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Lienau JR, Schmitz OJ. Functional traits of predators and decomposer prey determine context dependency in trophic control over ecosystems. J Anim Ecol 2024. [PMID: 38708817 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/07/2024]
Abstract
Research Highlight: Piccoli, G. C. d. O., Antiqueira, P. A. P., Srivastava, D. S., & Romero, G. Q. (2024). Trophic cascades within and across ecosystems: The role of anti-predatory defences, predator type and detritus quality. Journal of Animal Ecology, 00, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.14063. Ecosystem functioning is controlled by the interplay between bottom-up supply of limiting nutrients and top-down animal feedback effects. However, the degree of animal versus nutrient control is context-dependent. A key challenge lies in characterizing this context dependency which is hypothesized to depend on differences in animal functional traits. Reporting on an important experiment, Piccoli et al. (2014) evaluate how interactions among functionally different predators and decomposer prey create context dependency in top-down control of a model system-tropical bromeliad tank ecosystems. Bromeliad plants hold water in their tanks supporting microcosm ecosystems containing terrestrial and aquatic insect larvae and arachnids. The ecosystems are supported by nutrients in plant litter that rains down from forest canopies into the tanks. Nutrients are released after litter is decomposed by a functionally diverse community of larval insect decomposers that differ in feeding mode and antipredator defence strategy. This decomposer community is preyed upon by an exclusively narrowly ranging aquatic insect larval predator and widely ranging spider predator that crosses between the aquatic and surrounding terrestrial ecosystems. Experimental manipulation of the animal community to test for the degree of control by predators mediated by the functionally diverse prey community included four treatments: (i) a control with the detritivores composing different function groups but without predators, (ii) the cross-ecosystem spider predator added, (iii) the purely aquatic damselfly larvae predator added and (iv) both predator types added to capture their interacting effect on ecosystem function (decomposition, nutrient release, and plant growth). Notably, the study resolved the causal pathways and strengths of direct and indirect control using structural equation modelling. These findings reveal how context dependency arises due to different capacities of the predators alone and together to overcome prey defences and control their abundances, with attendant cascading effects that diminished as well as enhanced decomposition and nutrient release to support bromeliad plant production. The study reveals that predators have a decided, albeit qualitatively and quantitatively different, hand in shaping the degree of bottom-up control through feedback effect on the release of limiting nutrients. This ground-breaking study provides a way forward in understanding the mechanisms determining context dependency in the control over ecosystem functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janey R Lienau
- School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Oswald J Schmitz
- School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
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2
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Lichtenstein JLL, McEwen BL, Primavera SD, Lenihan T, Wood ZM, Carson WP, Costa-Pereira R. Top-down effects of intraspeciflic predator behavioral variation. Oecologia 2024; 205:203-214. [PMID: 38789814 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-024-05564-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024]
Abstract
Among-individual variation in predator traits is ubiquitous in nature. However, variation among populations in this trait variation has been seldom considered in trophic dynamics. This has left unexplored (a) to what degree does among-individual variation in predator traits regulate prey populations and (b) to what degree do these effects vary spatially. We address these questions by examining how predator among-individual variation in functional traits shapes communities across habitats of varying structural complexity, in field conditions. We manipulated Chinese mantis (Tenodera sinensis) density (six or twelve individuals) and behavioral trait variability (activity level by movement on an open field) in experimental patches of old fields with varying habitat complexity (density of plant material). Then, we quantified their impacts on lower trophic levels, specifically prey (arthropods > 4 mm) and plant biomass. Predator behavioral variability only altered prey biomass in structurally complex plots, and this effect depended on mantis density. In the plots with the highest habitat complexity and mantis density, behaviorally variable groups decreased prey biomass by 40.3%. In complex plots with low mantis densities, low levels of behavioral variability decreased prey biomass by 32.2%. Behavioral variability and low habitat complexity also changed prey community composition, namely by increasing ant biomass by 881%. Our results demonstrate that among-individual trait variation can shape species-rich prey communities. Moreover, these effects depend on both predator density and habitat complexity. Incorporating this important facet of ecological diversity revealed normally unnoticed effects of functional traits on the structure and function of food webs.
