Fellowship Year:
2026
Degree:
PhD
Research Country:
Malaysia
Research Continent:
Asia
Project Title:
Investigating the effects of species life history on herbivory defense in tropical forest seedlings
Abstract:
This project investigates how tropical tree species’ life-history strategies influence herbivory defense during the vulnerable seedling stage. By combining field measurements of constitutive and inducible defenses with analyses of seedling dynamics and functional traits, the study tests whether fast- and slow-growing species rely on different defensive pathways. The research aims to clarify how evolutionary trade-offs between growth and defense shape early recruitment and community assembly in hyperdiverse tropical forests.