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McCulloch GA, Waters JM. Does wing reduction influence the relationship between altitude and insect body size? A case study using New Zealand's diverse stonefly fauna. Ecol Evol 2017; 8:953-960. [PMID: 29375769 PMCID: PMC5773309 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2017] [Revised: 11/19/2017] [Accepted: 11/20/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Researchers have long been intrigued by evolutionary processes that explain biological diversity. Numerous studies have reported strong associations between animal body size and altitude, but insect analyses have often yielded equivocal results. Here, we analyze a collection database of New Zealand's diverse endemic stonefly fauna (106 species across 21 genera) to test for relationships between altitude and plecopteran body size. This insect assemblage includes a variety of wing-reduced (26 spp) and fully winged (80 spp) taxa and covers a broad range of altitudes (0-2,000 m). We detected significant relationships between altitude and body size for wing-reduced, but not fully winged, stonefly taxa. These results suggest that, while the maintenance of flight apparatus might place a constraint on body size in some fully winged species, the loss of flight may free insects from this evolutionary constraint. We suggest that rapid switches in insect dispersal ability may facilitate rapid evolutionary shifts across a number of biological attributes and may explain the inconsistent results from previous macroecological analyses of insect assemblages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graham A McCulloch
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Queensland Brisbane Qld Australia
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2
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Using a Macroecological Approach to Study Geographic Range, Abundance and Body Size in the Fossil Record. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017. [DOI: 10.1017/s1089332600001844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Macroecology is a rapidly growing sub-discipline within ecology that is concerned with characterizing statistical patterns of species' abundance, distribution and diversity at spatial and temporal scales typically ignored by traditional ecology. Both macroecology and paleoecology are concerned with answering similar questions (e.g., understanding the factors that influence geographic ranges, or the way that species assemble into communities). As such, macroecological methods easily lend themselves to many paleoecological questions. Moreover, it is possible to estimate the variables of interest to macroecologists (e.g., body size, geographic range size, abundance, diversity) using fossil data. Here we describe the measurement and estimation of the variables used in macroecological studies and potential biases introduced by using fossil data. Next we describe the methods used to analyze macroecological patterns and briefly discuss the current understanding of these patterns. This chapter is by no means an exhaustive review of macroecology and its methods. Instead, it is an introduction to macroecology that we hope will spur innovation in the application of macroecology to the study of the fossil record.
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3
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Schultz CB, Pe'er BG, Damiani C, Brown L, Crone EE. Does movement behaviour predict population densities? A test with 25 butterfly species. J Anim Ecol 2017; 86:384-393. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2015] [Accepted: 11/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Cheryl B. Schultz
- Washington State University; School of Biological Sciences; Vancouver WA 98686 USA
| | - B. Guy Pe'er
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ; Leipzig Germany
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig; Leipzig Germany
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4
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Ricklefs RE. How tree species fill geographic and ecological space in eastern North America. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2015; 115:949-59. [PMID: 25851139 PMCID: PMC4407066 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcv029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2015] [Revised: 01/29/2015] [Accepted: 02/10/2015] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Ecologists broadly accept that the number of species present within a region balances regional processes of immigration and speciation against competitive and other interactions between populations that limit distribution and constrain diversity. Although ecological theory has, for a long time, addressed the premise that ecological space can be filled to 'capacity' with species, only with the availability of time-calibrated phylogenies has it been possible to test the hypothesis that diversification slows as the number of species in a region increases. Focusing on the deciduous trees of eastern North America, this study tested predictions from competition theory concerning the distribution and abundance of species. METHODS Local assemblages of trees tabulated in a previous study published in 1950 were analysed. Assemblages were ordinated with respect to species composition by non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMS). Distributions of trees were analysed by taxonomically nested analysis of variance, discriminant analysis based on NMS scores, and canonical correlation analysis of NMS scores and Bioclim climate variables. KEY RESULTS Most of the variance in species abundance and distribution was concentrated among closely related (i.e. congeneric) species, indicating evolutionary lability. Species distribution and abundance were unrelated to the number of close relatives, suggesting that competitive effects are diffuse. Distances between pairs of congeneric species in NMS space did not differ significantly from distances between more distantly related species, in contrast to the predictions of both competitive habitat partitioning and ecological sorting of species. CONCLUSIONS Eastern deciduous forests of North America do not appear to be saturated with species. The distributions and abundances of individual species provide little evidence of being shaped by competition from related (i.e. ecologically similar) species and, by inference, that diversification is constrained by interspecific competition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert E Ricklefs