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Affiliation(s)
- James L L Lichtenstein
- Department of Biology, Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT, 06825, USA.
- Department of Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology, University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, 93106, USA.
| | - Brendan L McEwen
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton Ontario, L8S 4K1, Canada
| | - Skylar D Primavera
- Department of Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology, University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, 93106, USA
| | - Thomas Lenihan
- Department of Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology, University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, 93106, USA
| | - Zoe M Wood
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Walter P Carson
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA
| | - Raul Costa-Pereira
- Department of Animal Biology, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), Campinas, SP, 13083-865, Brazil
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Beaudrot L, Acevedo MA, Gorczynski D, Harris NC. Geographic differences in body size distributions underlie food web connectance of tropical forest mammals. Sci Rep 2024; 14:6965. [PMID: 38521800 PMCID: PMC10960815 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-57500-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/19/2024] [Indexed: 03/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Understanding variation in food web structure over large spatial scales is an emerging research agenda in food web ecology. The density of predator-prey links in a food web (i.e., connectance) is a key measure of network complexity that describes the mean proportional dietary breadth of species within a food web. Connectance is a critical component of food web robustness to species loss: food webs with lower connectance have been shown to be more susceptible to secondary extinctions. Identifying geographic variation in food web connectance and its drivers may provide insight into community robustness to species loss. We investigated the food web connectance of ground-dwelling tropical forest mammal communities in multiple biogeographic regions to test for differences among regions in food web connectance and to test three potential drivers: primary productivity, contemporary anthropogenic pressure, and variation in mammal body mass distributions reflective of historical extinctions. Mammal communities from fifteen protected forests throughout the Neo-, Afro-, and Asian tropics were identified from systematic camera trap arrays. Predator-prey interaction data were collected from published literature, and we calculated connectance for each community as the number of observed predator-prey links relative to the number of possible predator-prey links. We used generalized linear models to test for differences among regions and to identify the site level characteristics that best predicted connectance. We found that mammal food web connectance varied significantly among continents and that body size range was the only significant predictor. More possible predator-prey links were observed in communities with smaller ranges in body size and therefore sites with smaller body size ranges had higher mean proportional dietary breadth. Specifically, mammal communities in the Neotropics and in Madagascar had significantly higher connectance than mammal communities in Africa. This geographic variation in contemporary mammalian food web structure may be the product of historical extinctions in the Late Quaternary, which led to greater losses of large-bodied species in the Neotropics and Madagascar thus contributing to higher average proportional dietary breadth among the remaining smaller bodied species in these regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lydia Beaudrot
- Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of BioSciences, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA.
- Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.
| | - Miguel A Acevedo
- Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Daniel Gorczynski
- Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of BioSciences, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Nyeema C Harris
- Applied Wildlife Ecology Lab, School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
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4
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Ji L, Wang Q, Cui S, Chen W, Zhang B, Chu J, Ding Y, Shi H, Cao Z, Wang L, Zhang K, Jiang X, Wang W. Different responses of taxonomic and functional trait structure of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages to eutrophication in a large Chinese freshwater lake. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2024; 31:9732-9744. [PMID: 38196038 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-31760-6] [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: 08/09/2023] [Accepted: 12/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024]
Abstract
Functional trait measures have the potential to represent local habitat conditions and are considered promising tools for biomonitoring and bioassessment programs. Macroinvertebrates are an ecologically significant group in freshwater ecosystems and possess a range of functional traits which are employed to assess ecological quality. Nevertheless, the relationships between macroinvertebrate functional structure and anthropogenic disturbances remain poorly understood. In this study, we conducted a comparison of how functional trait-based and taxonomy-based composition of macroinvertebrate assemblages responded to eutrophication in Lake Taihu, a typical large eutrophic freshwater lake in China. Specifically, we examined both the taxonomy-based and trait-based compositions of benthic macroinvertebrates varied along the eutrophication gradient. Eutrophication was associated with remarkable decreases in the abundance of gastropod taxa and increases in Oligochaeta and Chironomidae. Ten categories belonging to six traits were significantly different among three site groups. The eutrophic and transition sites showed higher abundance of Size2, burrowers, and integument-respiration organisms than macrophytic sites, whereas abundance of Size1, conical-shaped, sprawlers, scrapers, and lung-respiration were higher in macrophytic sites. Both taxonomic (36.8%) and functional compositions (39.8%) of macroinvertebrate assemblages were influenced by the same variables: CODMn and transparency. Our study showed that macroinvertebrate trait-based approaches can be considered a useful supplement to traditional taxonomic approach for biomonitoring programs in freshwater lakes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Ji
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecosystem Protection and Restoration, Anhui University, Hefei, 230601, China
| | - Qiansen Wang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Shuangyan Cui
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Wendong Chen
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Boyu Zhang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Jinkun Chu
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Yuansong Ding
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Haoyu Shi
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Zihan Cao
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Liangbin Wang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
| | - Kun Zhang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China.
