLE, EDWARD D. HOUDE, THOMAS C. MALONE, WILLIAM P. MOWITT, LAURA MURRAY, LAWRENCE P. SANFORD, J. COURT STEVENSON, KAREN L. SUNDBERG, STEVE E. SUTTLES
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

The Multiscale Experimental Ecosystem Research Center has conducted a series of mesocosm experiments to quantify the effects of scale—in terms of time, depth, radius, exchange rate, and ecological complexity—on biogeochemical processes and trophic dynamics in a variety of coastal habitats. The results indicate that scale effects can be categorized as (a) fundamental effects, which are evident in both natural and experimental ecosystems, and (b) artifacts of enclosure, which are solely attributable to the artificial environment in mesocosms. We conclude that multiscale experiments increase researchers' understanding of scale in nature and improve their ability to design scale-sensitive experiments, the results of which can be systematically compared with each other and extrapolated to nature.

JOHN E. PETERSEN, W. MICHAEL KEMP, RICK BARTLESON, WALTER R. BOYNTON, CHUNG-CHI CHEN, JEFFREY C. CORNWELL, ROBERT H. GARDNER, DEBORAH C. HINKLE, EDWARD D. HOUDE, THOMAS C. MALONE, WILLIAM P. MOWITT, LAURA MURRAY, LAWRENCE P. SANFORD, J. COURT STEVENSON, KAREN L. SUNDBERG, and STEVE E. SUTTLES "Multiscale Experiments in Coastal Ecology: Improving Realism and Advancing Theory," BioScience 53(12), 1181-1197, (1 December 2003). https://doi.org/10.1641/0006-3568(2003)053[1181:MEICEI]2.0.CO;2
Published: 1 December 2003
JOURNAL ARTICLE
17 PAGES

This article is only available to subscribers.
It is not available for individual sale.
+ SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

KEYWORDS
experimental design
extrapolation
Mesocosm
scale
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
Get copyright permission
Back to Top