- Department of Biology, University of Missouri-St. Louis, One University Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63121-4499, USA
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5
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Duncan C, Chauvenet ALM, Brown ME, Pettorelli N. Energy availability, spatio-temporal variability and implications for animal ecology. DIVERS DISTRIB 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.12270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Clare Duncan
- Institute of Zoology; Zoological Society of London; Regent's Park London NW1 4RY UK
| | | | - Molly E. Brown
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; 8800 Greenbelt Road Greenbelt MD 20771 USA
| | - Nathalie Pettorelli
- Institute of Zoology; Zoological Society of London; Regent's Park London NW1 4RY UK
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6
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Walther BA, van Niekerk A. Effects of climate change on species turnover and body mass frequency distributions of South African bird communities. Afr J Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/aje.12143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bruno A. Walther
- Master Program in Global Health and Development; College of Public Health and Nutrition; Taipei Medical University; 250 Wu-Hsing St. Taipei 110 Taiwan
| | - Adriaan van Niekerk
- Department of Geography & Environmental Studies; Stellenbosch University; Private Bag X1 Matieland 7602 South Africa
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7
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Hercos AP, Sobansky M, Queiroz HL, Magurran AE. Local and regional rarity in a diverse tropical fish assemblage. Proc Biol Sci 2013. [PMID: 23193122 PMCID: PMC3574402 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2012.2076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Because most species in an ecological assemblage are rare, much of the species richness we value is due to taxa with few individuals or a restricted distribution. It has been apparent since the time of ecological pioneers such as Bates and Darwin that tropical systems have disproportionately large numbers of rare species, yet the distribution and abundance patterns of these species remain largely unknown. Here, we examine the diversity of freshwater fish in a series of lakes in the Amazonian várzea, and relate relative abundance, both as numbers of individuals and as biomass, to the occurrence of species in space and time. We find a bimodal relationship of occurrence that distinguishes temporally and spatially persistent species from those that are infrequent in both space and time. Logistic regression reveals that information on occurrence helps distinguish those species that are rare in this locality but abundant elsewhere, from those that are rare throughout the region. These results form a link between different approaches used to evaluate commonness and rarity. In doing so, they provide a tool for identifying species of high conservation priority in poorly documented but species rich localities.
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Affiliation(s)
- A P Hercos
- Mamirauá Institute for Sustainable Development, Estrada do Bexiga 2584, CEP 69470-000, Tefé, Amazonas, Brazil
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8
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Hernández CE, Rodríguez-Serrano E, Avaria-Llautureo J, Inostroza-Michael O, Morales-Pallero B, Boric-Bargetto D, Canales-Aguirre CB, Marquet PA, Meade A. Using phylogenetic information and the comparative method to evaluate hypotheses in macroecology. Methods Ecol Evol 2013. [DOI: 10.1111/2041-210x.12033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Cristián E. Hernández
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva and Filoinformática; Departamento de Zoología; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas; Universidad de Concepción; Casilla 160-C; Concepción; Chile
| | - Enrique Rodríguez-Serrano
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva and Filoinformática; Departamento de Zoología; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas; Universidad de Concepción; Casilla 160-C; Concepción; Chile
| | - Jorge Avaria-Llautureo
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva and Filoinformática; Departamento de Zoología; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas; Universidad de Concepción; Casilla 160-C; Concepción; Chile
| | - Oscar Inostroza-Michael
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva and Filoinformática; Departamento de Zoología; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas; Universidad de Concepción; Casilla 160-C; Concepción; Chile
| | - Bryan Morales-Pallero
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva and Filoinformática; Departamento de Zoología; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas; Universidad de Concepción; Casilla 160-C; Concepción; Chile
| | - Dusan Boric-Bargetto
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva and Filoinformática; Departamento de Zoología; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas; Universidad de Concepción; Casilla 160-C; Concepción; Chile
| | - Cristian B. Canales-Aguirre
- Laboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva and Filoinformática; Departamento de Zoología; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas; Universidad de Concepción; Casilla 160-C; Concepción; Chile
| | | | - Andrew Meade
- School of Biological Sciences; University of Reading; Reading; Berkshire; RG66BX; UK
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9
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Passy SI. A hierarchical theory of macroecology. Ecol Lett 2012; 15:923-34. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2012.01809.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2012] [Revised: 04/16/2012] [Accepted: 05/01/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sophia I. Passy
- Department of Biology; University of Texas at Arlington; Box 19498; Arlington; TX; 76019-0498; USA
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10
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Duffy JP, Pettorelli N. Exploring the relationship between NDVI and African elephant population density in protected areas. Afr J Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2028.2012.01340.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- James P. Duffy
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London; Regent's Park; London; NW1 4RY; U.K