| | - Xiaoming Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Eco-Hydraulic in Northwest Arid Region of China, Xi'an University of Technology, Xi'an, 710048, Shaanxi, China
| | - Wenping Wang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, College of Life Science, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China
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Oliveira FR, Lansac-Tôha FM, Meira BR, Progênio M, Velho LFM. Influence of Ecological Multiparameters on Facets of β-Diversity of Freshwater Plankton Ciliates. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2023; 87:10. [PMID: 38057381 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-023-02312-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2023] [Accepted: 10/15/2023] [Indexed: 12/08/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the relative importance of the factors that drive global patterns of biodiversity is among the major topics of ecological and biogeographic research. In freshwater bodies, spatial, temporal, abiotic, and biotic factors are important structurers of these ecosystems and can trigger distinct responses according to the facet of biodiversity considered. The objective was to evaluate how different facets of β-diversity (taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic) based on data from the planktonic ciliate community of a Neotropical floodplain, are influenced by temporal, spatial, abiotic, and biotic factors. The research was conducted in the upper Paraná River floodplain between the years 2010 and 2020 in different water bodies. All predictors showed significant importance on the facets of β-diversity, except the abiotic predictors on species composition data, for the taxonomic facet. The functional and phylogenetic facets were mostly influenced by abiotic, biotic, and spatial factors. For temporal predictors, results showed influence on taxonomic (structure and composition data) and functional (structure data) facets. Also, a fraction of shared explanation between the temporal and abiotic components was observed for the distinct facets. Significant declines in β-diversity in continental ecosystems have been evidenced, especially those with drastic implications for ecosystemic services. Therefore, the preservation of a high level of diversity in water bodies, also involving phylogenetic and functional facets, should be a priority in conservation plans and goals, to ensure the maintenance of important ecological processes involving ciliates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felipe Rafael Oliveira
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia de Ambientes Aquáticos Continentais (PEA), Departamento de Biologia (DBI), Centro de Ciências Biológicas (CCB), Núcleo de Pesquisas em Limnologia, Ictiologia e Aquicultura (Nupelia), Universidade Estadual de Maringá - UEM, Maringá, PR, 87020-900, Brazil.
- Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Biológicas (FACAB), Curso de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Estado do Mato Grosso - UNEMAT, 78.200-000, Cáceres, MT, Brazil.
