TY - JOUR
T1 - Spatial extrapolation
T2 - The science of predicting ecological patterns and processes
AU - Miller, James R.
AU - Turner, Monica G.
AU - Smithwick, Erica A.H.
AU - Dent, C. Lisa
AU - Stanley, Emily H.
N1 - Funding Information:
This paper is dedicated to the memory of Lisa Dent, a valued colleague and friend who is sorely missed. We thank Matthias Bürgi, Jeff Cardille, Mark Dixon, Hojeong Kang, Dan Kashian, and Tania Schoennagel for spirited discussions of the ideas presented here. Comments on earlier drafts from Matt Green-stone, Tania Schoennagel, Jennifer Fraterrigo, and three anonymous reviewers greatly improved the manuscript. This research was funded by the Environmental Protection Agency STAR (Science to Achieve Results) Program (grant no. R826600).
PY - 2004/4
Y1 - 2004/4
N2 - Ecologists are often asked to contribute to solutions for broadscale problems. The extent of most ecological research is relatively limited, however, necessitating extrapolation to broader scales or to new locations. Spatial extrapolation in ecology tends to follow a general framework in which (a) the objectives are defined and a conceptual model is derived; (b) a statistical or simulation model is developed to generate predictions, possibly entailing scaling functions when extrapolating to broad scales; and (c) the results are evaluated against new data. In this article, we examine the application of this framework in a variety of contexts, using examples from the scientific literature. We conclude by discussing the challenges, limitations, and future prospects for extrapolation.
AB - Ecologists are often asked to contribute to solutions for broadscale problems. The extent of most ecological research is relatively limited, however, necessitating extrapolation to broader scales or to new locations. Spatial extrapolation in ecology tends to follow a general framework in which (a) the objectives are defined and a conceptual model is derived; (b) a statistical or simulation model is developed to generate predictions, possibly entailing scaling functions when extrapolating to broad scales; and (c) the results are evaluated against new data. In this article, we examine the application of this framework in a variety of contexts, using examples from the scientific literature. We conclude by discussing the challenges, limitations, and future prospects for extrapolation.
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U2 - 10.1641/0006-3568(2004)054[0310:SETSOP]2.0.CO;2
DO - 10.1641/0006-3568(2004)054[0310:SETSOP]2.0.CO;2
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:1842734178
SN - 0006-3568
VL - 54
SP - 310
EP - 320
JO - BioScience
JF - BioScience
IS - 4
ER -