| | - Nathalie Pettorelli
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London; Regent's Park; London; NW1 4RY; U.K
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11
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Terribile LC, Diniz-Filho JAF, Lima-Ribeiro MDS, Rodríguez M. Integrating phylogeny, environment and space to explore variation in macroecological traits of Viperidae and Elapidae (Squamata: Serpentes). J ZOOL SYST EVOL RES 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0469.2012.00658.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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12
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Sirin D, Eren O, Çıplak B. Grasshopper diversity and abundance in relation to elevation and vegetation from a snapshot in Mediterranean Anatolia: role of latitudinal position in altitudinal differences. J NAT HIST 2010. [DOI: 10.1080/00222930903528214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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13
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Chown SL, Gaston KJ. Body size variation in insects: a macroecological perspective. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2010; 85:139-69. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-185x.2009.00097.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 455] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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14
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Pettorelli N, Bro-Jørgensen J, Durant SM, Blackburn T, Carbone C. Energy availability and density estimates in African ungulates. Am Nat 2009; 173:698-704. [PMID: 19302026 DOI: 10.1086/597379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
While many studies have investigated the link between primary productivity and species richness, the link between primary productivity and species abundance is still poorly understood. We explored how primary productivity, assessed by the satellite-based normalized difference vegetation index, influenced density estimates in 13 African ungulate species. We found that primary productivity generally correlated positively with density estimates. However, this link was more pronounced for some species than for others, and information regarding the area surveyed needed to be taken into account to highlight this functional relationship. Detailed consideration of measurements of productivity in broadscale studies identify a general link between primary productivity and abundance of African ungulates and highlight remote-sensing-based analyses as a potentially crucial tool in assessing the population consequences of future changes in primary productivity on this continent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathalie Pettorelli
- Zoological Society of London, Institute of Zoology, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, United Kingdom.
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15
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17
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Chapter 2 Human and Environmental Factors Influence Soil Faunal Abundance–Mass Allometry and Structure. ADV ECOL RES 2009. [DOI: 10.1016/s0065-2504(09)00402-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register]
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18
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19
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Chown SL, Convey P. Spatial and temporal variability across life's hierarchies in the terrestrial Antarctic. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2007; 362:2307-31. [PMID: 17553768 PMCID: PMC2443176 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2006.1949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Antarctica and its surrounding islands lie at one extreme of global variation in diversity. Typically, these regions are characterized as being species poor and having simple food webs. Here, we show that terrestrial systems in the region are nonetheless characterized by substantial spatial and temporal variations at virtually all of the levels of the genealogical and ecological hierarchies which have been thoroughly investigated. Spatial variation at the individual and population levels has been documented in a variety of genetic studies, and in mosses it appears that UV-B radiation might be responsible for within-clump mutagenesis. At the species level, modern molecular methods have revealed considerable endemism of the Antarctic biota, questioning ideas that small organisms are likely to be ubiquitous and the taxa to which they belong species poor. At the biogeographic level, much of the relatively small ice-free area of Antarctica remains unsurveyed making analyses difficult. Nonetheless, it is clear that a major biogeographic discontinuity separates the Antarctic Peninsula and continental Antarctica, here named the 'Gressitt Line'. Across the Southern Ocean islands, patterns are clearer, and energy availability is an important correlate of indigenous and exotic species richness, while human visitor numbers explain much of the variation in the latter too. Temporal variation at the individual level has much to do with phenotypic plasticity, and considerable life-history and physiological plasticity seems to be a characteristic of Antarctic terrestrial species. Environmental unpredictability is an important driver of this trait and has significantly influenced life histories across the region and probably throughout much of the temperate Southern Hemisphere. Rapid climate change-related alterations in the range and abundance of several Antarctic and sub-Antarctic populations have taken place over the past several decades. In many sub-Antarctic locations, these have been exacerbated by direct and indirect effects of invasive alien species. Interactions between climate change and invasion seem set to become one of the most significant conservation problems in the Antarctic. We conclude that despite the substantial body of work on the terrestrial biodiversity of the Antarctic, investigations of interactions between hierarchical levels remain scarce. Moreover, little of the available information is being integrated into terrestrial conservation planning, which lags far behind in this region by comparison with most others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven L Chown
- Centre for Invasion Biology, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, Matieland, South Africa.