| | - Fernando Miranda Lansac-Tôha
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia de Ambientes Aquáticos Continentais (PEA), Departamento de Biologia (DBI), Centro de Ciências Biológicas (CCB), Núcleo de Pesquisas em Limnologia, Ictiologia e Aquicultura (Nupelia), Universidade Estadual de Maringá - UEM, Maringá, PR, 87020-900, Brazil
| | - Bianca Ramos Meira
- Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Biológicas, Departamento de Biodiversidade, Evolução e Meio Ambiente, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto - UFPO, Ouro Preto, MG, 35400-000, Brazil
| | - Melissa Progênio
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia de Ambientes Aquáticos Continentais (PEA), Departamento de Biologia (DBI), Centro de Ciências Biológicas (CCB), Núcleo de Pesquisas em Limnologia, Ictiologia e Aquicultura (Nupelia), Universidade Estadual de Maringá - UEM, Maringá, PR, 87020-900, Brazil
| | - Luiz Felipe Machado Velho
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia de Ambientes Aquáticos Continentais (PEA), Departamento de Biologia (DBI), Centro de Ciências Biológicas (CCB), Núcleo de Pesquisas em Limnologia, Ictiologia e Aquicultura (Nupelia), Universidade Estadual de Maringá - UEM, Maringá, PR, 87020-900, Brazil
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6
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Hu S, Li G, Berlinches de Gea A, Teunissen J, Geisen S, Wilschut RA, Schwelm A, Wang Y. Microbiome predators in changing soils. Environ Microbiol 2023; 25:2057-2067. [PMID: 37438930 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 06/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/14/2023]
Abstract
Microbiome predators shape the soil microbiome and thereby soil functions. However, this knowledge has been obtained from small-scale observations in fundamental rather than applied settings and has focused on a few species under ambient conditions. Therefore, there are several unaddressed questions on soil microbiome predators: (1) What is the role of microbiome predators in soil functioning? (2) How does global change affect microbiome predators and their functions? (3) How can microbiome predators be applied in agriculture? We show that there is sufficient evidence for the vital role of microbiome predators in soils and stress that global changes impact their functions, something that urgently needs to be addressed to better understand soil functioning as a whole. We are convinced that there is a potential for the application of microbiome predators in agricultural settings, as they may help to sustainably increase plant growth. Therefore, we plea for more applied research on microbiome predators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shunran Hu
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
- College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China
| | - Guixin Li
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
- State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Alejandro Berlinches de Gea
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Joliese Teunissen
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Stefan Geisen
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Rutger A Wilschut
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Arne Schwelm
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Environment, Soils and Landuse, Teagasc Johnstown Castle, Wexford, Ireland
| | - Yuxin Wang
- Laboratory of Nematology, Plant Science Group, Wageningen University & Research (WU), Wageningen, The Netherlands
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Guiden PW, Burke A, Fliginger J, Rowland-Schaefer EG, Savage K, Jones HP. Reintroduced megaherbivores indirectly shape small-mammal responses to moonlight. Ecology 2023; 104:e3884. [PMID: 36208094 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2021] [Revised: 08/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/01/2022] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Moonlight structures activity patterns of many nocturnal species. Bright moonlight often limits the activity of nocturnal prey, but dense vegetation weakens this effect. Using 8 years of live-trapping data, we asked whether reintroduced megaherbivores (Bison bison) indirectly altered moonlight avoidance by small mammals in tallgrass prairies. In plots with bison, plants intercepted 20% less light, allowing more moonlight to reach ground level. During nights with no moonlight, Peromyscus maniculatus activity was similar in plots with and without bison. During nights with peak moonlight, P. maniculatus activity was four times greater in plots without bison compared to plots with bison. Conversely, Microtus ochrogaster activity was twice as great during full moons compared to new moons, but only in plots with bison. We also equipped a subset of traps with temperature sensors to estimate trap-entry time. Although M. ochrogaster was more active on bright nights, most activity occurred before moonrise or after moonset, avoiding periods of bright moonlight. We conclude that megaherbivores play an unappreciated but important indirect role in tallgrass prairies by inducing behavioral shifts in other animal species. Because overlap in activity patterns can predict the likelihood of predator-prey encounters, such activity shifts have important implications for trophic interactions throughout restored prairie food webs. Additional work to understand interspecific and intraspecific variation in response to moonlight may improve efforts to forecast changes in community assembly due to restoration and land-use change.
