Species coexistence and the distribution of species diversity

Most ecosystems in the world host a stunning amount of species diversity, and ecologists have proposed numerous mechanisms that could sustain this diversity. Modern coexistence theory synthesizes many of the proposed mechanisms and, in doing so, isolates those processes that promote coexistence from those that limit it. In this seminar, I will first show the usefulness of modern coexistence theory by testing a prominent hypothesis about species diversity and how it is impacted by invasive species. I will then discuss how our research has identified shortcomings to modern coexistence theory and present theory designed to address these shortcomings.