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Haubrock PJ. Site characteristics determine the prevalence of extreme weather events affecting freshwater macroinvertebrate communities. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 950:175436. [PMID: 39128525 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2024] [Revised: 08/08/2024] [Accepted: 08/08/2024] [Indexed: 08/13/2024]
Abstract
Understanding the impacts of extreme weather events on freshwater ecosystems is imperative during a time when a multitude of challenges compromises these environments' health. Exploring how such events affect macroinvertebrate communities in rivers sheds light on the resilience of freshwater ecosystems, which is essential for human well-being and biodiversity conservation. In this study, long-term time series of benthic macroinvertebrate communities from four sites along three freshwater streams within the Rhine-Main-Observatory Long-Term Ecological Research site in Germany were analyzed. Each of them was sampled annually over a span of ~20 years to assess the impacts of extreme weather events (floods, droughts, and extreme heat) on macroinvertebrate communities. The findings reveal that the effects of extreme events are site-specific, suggesting that the impacts of an extreme event can vary based on several potential factors, including the life history traits of the organisms within the community and, among others, the hydrography of the site. Moreover, the analysis highlights that the cumulative impact of these events over time is more significant than the impact of a single event's magnitude, while following distinct temporal dynamics. This underscores the importance of considering both the temporal dynamics and the biological characteristics of communities when evaluating the consequences of extreme weather events on biodiversity, illustrating that the resilience of freshwater ecosystems and their biodiversity under such conditions depends on a complex interplay of factors rather than the severity of individual events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phillip J Haubrock
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany; Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Vodňany, Czech Republic; CAMB, Center for Applied Mathematics and Bioinformatics, Gulf University for Science and Technology, Kuwait
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2
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Wu N, Liu G, Qi X, Lin Z, Wang Y, Wang Y, Li Y, Oduro C, Khan S, Zhou S, Chu T. Different facets of alpha and beta diversity of benthic diatoms along stream watercourse in a large near-natural catchment. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e11577. [PMID: 38873020 PMCID: PMC11169757 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Understanding the processes and mechanisms that shape the distribution patterns and variations of biodiversity along spatial gradients continues to be a priority for ecological research. We focused on the biodiversity of benthic diatom communities within a large near-natural watershed. The objectives are: (1) to explore the overall spatial patterns of benthic diatom biodiversity; (2) to investigate the effects associated with watercourse position and environmental variables, as well as both common and rare species on two facets (i.e., taxonomic and functional) of alpha and beta diversity; and (3) to unveil the mechanisms underlying their spatial variations. Alpha diversity indices along the stream watercourse showed a clear increasing trend from upstream to downstream sites. Results of random forest regression identified conductivity as the primary factor influencing functional alpha diversity, while elevation emerged as the predominant factor for taxonomic alpha diversity. Beta diversity partitioning revealed that taxonomic beta diversity generally exceeded functional beta diversity. These diversity measures exhibited different patterns along the watercourse position: taxonomic beta diversity remained relatively consistent along the watercourse, whereas functional total beta diversity and its two components of middle stream sites were lower than those of upstream and downstream sites. Functional beta diversity was sustained by dominant and common species, while rare species made significant contributions to taxonomic beta diversity. Both taxonomic and functional beta diversity and its components displayed a stronger influence from spatial factors than from local environmental, geo-climatic, and nutrient variables. Collectively, taxonomic and functional alpha and beta diversity demonstrated distinct responses to the main environmental gradients and spatial factors within our catchment, highlighting their different insights into diatom diversity. Furthermore, research is required to assess the generalizability of our findings to similar ecosystems. In addition, this study presents opportunities for expansion to include other taxa (e.g., macroinvertebrates and fish) to gain a comprehensive understanding of the driving mechanisms behind stream biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naicheng Wu
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Guohao Liu
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Xinxin Qi
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Zongwei Lin
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Yixia Wang
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Yaochun Wang
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Yuying Li
- Henan International Joint Laboratory of Watershed Ecological Security in the Water Source Area of the Middle Route of South‐to‐North Water Diversion Project, College of Water Resource and Modern AgricultureNanyang Normal UniversityNanyangChina
| | - Collins Oduro