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Affiliation(s)
- P W Guiden
- Biology Department, Hamilton College, Clinton, New York, USA
| | - Angela Burke
- Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA
| | - Jessica Fliginger
- Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA
| | | | - Kirstie Savage
- Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA
| | - Holly P Jones
- Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA.,Institute for the Study of the Environment, Sustainability and Energy, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA
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Abundance and trait-matching both shape interaction frequencies between plants and birds in seed-dispersal networks. Basic Appl Ecol 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.baae.2022.11.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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9
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Bello C, Schleuning M, Graham CH. Analyzing trophic ecosystem functions with the interaction functional space. Trends Ecol Evol 2023; 38:424-434. [PMID: 36599738 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2022.12.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Revised: 11/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/01/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Quantifying the vulnerability of ecosystems to global change requires a better understanding of how trophic ecosystem functions emerge. So far, trophic ecosystem functions have been studied from the perspective of either functional diversity or network ecology. To integrate these two perspectives, we propose the interaction functional space (IFS) a conceptual framework to simultaneously analyze the effects of traits and interactions on trophic functions. We exemplify the added value of our framework for seed dispersal and wood decomposition and show how species interactions influence the relationship between functional trait diversity and trophic functions. We propose future applications for a range of functions where the IFS can help to elucidate mechanisms underpinning trophic functions and facilitate understanding of functional changes in ecosystems amidst global change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina Bello
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland; Institute of Integrative Biology, ETH Zürich, Universitätstrasse 2, 8092 Zürich, Switzerland.
| | - Matthias Schleuning
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Catherine H Graham
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
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Li X, Klauschies T, Yang W, Yang Z, Gaedke U. Trait adaptation enhances species coexistence and reduces bistability in an intraguild predation module. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e9749. [PMID: 36703712 PMCID: PMC9871339 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9749] [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: 09/07/2022] [Revised: 01/02/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Disentangling how species coexist in an intraguild predation (IGP) module is a great step toward understanding biodiversity conservation in complex natural food webs. Trait variation enabling individual species to adjust to ambient conditions may facilitate coexistence. However, it is still unclear how coadaptation of all species within the IGP module, constrained by complex trophic interactions and trade-offs among species-specific traits, interactively affects species coexistence and population dynamics. We developed an adaptive IGP model allowing prey and predator species to mutually adjust their species-specific defensive and offensive strategies to each other. We investigated species persistence, the temporal variation of population dynamics, and the occurrence of bistability in IGP models without and with trait adaptation along a gradient of enrichment represented by carrying capacity of the basal prey for different widths and speeds of trait adaptation within each species. Results showed that trait adaptation within multiple species greatly enhanced the coexistence of all three species in the module. A larger width of trait adaptation facilitated species coexistence independent of the speed of trait adaptation at lower enrichment levels, while a sufficiently large and fast trait adaptation promoted species coexistence at higher enrichment levels. Within the oscillating regime, increasing the speed of trait adaptation reduced the temporal variability of biomasses of all species. Finally, species coadaptation strongly reduced the presence of bistability and promoted the attractor with all three species coexisting. These findings resolve the contradiction between the widespread occurrence of IGP in nature and the theoretical predictions that IGP should only occur under restricted conditions and lead to unstable population dynamics, which broadens the mechanisms presumably underlying the maintenance of IGP modules in nature. Generally, this study demonstrates a decisive role of mutual adaptation among complex trophic interactions, for enhancing interspecific diversity and stabilizing food web dynamics, arising, for example, from intraspecific diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxiao Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Quality Improvement and Ecological Restoration for Watersheds, School of Ecology, Environment and ResourcesGuangdong University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of EnvironmentBeijing Normal UniversityBeijingChina