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20
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Stability in abundance and niche breadth of gamasid mites across environmental conditions, parasite identity and host pools. Evol Ecol 2007. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-007-9229-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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21
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Why get big in the cold? Towards a solution to a life-history puzzle. Oecologia 2007; 155:215-25. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-007-0902-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 108] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2007] [Revised: 08/08/2007] [Accepted: 10/15/2007] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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22
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Krasnov BR, Stanko M, Morand S. Host community structure and infestation by ixodid ticks: repeatability, dilution effect and ecological specialization. Oecologia 2007; 154:185-94. [PMID: 17684769 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-007-0824-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2006] [Accepted: 07/17/2007] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Abundance of a species in a location results from the interplay between the intrinsic properties of that species and the extrinsic properties, both biotic and abiotic, of the local habitat. Intrinsic factors promote among-population stability in abundance, whereas extrinsic factors generate variation among populations of a species. We studied (a) repeatability and (b) the effect of abundance and species richness of small mammals on the level of their infestation by larvae and nymphs of Ixodes ricinus (ecological generalist) and Ixodes trianguliceps (ecological specialist). We asked if tick infestation parameters are characteristic (=repeatable) for a particular host species or a particular stage of a particular tick species. We also asked how abundance and diversity of hosts affect the level of tick infestation on a particular host species. We predicted that the dilution effect (decrease in tick infestation levels with an increase of host abundance and/or species richness) will be better expressed in an ecological generalist, I. ricinus, than in an ecological specialist, I. trianguliceps. We found that (a) tick abundance, prevalence and aggregation were generally repeatable within tick species/stage; (b) tick abundance and prevalence, but not the aggregation level, were repeatable within host species; (c) the proportion of variance among samples explained by the differences between tick species and stages (as opposed to within-tick species and stage) was higher than that explained by the differences between host species (as opposed to within host species); and (d) the relationship between tick infestation parameters and host abundance and diversity revealed the dilution effect for I. ricinus but not for I. trianguliceps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris R Krasnov
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede-Boqer Campus, 84990 Midreshet Ben-Gurion and Ramon Science Center, P.O. Box 194, 80600, Mizpe Ramon, Israel.
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23
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Pie MR, Torres RA, Brito DMA. Evolution of genome size in fishes: a phylogenetic test of the Hinegardner and Rosen hypothesis. Genetica 2006; 131:51-8. [PMID: 17063380 DOI: 10.1007/s10709-006-9112-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2006] [Accepted: 09/18/2006] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Despite remarkable advances in genomic studies over the past few decades, surprisingly little is known about the processes governing genome evolution at macroevolutionary timescales. In a seminal paper, Hinegardner and Rosen (Am Nat 106:621-644, 1972) suggested that taxa characterized by larger genomes should also display disproportionately stronger fluctuations in genome size. Therefore, according to the Hinegardner and Rosen (HR) hypothesis, there should be a negative correlation between average within-family genome size and its corresponding coefficient of variation (CV), a prediction that was supported by their analysis of the genomes of 275 species of fish. In this study we reevaluate the HR hypothesis using an expanded dataset (2050 genome size records). Moreover, in addition to the use of standard linear regression techniques, we also conducted modern comparative analyses that take into account phylogenetic non-independence. Our analyses failed to confirm the negative relationship detected in the original study, suggesting that the evolution of genome size in fishes might be more complex than envisioned by the HR hypothesis. Interestingly, the frequency distribution of fish genome sizes was strongly skewed, even on a logarithmic scale, suggesting that the dynamics underlying genome size evolution are driven by multiplicative phenomena, which might include chromosomal rearrangements and the expansion of transposable elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcio R Pie
- Laboratório de Parasitologia Evolutiva, Departamento de Zoologia, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Paraná, C.P. 19020, Curitiba PR 81531-980, Brazil.
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Krasnov BR, Shenbrot GI, Khokhlova IS, Poulin R. Is abundance a species attribute? An example with haematophagous ectoparasites. Oecologia 2006; 150:132-40. [PMID: 16896773 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-006-0498-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2006] [Accepted: 06/22/2006] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Population density is a fundamental property of a species and yet it varies among populations of the same species. The variation comes from the interplay between intrinsic features of a species that tend to produce repeatable density values across all populations of the same species and extrinsic environmental factors that differ among localities and thus tend to produce spatial variation in density. Is inter-population variation in density too large for density to be considered a true species character? We addressed this question using data on abundance (number of parasites per individual host, i.e. equivalent to density) of fleas ectoparasitic on small mammals. The data included samples of 548 flea populations, representing 145 flea species and obtained from 48 different geographical regions. Abundances of the same flea species on the same host species, but in different regions, were more similar to each other than expected by chance, and varied significantly among flea species, with 46% of the variation among samples accounted by differences between flea species. Thus, estimates of abundance are repeatable within the same flea species. The same repeatability was also observed, but to a lesser extent, across flea genera, tribes and subfamilies. Independently of the identity of the flea species, abundance values recorded on the same host species, or in the same geographical region, also showed significant statistical repeatability, though not nearly as strong as that associated with abundance values from the same flea species. There were also no strong indications that regional differences in abiotic variables were an important determinant of variation in abundance of a given flea species on a given host species. Abundance thus appears to be a true species trait in fleas, although it varies somewhat within bounds set by species-specific life history traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris R Krasnov
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede-Boqer Campus, 84990, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel.