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
- Ningbo University Donghai InstituteNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Sangar Khan
- Department of Geography and Spatial Information TechniquesNingbo UniversityNingboChina
- Ningbo University Donghai InstituteNingbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Shuchan Zhou
- Ningbo University Library (Journal Editorial Department)Ningbo UniversityNingboChina
| | - Tianjiang Chu
- Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural SciencesHangzhouChina
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3
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Zhao J, Yu L, Newbold T, Shen X, Liu X, Hua F, Kanniah K, Ma K. Biodiversity responses to agricultural practices in cropland and natural habitats. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 922:171296. [PMID: 38423324 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2023] [Revised: 02/11/2024] [Accepted: 02/25/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
Largely driven by agricultural pressures, biodiversity has experienced great changes globally. Exploring biodiversity responses to agricultural practices associated with agricultural intensification can benefit biodiversity conservation in agricultural landscapes. However, the effects of agricultural practices may also extend to natural habitats. Moreover, agricultural impacts may also vary with geographical region. We analyze biodiversity responses to landscape cropland coverage, cropping frequency, fertiliser and yield, among different land-use types and across geographical regions. We find that species richness and total abundance generally respond negatively to increased landscape cropland coverage. Biodiversity reductions in human land-use types (pasture, plantation forest and cropland) were stronger in tropical than non-tropical regions, which was also true for biodiversity reductions with increasing yield in both human and natural land-use types. Our results underline substantial biodiversity responses to agricultural practices not only in cropland but also in natural habitats, highlighting the fact that biodiversity conservation demands a greater focus on optimizing agricultural management at the landscape scale.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianqiao Zhao
- Department of Earth System Science, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Institute for Global Change Studies, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom
| | - Le Yu
- Department of Earth System Science, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Institute for Global Change Studies, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Ministry of Education Ecological Field Station for East Asian Migratory Birds, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
| | - Tim Newbold
- Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom
| | - Xiaoli Shen
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Xiaoxuan Liu
- Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; Key Laboratory of Target Cognition and Application Technology (TCAT), Aerospace Information Research Institute, Beijing 100190, China; Key Laboratory of Network Information System Technology (NIST), Aerospace Information Research Institute, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Fangyuan Hua
- Institute of Ecology, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Kasturi Kanniah
- Centre for Environmental Sustainability and Water Security (IPASA), Research Institute for Sustainable Environment (RISE) and Tropical Map Research Group, Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Johor 81310, Malaysia
| | - Keping Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
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4
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van Klink R, Bowler DE, Gongalsky KB, Shen M, Swengel SR, Chase JM. Disproportionate declines of formerly abundant species underlie insect loss. Nature 2024; 628:359-364. [PMID: 38123681 PMCID: PMC11006610 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06861-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
Studies have reported widespread declines in terrestrial insect abundances in recent years1-4, but trends in other biodiversity metrics are less clear-cut5-7. Here we examined long-term trends in 923 terrestrial insect assemblages monitored in 106 studies, and found concomitant declines in abundance and species richness. For studies that were resolved to species level (551 sites in 57 studies), we observed a decline in the number of initially abundant species through time, but not in the number of very rare species. At the population level, we found that species that were most abundant at the start of the time series showed the strongest average declines (corrected for regression-to-the-mean effects). Rarer species were, on average, also declining, but these were offset by increases of other species. Our results suggest that the observed decreases in total insect abundance2 can mostly be explained by widespread declines of formerly abundant species. This counters the common narrative that biodiversity loss is mostly characterized by declines of rare species8,9. Although our results suggest that fundamental changes are occurring in insect assemblages, it is important to recognize that they represent only trends from those locations for which sufficient long-term data are available. Nevertheless, given the importance of abundant species in ecosystems10, their general declines are likely to have broad repercussions for food webs and ecosystem functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roel van Klink
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
- Department of Computer Science, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany.