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou)GuangzhouChina
| | - Toni Klauschies
- Department of Ecology and Ecosystem ModellingInstitute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of PotsdamPotsdamGermany
| | - Wei Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of EnvironmentBeijing Normal UniversityBeijingChina
- Yellow River Estuary Wetland Ecosystem Observation and Research StationMinistry of EducationShandongChina
| | - Zhifeng Yang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Quality Improvement and Ecological Restoration for Watersheds, School of Ecology, Environment and ResourcesGuangdong University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of EnvironmentBeijing Normal UniversityBeijingChina
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou)GuangzhouChina
| | - Ursula Gaedke
- Department of Ecology and Ecosystem ModellingInstitute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of PotsdamPotsdamGermany
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Schleuning M, García D, Tobias JA. Animal functional traits: Towards a trait‐based ecology for whole ecosystems. Funct Ecol 2023. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.14246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Schleuning
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK‐F) Frankfurt (Main) Germany
| | - Daniel García
- Departamento Biología de Organismos y Sistemas (Universidad de Oviedo) and Instituto Mixto de Investigación en Biodiversidad (Universidad de Oviedo‐CSIC‐Principado de Asturias) Oviedo Spain
| | - Joseph A. Tobias
- Department of Life Sciences Imperial College London Silwood Park Ascot UK
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12
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Li J, Luo M, Wang S, Gauzens B, Hirt MR, Rosenbaum B, Brose U. A size-constrained feeding-niche model distinguishes predation patterns between aquatic and terrestrial food webs. Ecol Lett 2023; 26:76-86. [PMID: 36331162 DOI: 10.1111/ele.14134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Revised: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the formation of feeding links provides insights into processes underlying food webs. Generally, predators feed on prey within a certain body-size range, but a systematic quantification of such feeding niches is lacking. We developed a size-constrained feeding-niche (SCFN) model and parameterized it with information on both realized and non-realized feeding links in 72 aquatic and 65 terrestrial food webs. Our analyses revealed profound differences in feeding niches between aquatic and terrestrial predators and variation along a temperature gradient. Specifically, the predator-prey body-size ratio and the range in prey sizes increase with the size of aquatic predators, whereas they are nearly constant across gradients in terrestrial predator size. Overall, our SCFN model well reproduces the feeding relationships and predation architecture across 137 natural food webs (including 3878 species and 136,839 realized links). Our results illuminate the organisation of natural food webs and enables novel trait-based and environment-explicit modelling approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingyi Li
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany.,EcoNetLab, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Mingyu Luo
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Shaopeng Wang
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Benoit Gauzens
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany.,EcoNetLab, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Myriam R Hirt
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany.,EcoNetLab, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Benjamin Rosenbaum
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany.,EcoNetLab, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Ulrich Brose
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany.,EcoNetLab, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
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13
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Weisse T, Montagnes DJ. Ecology of planktonic ciliates in a changing world: Concepts, methods, and challenges. J Eukaryot Microbiol 2022; 69:e12879. [PMID: 34877743 PMCID: PMC9542165 DOI: 10.1111/jeu.12879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Plankton ecologists ultimately focus on forecasting, both applied and environmental outcomes. We review how appreciating planktonic ciliates has become central to these predictions. We explore the 350-year-old canon on planktonic ciliates and examine its steady progression, which has been punctuated by conceptual insights and technological breakthroughs. By reflecting on this process, we offer suggestions as to where future leaps are needed, with an emphasis on predicting outcomes of global warming. We conclude that in terms of climate change research: (i) climatic hotspots (e.g. polar oceans) require attention; (ii) simply adding ciliate measurements to zooplankton/phytoplankton-based sampling programs is inappropriate; (iii) elucidating the rare biosphere's functional ecology requires culture-independent genetic methods; (iv) evaluating genetic adaptation (microevolution) and population composition shifts is required; (v) contrasting marine and freshwaters needs attention; (vi) mixotrophy needs attention; (vii) laboratory and field studies must couple automated measurements and molecular assessment of functional gene expression; (viii) ciliate trophic diversity requires appreciation; and (ix) marrying gene expression and function, coupled with climate change scenarios is needed. In short, continued academic efforts and financial support are essential to achieve the above; these will lead to understanding how ciliates will respond to climate change, providing tools for forecasting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Weisse