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Abstract
Although some plant traits have been linked to invasion success, the possible effects of regional factors, such as diversity, habitat suitability, and human activity are not well understood. Each of these mechanisms predicts a different pattern of distribution at the regional scale. Thus, where climate and soils are similar, predictions based on regional hypotheses for invasion success can be tested by comparisons of distributions in the source and receiving regions. Here, we analyse the native and alien geographic ranges of all 1567 plant species that have been introduced between eastern Asia and North America or have been introduced to both regions from elsewhere. The results reveal correlations between the spread of exotics and both the native species richness and transportation networks of recipient regions. This suggests that both species interactions and human-aided dispersal influence exotic distributions, although further work on the relative importance of these processes is needed.
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Hawkins BA, Diniz-Filho JAF, Weis AE. The Mid‐Domain Effect and Diversity Gradients: Is There Anything to Learn? Am Nat 2005; 166:E140-3. [PMID: 16224716 DOI: 10.1086/491686] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2004] [Accepted: 11/22/2004] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The mid-domain effect (MDE) has been proposed as a null model for diversity gradients and an explanation for observed patterns. Here we respond to a recent defense of the concept, explaining that it cannot represent a viable model in either real or null worlds. First, the MDE misrepresents the nature of species ranges. There is also an internal logical inconsistency underlying the MDE because the range size frequency distribution, necessary to generate a hump-shaped pattern under randomization, cannot exist in the absence of environmental gradients and is generated by the ecological and historical processes that the MDE claims to exclude.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bradford A Hawkins
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA.
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Macroecology, geographic range size–body size relationship and minimum viable population analysis for new world carnivora. ACTA OECOLOGICA-INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY 2005. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2004.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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28
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Storch D, Gaston KJ. Untangling ecological complexity on different scales of space and time. Basic Appl Ecol 2004. [DOI: 10.1016/j.baae.2004.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Ulrich W. Allometric ecological distributions in a local community of Hymenoptera. ACTA OECOLOGICA-INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY 2004. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2004.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Defeo O, Cardoso RS. Latitudinal patterns in abundance and life-history traits of the mole crab Emerita brasiliensis on South American sandy beaches. DIVERS DISTRIB 2004. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1366-9516.2004.00070.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
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Diniz-Filho JA, Bini LM, Bastos RP, Vieira CM, Souza MC, Motta JA, Pombal Júnior JP, Peixoto JC. Anurans from a local assemblage in Central Brazil: linking local processes with macroecological patterns. BRAZ J BIOL 2004; 64:41-52. [PMID: 15195363 DOI: 10.1590/s1519-69842004000100006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Macroecological variables of Anuran species found in a local assemblage from Central Brazil (Silvânia, Goiás State) were linked to population dynamics statistics of these species. Geographical range size (GRS), body size, and species' midpoints were the macroecological variables investigated for those species found in the local assemblage and for all other species (105 in the total) found in the Cerrado biome. For each species found in the local assemblage, data on abundance was obtained. Using this data, local population variability as expressed by the coefficient of variation was estimated. Distribution of means, medians, maximum, variances, and skewness (g1), for both GRS and body size, estimated in the local assemblage were compared, using null models, with the data extracted from the overall Cerrado species pool. The results indicated a clear macroecological relationship between GRS and body size and a decrease in local abundance when distance between the locality analyzed and species midpoint increased. According to null models, both body size and GRS values measured in the local assemblage can be considered a random sample from the regional species pool (Cerrado region). Finally, a three-dimensional analysis using body size, GRS, and local population estimates (abundance and variability), indicated that less abundant and more fluctuating species fell near the lower boundary of the polygonal relationship between GRS and body size. Thus, macroecological results linked with local data on population dynamics supported the minimum viable population model.
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Affiliation(s)
- J A Diniz-Filho
- Laboratório de Ecologia Teórica e Síntese, Departamento de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CEP 74001-970, Goiânia, GO, Brazil.
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Diniz-Filho JAF, Tôrres NM. Phylogenetic comparative methods and the geographic range size – body size relationship in new world terrestrial carnivora. Evol Ecol 2002. [DOI: 10.1023/a:1020210321776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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