| | - Diana E Bowler
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
- Department of Ecosystem Services, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig, Germany
- UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Crowmarsh Gifford, UK
| | - Konstantin B Gongalsky
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - Minghua Shen
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | | | - Jonathan M Chase
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
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5
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Wu Y, Yang Z, Chen S, Sui M, Zhang G, Liu Q, Chen D, Ding F, Zang L. How do species richness and its component dependence vary along the natural restoration in extremely heterogeneous forest ecosystems? JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2024; 354:120265. [PMID: 38382441 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2023] [Revised: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
Giant habitat heterogeneity is an important factor contributing to the high species richness (SR) in karst forests. Yet, the driving factor behind the alterations in SR patterns during natural restoration remains unclear. In this study, we established the forest dynamics plots along the natural restoration sequence (including shrub-tree mixed forest stage (SC), secondary forest stage (SG) and old-growth forest sage (OG)) in degraded karst forests to compare the SR and the dependence on its components (including total community abundance, species abundance distribution (SAD), and conspecific spatial aggregation (CSA)) among stages of natural restoration. By evaluating the degree of contribution of the components to local SR and rarefied SR, we found that the SG exhibited the highest local SR, while the rarefied SR remained increasing along the restoration sequence after controlling the sample size. At SC-SG stage, SAD and CSA contributed negatively to the differences in SR, while abundance made a positive contribution to SR differences. At SG-OG, abundance contributed positively to the difference in SR at all scales, while SAD contributed negatively at small scales. No significant contribution of CSA was found at observed scales. In addition, local SR varied more significantly with PIE than with abundance. Our research emphasizes the importance of eliminating the influence of abundance on species richness in forest ecology and management, as well as the significance of separately evaluating the components that shape the diversity patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuhang Wu
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China
| | - Zeyu Yang
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China
| | - Shiren Chen
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China
| | - Mingzhen Sui
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China; Guizhou Libo Karst Forest Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Libo, Guizhou, 558400, China
| | - Guangqi Zhang
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China; Guizhou Libo Karst Forest Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Libo, Guizhou, 558400, China
| | - Qingfu Liu
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China; Guizhou Libo Karst Forest Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Libo, Guizhou, 558400, China
| | - Danmei Chen
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China; Guizhou Libo Karst Forest Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Libo, Guizhou, 558400, China
| | - Fangjun Ding
- Guizhou Libo Karst Forest Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Libo, Guizhou, 558400, China
| | - Lipeng Zang
- Research Center of Forest Ecology, Collage of Forestry, Guizhou University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550025, China; Guizhou Libo Karst Forest Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Libo, Guizhou, 558400, China.
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6
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Blowes SA, McGill B, Brambilla V, Chow CFY, Engel T, Fontrodona-Eslava A, Martins IS, McGlinn D, Moyes F, Sagouis A, Shimadzu H, van Klink R, Xu WB, Gotelli NJ, Magurran A, Dornelas M, Chase JM. Synthesis reveals approximately balanced biotic differentiation and homogenization. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadj9395. [PMID: 38381832 PMCID: PMC10881054 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj9395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
It is commonly thought that the biodiversity crisis includes widespread declines in the spatial variation of species composition, called biotic homogenization. Using a typology relating homogenization and differentiation to local and regional diversity changes, we synthesize patterns across 461 metacommunities surveyed for 10 to 91 years, and 64 species checklists (13 to 500+ years). Across all datasets, we found that no change was the most common outcome, but with many instances of homogenization and differentiation. A weak homogenizing trend of a 0.3% increase in species shared among communities/year on average was driven by increased numbers of widespread (high occupancy) species and strongly associated with checklist data that have longer durations and large spatial scales. At smaller spatial and temporal scales, we show that homogenization and differentiation can be driven by changes in the number and spatial distributions of both rare and common species. The multiscale perspective introduced here can help identify scale-dependent drivers underpinning biotic differentiation and homogenization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shane A. Blowes
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Brian McGill
- School of Biology and Ecology and Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
| | - Viviana Brambilla
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
- Guia Marine Lab, MARE, Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Cher F. Y. Chow
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
| | - Thore Engel
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Dornburger Straße 159, 07743 Jena, Germany
- Department of Ecosystem Services, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ, Permoserstr. 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Ada Fontrodona-Eslava
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
| | - Inês S. Martins
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
- Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity, Berrick Saul Second Floor, University of York, York, UK
| | - Daniel McGlinn
- Department of Biology, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Faye Moyes
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
| | - Alban Sagouis
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Hideyasu Shimadzu
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, Loughborough University, Leicestershire, UK
- Department of Data Science, Kitasato University, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Roel van Klink
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Wu-Bing Xu
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | | | - Anne Magurran
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
| | - Maria Dornelas
