Ep. 35 Classic Ecology Part One: Moran 1953

Grace, Jon, and Jeff kick off a series delving into classic papers in ecology, leading off with P. A. P. Moran's classic paper "The statistical analysis of the Canadian Lynx Cycle II:  Synchronization and Meteorology." Spatial synchrony, fluctuations that are correlated through time across two or more locations, is a fundamental aspect of population dynamics that has long interested ecologists. A common mechanism of spatial synchrony in population dynamics is the transmission of synchrony to the population from an environmental fluctuation-often a climate variable-that is itself synchronous. This phenomenon is known as the Moran effect after Patrick Moran, the Australian statistician who provided its mathematical basis in a 1953 journal article. Today, a search for “Moran effect” on google scholar returns ~1500 papers, indicating its widespread influence. Much of Jon’s current work builds on the foundation established by this and other classical papers on spatial synchrony. 
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The gang also take a look at the March Mammal Madness brackets for 2018, make their picks of who they think will win, and which ones are more or less edible. Grace also regales us with amazing Lynx facts!  Follow #2018MMM for updates on March Mammal Madness!

Links:
March Mammal Madness
Check out our #2018MMM picks in our new website section, Supplemental Materials

Music:
Ratatat - "Wildcat"
The Cure - "The Love Cats"