Workshops in Quantitative Ecology and Evolution
23-25 May, 2007
Anthony R. Ives
Department of Zoology, UW-Madison
arives@wisc.edu
www.zoology.wisc.edu/faculty/Ive/Ive.html
Wednesday, 23 May, 9:30-2:30
Workshop: Phylogenetic methods for (i) comparative evolutionary studies and (ii) ecological
community structure
Wednesday, 23 May, 3:00-4:15
Research talk: Phylogenetic signal in host-parasite associations, and biological control of pea
aphids by multiple natural enemies
Thursday, 24 May, 9:30-2:30
Workshop: Population dynamics in stochastic environments
Thursday, 24 May, 3:00-4:15
Afternoon research talk: Stability and dynamics of two insect populations
Friday, 25 May, 9:30-2:30
Workshop: Statistics for correlated data: phylogenetic analyses, spatial statistics, and time-series
analysis
Workshop on Phylogenetic Methods:
Comparative evolutionary studies and ecological community structure
Anthony R. Ives
23 May, 2007
9:30-2:30
In this workshop, I will address two issues involving phylogenies: (i) comparative
methods in evolutionary biology, and (ii) the structure of ecological communities. For the first, I
will address how to compare trait values among species when species are phylogenetically
related. Phylogenetic relatedness introduces the problem that related species are more likely to
have similar trait values, because they descended from a recent common ancestor. Incorporating
information about phylogenetic relatedness will increase the performance and accuracy of
statistical tests. The phylogenetic approaches I will discuss also make it possible to measure
“phylogenetic signal,” that is, how well phylogeny explains variation in trait values among
species.
The second issue I will address uses similar ideas to explore the pattern of species
occurrences among communities: Do communities contain species that are more or less
phylogenetically related than expected by chance? Because closely related species are likely to
have similar traits, and since these traits might determine the optimal environment for species,
phylogenetically related species might be more likely to occur in the same communities where
optimal environmental conditions occur. Alternatively, because similar species might be more
likely to compete and exclude each other from the same community, communities might be less
likely to contain closely related species. I will present methods for identifying either positive or
negative patterns between phylogenetic relatedness and the co-occurrence of species in
communities.
I will present some material as a lecture. I will also intersperse lecturing with short
questions and exercises, so that you have the opportunity to interact with me and other workshop
participants. Also, because I unfortunately don’t speak any Chinese, an interactive format will
help me know when I am not clear.
After the workshop at 3:00, I will give a research seminar entitled “Phylogenetic signal in
host-parasite associations, and biological control of pea aphids by multiple natural enemies.” The
first half of this seminar will address a topic related to the workshop.
Before the workshop, please read the article
Garland, T., A. F. Bennett, and E. L. Rezende. 2005. Phylogenetic approaches in comparative
physiology. Journal of Experimental Biology 208:3015-3035.
This will provide a lot of background and allow me to spend more time fielding questions and
covering topics brought up during the workshop. Below are two more-technical articles that you
might want to read, although this is not necessary.
Blomberg, S. P., T. Garland, and A. R. Ives. 2003. Testing for phylogenetic signal in comparative data:
behavioral traits are more labile. Evolution 57:717-745.
Helmus, M. R., T. J. Bland, C. K. Williams, and A. R. Ives. 2007. Phylogenetic measures of
biodiversity. American Naturalist 169:E68-E83.
Workshop on Population Ecology
Population dynamics in stochastic environments
Anthony R. Ives
24 May, 2007
9:30-2:30
In this workshop I will give an introduction to stochastic models for population
dynamics. Much of theoretical ecology is based on deterministic models that assume there is no
environmental variability. Stochastic models explicitly incorporate environmental variability.
This has two important consequences. First, environmental variability can change population
dynamics, producing dynamics different from anything obtained in deterministic models.
Second, because real populations experience environmental variability, only stochastic, not
deterministic, models can be fit to data. Therefore, directly linking theoretical hypotheses about
population dynamics to experimental or observation data requires stochastic models.
This workshop will be introductory and appropriate for participants without a strong
mathematical background. Although I will present mathematical ideas, I hope to convey the
basic ideas of theory rather than mathematical details.
I will present some material as a lecture. I will also intersperse lecturing with short
questions and exercises, so that you have the opportunity to interact with me and other workshop
participants. Also, because I unfortunately don’t speak any Chinese, an interactive format will
help me know when I am not clear.
After the workshop at 3:00, I will give a research seminar entitled “Stability and
dynamics of two insect populations.” This seminar will use the ideas presented in the workshop.
Before the workshop, please read pages 235-264 in the book chapter:
Ives, A. R. 1998. Population ecology, Pages 235-314 in S. I. Dodson, T. Allen, S. R. Carpenter, A. R.
Ives, R. Jeanne, J. K. Kitchell, N. Langston et al., eds. Ecology. New York, New York, Oxford
University Press.
This is a non-technical chapter, but it is long. I have just asked you to read the most relevant
material.
Workshop on Statistics for Correlated Data:
Phylogenetic analyses, spatial statistics, and time-series analysis
Anthony R. Ives
25 May, 2007
9:30-2:30
The first assumption of common statistical tests is that data represent independent
samples from the population under study. This need for independence often dictates
experimental designs and analyses of observational (non-experimental) data. It also underlies
the problem of pseudoreplication, since replicates of experimental treatments must be
independent to be true replicates. The need for independence, and the fear that nonindependence generates, potentially limit the types of studies that ecologists and evolutionary
biologists perform.
In this workshop I will address ways of dealing with non-independent, or correlated data.
I do not expect participants to have a strong statistical background, although I will not shy away
from important statistical issues. I will try to present topics conceptually rather than with a lot of
mathematical detail.
I will present some material as a lecture. I will also intersperse lecturing with short
questions and exercises, so that you have the opportunity to interact with me and other workshop
participants. Also, because I unfortunately don’t speak any Chinese, an interactive format will
help me know when I am not clear.
I would like to devote the last part of the workshop to statistical questions you might
have. Therefore, please bring specific statistical problems that you have encountered and need
help with.
There are two things that would help before the workshop.

1. Please read the article
Ives, A. R., and J. Zhu. 2006. Statistics for correlated data: phylogenies, space, and time. Ecological
Applications 16:20-32.
This will provide a lot of background and allow me to spend more time fielding questions and
covering topics brought up during the workshop.
2. Please consider presenting a statistical problem you have encountered that we can try to solve
as a group. These could be any type of statistical problem. It would be best if you could prepare
a short presentation (5 minutes) describing your data and the problem; you can then give this to
the workshop participants. It would help if you could sent this to me beforehand. Before 18
May, you can send your question to me at arives@wisc.edu, or you can discuss your problem
with me earlier in the week of the workshop.