- Centre for Biological Diversity, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
- Guia Marine Lab, MARE, Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
- Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity, Berrick Saul Second Floor, University of York, York, UK
| | - Jonathan M. Chase
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
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7
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Saether BE, Engen S, Solbu EB. Assessing the sensitivity and resistance of communities in a changing environment. J Anim Ecol 2024; 93:8-20. [PMID: 37740526 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/24/2023]
Abstract
We propose that the ecological resilience of communities to permanent changes of the environment can be based on how variation in the overall abundance of individuals affects the number of species. Community sensitivity is defined as the ratio between the rate of change in the log expected number of species and the rate of change in the log expected number of individuals in the community. High community sensitivity means that small changes in the total abundance strongly impact the number of species. Community resistance is the proportional reduction in expected number of individuals that the community can sustain before expecting to lose one species. A small value of community resistance means that the community can only endure a small reduction in abundance before it is expected to lose one species. Based on long-term studies of four bird communities in European deciduous forests at different latitudes large differences were found in the resilience to environmental perturbations. Estimating the variance components of the species abundance distribution revealed how different processes contributed to the community sensitivity and resistance. Species heterogeneity in the population dynamics was the largest component, but its proportion varied among communities. Species-specific response to environmental fluctuations was the second major component of the variation in abundance. Estimates of community sensitivity and resistance based on data only from a single year were in general larger than those based on estimates from longer time series. Thus, our approach can provide rapid and conservative assessment of the resilience of communities to environmental changes also including only short-term data. This study shows that a general ecological mechanism, caused by increased strength of density dependence due to reduction in resource availability, can provide an intuitive measure of community resilience to environmental variation. Our analyses also illustrate the importance of including specific assumptions about how different processes affect community dynamics. For example, if stochastic fluctuations in the environment affect all species in a similar way, the sensitivity and resistance of the community to environmental changes will be different from communities in which all species show independent responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernt-Erik Saether
- Department of Biology, Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Steinar Engen
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Erik Blystad Solbu
- Department of Landscape and Biodiversity, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), Trondheim, Norway
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8
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Bowler DE. An intuitive approach for measuring the resilience of biological communities to environmental change. J Anim Ecol 2024; 93:4-7. [PMID: 37994548 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 11/05/2023] [Indexed: 11/24/2023]
Abstract
Research Highlight: Saether, B. E., Engen, S., & Solbu, E. B. (2023a). Assessing the sensitivity and resistance of communities in a changing environment. Journal of Animal Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.14003. In the face of global change, conservation strategies can be informed by understanding which biological communities are most at risk. Metrics that reflect the 'resilience' of communities to change could have great utility, but there is still no consensus on the most useful way to measure it. Saether et al. introduce an intuitive approach to thinking about and measuring resilience based on how variation in the total number of individuals within a community affects the number of species. By using dynamic species abundance distribution models, they also quantify the different sources of population-level variation that contribute to community resilience. Evenness emerges as an important predictor of resilience, with more even communities predicted to be more sensitive to abundance loss. An attractive feature of their approach is the ability to estimate the key parameters using commonly used generalized linear mixed effects models, which they illustrate with a case study on forest bird communities. The approach is ripe for comparison across different systems to explore how these proposed metrics complement existing biodiversity metrics and how they help understand the risk of communities from environmental change.
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9
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Bertuol-Garcia D, Ladouceur E, Brudvig LA, Laughlin DC, Munson SM, Curran MF, Davies KW, Svejcar LN, Shackelford N. Testing the hierarchy of predictability in grassland restoration across a gradient of environmental severity. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2023; 33:e2922. [PMID: 37776043 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Revised: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/01/2023]
Abstract
Ecological restoration is critical for recovering degraded ecosystems but is challenged by variable success and low predictability. Understanding which outcomes are more predictable and less variable following restoration can improve restoration effectiveness. Recent theory asserts that the predictability of outcomes would follow an order from most to least predictable from coarse to fine community properties (physical structure > taxonomic diversity > functional composition > taxonomic composition) and that predictability would increase with more severe environmental conditions constraining species establishment. We tested this "hierarchy of predictability" hypothesis by synthesizing outcomes along an aridity gradient with 11 grassland restoration projects across the United States. We used 1829 vegetation monitoring plots from 227 restoration treatments, spread across 52 sites. We fit generalized linear mixed-effects models to predict six indicators of restoration outcomes as a function of restoration characteristics (i.e., seed mixes, disturbance, management actions, time since restoration) and used variance explained by models and model residuals as proxies for restoration predictability. We did not find consistent support for our hypotheses. Physical structure was among the most predictable outcomes when the response variable was relative abundance of grasses, but unpredictable for total canopy cover. Similarly, one dimension of taxonomic composition related to species identities was unpredictable, but another dimension of taxonomic composition indicating whether exotic or native species dominated the community was highly predictable. Taxonomic diversity (i.e., species richness) and functional composition (i.e., mean trait values) were intermittently predictable. Predictability also did not increase consistently with aridity. The dimension of taxonomic composition related to the identity of species in restored communities was more predictable (i.e., smaller residuals) in more arid sites, but functional composition was less predictable (i.e., larger residuals), and other outcomes showed no significant trend. Restoration outcomes were most predictable when they related to variation in dominant species, while those responding to rare species were harder to predict, indicating a potential role of scale in restoration predictability. Overall, our results highlight additional factors that might influence restoration predictability and add support to the importance of continuous monitoring and active management beyond one-time seed addition for successful grassland restoration in the United States.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana Bertuol-Garcia
