Objective
Many plant species produce seeds that are ingested, transported and egested by animals. This dispersal mechanism is known as endozoochory, and plays a crucial role in the persistence of a broad range of plant species worldwide. The importance of endozoochory is today best known for terrestrial plant species producing fleshy-fruits around their seeds to attract animals. However, animals also massively ingest seeds that lack fleshy components in wetland ecosystems, suggesting endozoochory can also impact wetland biodiversity. Current global pressures on wetlands urge a better understanding of the dispersal mechanisms regulating biodiversity in such “islands in a sea of land”. The proposed study aims to generate a mechanistic understanding of endozoochory by studying wetland ecosystems in a novel approach: traditional time-consuming and ethically-challenging experiments with living animals will be replaced by an innovative combination of experiments and biogeographical modelling. Four key objectives are to: (I) identify contrasts and similarities between endozoochory in terrestrial and aquatic habitats in a meta-analysis; (II) modify existing artificial digestion protocols for humans and domestic animals so they simulate digestion by three key vector animal species for wetlands, during a secondment in the food industry; (III) use these protocols to estimate the endozoochorous dispersal potential for a wide range of plant species; (IV) use biogeographical modelling to test relations among the suitability index of plant species for endozoochory, plant distributions and movements of vector animals. This integrated approach will improve our mechanistic understanding of endozoochory, fuse terrestrial and aquatic ecology, exchange knowledge between academia and the industry, inform on an important ecological process in a globally changing world, and will allow me to acquire all necessary competences and contacts to initiate my own research group after this project.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences zoology ornithology
- natural sciences computer and information sciences databases
- natural sciences biological sciences ecology
- agricultural sciences animal and dairy science domestic animals
- natural sciences biological sciences botany
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EF
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2016
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
1011 JV AMSTERDAM
Netherlands
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.