Integrative ecology and the dynamics of species in oak forests

Abstract

Lyme disease and gypsy moth outbreaks plague many temperate oak forests. Over the past decade, we have developed models and hypotheses designed to allow us to predict irruptions of both gypsy moths and the tick vector of Lyme disease. We have documented a web of connections involving mast production by oak trees, population responses by white-footed mice, habitat selection by white-tailed deer, and population dynamics of both tick parasites and defoliating insects. In patchy landscapes typical of the northeastern U.S., dispersal by mice, deer, and attached ticks between oak and nonoak forests creates dynamics that would not be predictable by focusing on a single patch type. We would not have uncovered these interactions without adopting a research approach that comprised: (1) the inclusion of diverse taxa of animals, plants, and microbes; (2) the integration of individual, population, community, and ecosystem levels of organization; (3) the incorporation of more than one patch type in a heterogeneous landscape; and (4) a combination of long-term monitoring and manipulative field experiments.