- School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Emma Ladouceur
- Institute of Computer Science, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Leipzig-Halle-Jena, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Physiological Diversity, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Lars A Brudvig
- Department of Plant Biology and Program in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
| | | | - Seth M Munson
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
| | | | - Kirk W Davies
- USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Burns, Oregon, USA
| | | | - Nancy Shackelford
- School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
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10
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Rumschlag SL, Mahon MB, Jones DK, Battaglin W, Behrens J, Bernhardt ES, Bradley P, Brown E, De Laender F, Hill R, Kunz S, Lee S, Rosi E, Schäfer R, Schmidt TS, Simonin M, Smalling K, Voss K, Rohr JR. Density declines, richness increases, and composition shifts in stream macroinvertebrates. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadf4896. [PMID: 37134169 PMCID: PMC10156106 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adf4896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Documenting trends of stream macroinvertebrate biodiversity is challenging because biomonitoring often has limited spatial, temporal, and taxonomic scopes. We analyzed biodiversity and composition of assemblages of >500 genera, spanning 27 years, and 6131 stream sites across forested, grassland, urban, and agricultural land uses throughout the United States. In this dataset, macroinvertebrate density declined by 11% and richness increased by 12.2%, and insect density and richness declined by 23.3 and 6.8%, respectively, over 27 years. In addition, differences in richness and composition between urban and agricultural versus forested and grassland streams have increased over time. Urban and agricultural streams lost the few disturbance-sensitive taxa they once had and gained disturbance-tolerant taxa. These results suggest that current efforts to protect and restore streams are not sufficient to mitigate anthropogenic effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha L Rumschlag
- Department of Biological Sciences, Environmental Change Initiative, and Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
- Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Duluth, MN, USA
| | - Michael B Mahon
- Department of Biological Sciences, Environmental Change Initiative, and Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Devin K Jones
- Department of Biological Sciences, Environmental Change Initiative, and Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
| | - William Battaglin
- Colorado Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, CO, USA
| | - Jonny Behrens
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Paul Bradley
- South Atlantic Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Columbia, SC, USA
| | - Ethan Brown
- Department of Biological Sciences, Environmental Change Initiative, and Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Frederik De Laender
- Research Unit of Environmental and Evolutionary Biology, Namur Institute of Complex Systems, and Institute of Life, Earth, and the Environment, University of Namur, Namur, Belgium
| | - Ryan Hill
- Pacific Ecological Systems Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Stefan Kunz
- Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Landau, Germany
| | - Sylvia Lee
- Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Emma Rosi
- Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, NY, USA
| | - Ralf Schäfer
- Institute for Environmental Sciences, University of Koblenz-Landau, Landau, Germany
| | - Travis S Schmidt
- Wyoming-Montana Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Helena, MT, USA
| | - Marie Simonin
- Univ Angers, Institut Agro, INRAE, IRHS, SFR QUASAV, F-49000 Angers, France
| | - Kelly Smalling
- New Jersey Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrenceville, NJ, USA
| | - Kristofor Voss
- Department of Biology, Regis University, Denver, CO, USA
| | - Jason R Rohr
- Department of Biological Sciences, Environmental Change Initiative, and Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
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Barnes RSK. Seagrass macrobenthic biodiversity does not vary in conformity with a leaky-lagoonal confinement gradient. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2023; 185:105897. [PMID: 36738698 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2023.105897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Revised: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Coastal lagoon ecology often changes on progression from the open, well-flushed mouth region to the depositional zone furthest from the open sea. This is generally considered consequent on increasing 'confinement' and associated features, rather than on the often co-occurringly decreasing salinity. The 12 km Rainbow Channel connecting part of Moreton Bay, a microtidal leaky lagoon, to the adjacent Pacific provides a gradient of increasing confinement without any significant salinity change, i.e. a tenfold increase in water residence time for a salinity decrease of <1. Macrobenthic faunal assemblages characterising intertidal Zostera seagrass at strategic points along its length were compared to test whether their nature changed in conformity with confinement models. Results suggest that it does not; faunal abundance, species richness, evenness and composition remaining effectively unchanged along the gradient. Seagrass systems may constitute a special case because they decouple renewal times of the overlying water and local organic enrichment/decomposition; as may leaky lagoons because of their high tidal velocities.
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Affiliation(s)
- R S K Barnes
- School of Biological Sciences and Centre for Marine Science, University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072, Queensland, Australia; Department of Zoology and Conservation Research Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
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