- Research Department for LimnologyUniversity of InnsbruckMondseeAustria
| | - David J.S. Montagnes
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and BehaviourUniversity of LiverpoolLiverpoolUK
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14
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Pecuchet L, Jørgensen LL, Dolgov AV, Eriksen E, Husson B, Skern‐Mauritzen M, Primicerio R. Spatio‐temporal turnover and drivers of bentho‐demersal community and food web structure in a high‐latitude marine ecosystem. DIVERS DISTRIB 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Andrey V. Dolgov
- Polar Branch of Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography (PINRO named after N.M.Knipovich) Murmansk Russia
- Murmansk State Technical University Murmansk Russia
- Tomsk State University Tomsk Russia
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15
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Céréghino R, Trzcinski MK, MacDonald AAM, Marino NA, Acosta Mercado D, Leroy C, Corbara B, Romero GQ, Farjalla VF, Barberis IM, Dézerald O, Hammill E, Atwood TB, Piccoli GC, Ospina Bautista F, Carrias J, Leal JS, Montero G, Antiqueira PA, Freire R, Realpe E, Amundrud SL, Omena PM, Campos AB, Srivastava DS. Functional redundancy dampens precipitation change impacts on species‐rich invertebrate communities across the Neotropics. Funct Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.14048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Régis Céréghino
- Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement Université de Toulouse CNRS Toulouse France
| | - M. Kurtis Trzcinski
- Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences University of British Columbia Vancouver Canada
| | - A. Andrew M. MacDonald
- Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science Montreal QC H3A 1B1 Canada
- Centre for the Synthesis and Analysis of Biodiversity (CESAB‐FRB) Aix‐en‐Provence France
| | - Nicholas A.C. Marino
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Ecologia Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) CP 68020 Rio de Janeiro/RJ Brazil
- Departamento de Ecologia Instituto de Biologia Centro de Ciências da Saúde Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro PO Box 68020 Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil
| | - Dimaris Acosta Mercado
- Department of Biology University of Puerto Rico ‐ Mayagüez Campus Mayagüez 00681 Puerto Rico USA
| | - Céline Leroy
- AMAP Univ. Montpellier CIRAD CNRS INRA IRD Montpellier France
- ECOFOG CIRAD CNRS INRAE Université de Guyane Université des Antilles AgroParisTech 97379 Kourou France
| | - Bruno Corbara
- Université Clermont‐Auvergne CNRS LMGE (Laboratoire Microorganismes: Génome et Environnement) F‐63000 Clermont‐Ferrand France
| | - Gustavo Q. Romero
- Laboratory of Multitrophic Interactions and Biodiversity Department of Animal Biology Institute of Biology University of Campinas (UNICAMP) 13083‐862 Campinas‐SP Brazil
| | - Vinicius F. Farjalla
- Departamento de Ecologia Instituto de Biologia Centro de Ciências da Saúde Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro PO Box 68020 Rio de Janeiro RJ Brazil
| | - Ignacio M. Barberis
- Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario IICAR‐CONICET‐UNR Universidad Nacional de Rosario S2125ZAA Zavalla Argentina
| | - Olivier Dézerald
- UMR ESE, Ecology and Ecosystem Health INRAE Agrocampus Ouest 35042 Rennes France
| | - Edd Hammill
- Department of Watershed Sciences and the Ecology Center Utah State University Logan 84322 USA
| | - Trisha B. Atwood
- Department of Watershed Sciences and the Ecology Center Utah State University Logan 84322 USA
| | - Gustavo C.O. Piccoli
- Dept. of Zoology and Botany University of São Paulo State (UNESP/IBILCE) São José do Rio Preto 15054 ‐ 000 SP Brazil
| | | | - Jean‐François Carrias
- Université Clermont‐Auvergne CNRS LMGE (Laboratoire Microorganismes: Génome et Environnement) F‐63000 Clermont‐Ferrand France
| | - Juliana S. Leal
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Ecologia Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) CP 68020 Rio de Janeiro/RJ Brazil
| | - Guillermo Montero
- Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario IICAR‐CONICET‐UNR Universidad Nacional de Rosario S2125ZAA Zavalla Argentina
| | - Pablo A.P. Antiqueira
- Laboratory of Multitrophic Interactions and Biodiversity Department of Animal Biology Institute of Biology University of Campinas (UNICAMP) 13083‐862 Campinas‐SP Brazil
| | - Rodrigo Freire
- Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario IICAR‐CONICET‐UNR Universidad Nacional de Rosario S2125ZAA Zavalla Argentina
| | - Emilio Realpe
- Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas Universidad de Caldas Manizales 170002 Colombia
| | - Sarah L. Amundrud
- Dept. of Zoology & Biodiversity Research Centre University of British Columbia Vancouver V6T 1Z4 Canada
| | - Paula M. Omena
- Laboratory of Multitrophic Interactions and Biodiversity Department of Animal Biology Institute of Biology University of Campinas (UNICAMP) 13083‐862 Campinas‐SP Brazil
| | - Alice B.A. Campos
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Ecologia Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) CP 68020 Rio de Janeiro/RJ Brazil
| | - Diane S. Srivastava
- Dept. of Zoology & Biodiversity Research Centre University of British Columbia Vancouver V6T 1Z4 Canada
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16
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Podani J, Patonai K, Szabó P, Szilágyi A. Coefficients of association between nominal and fully ranked ordinal variables with applications to ecological network analysis. Ecol Modell 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2022.109873] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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17
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Green SJ, Brookson CB, Hardy NA, Crowder LB. Trait-based approaches to global change ecology: moving from description to prediction. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220071. [PMID: 35291837 PMCID: PMC8924753 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Trait-based approaches are increasingly recognized as a tool for understanding ecosystem re-assembly and function under intensifying global change. Here we synthesize trait-based research globally (n = 865 studies) to examine the contexts in which traits may be used for global change prediction. We find that exponential growth in the field over the last decade remains dominated by descriptive studies of terrestrial plant morphology, highlighting significant opportunities to expand trait-based thinking across systems and taxa. Very few studies (less than 3%) focus on predicting ecological effects of global change, mostly in the past 5 years and via singular traits that mediate abiotic limits on species distribution. Beyond organism size (the most examined trait), we identify over 2500 other morphological, physiological, behavioural and life-history traits known to mediate environmental filters of species' range and abundance as candidates for future predictive global change work. Though uncommon, spatially explicit process models-which mechanistically link traits to changes in organism distributions and abundance-are among the most promising frameworks for holistic global change prediction at scales relevant for conservation decision-making. Further progress towards trait-based forecasting requires addressing persistent barriers including (1) matching scales of multivariate trait and environment data to focal processes disrupted by global change, and (2) propagating variation in trait and environmental parameters throughout process model functions using simulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie J. Green
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Cole B. Brookson
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Natasha A. Hardy
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
- Hopkins Marine Station of Stanford University, Pacific Grove, CA 93950, USA
| | - Larry B. Crowder
- Hopkins Marine Station of Stanford University, Pacific Grove, CA 93950, USA
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18
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Spatio-temporal patterns of multi-trophic biodiversity and food-web characteristics uncovered across a river catchment using environmental DNA. Commun Biol 2022; 5:259. [PMID: 35322190 PMCID: PMC8943070 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03216-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Accurate characterisation of ecological communities with respect to their biodiversity and food-web structure is essential for conservation. However, combined empirical study of biodiversity and multi-trophic food webs at a large spatial and temporal resolution has been prohibited by the lack of appropriate access to such data from natural systems. Here, we assessed biodiversity and food-web characteristics across a 700 km2 riverine network over seasons using environmental DNA. We found contrasting biodiversity patterns between major taxonomic groups. Local richness showed statistically significant, season-dependent increases and decreases towards downstream location within the catchment for fish and bacteria, respectively. Meanwhile, invertebrate richness remained spatially unchanged but varied across seasons. The structure of local food webs, such as link density and nestedness, also varied across space and time. However, these patterns did not necessarily mirror those observed for biodiversity and functional feeding characteristics. Our results suggest that biodiversity patterns and food-web dynamics are not directly scalable to each other even at the same spatial and temporal scales. In order to conserve species diversity as well as the functional trophic integrity of communities, patterns of biodiversity and food-web characteristics must thus be jointly studied. By sampling environmental DNA across a large riverine network over multiple seasons, the varied dynamics between biodiversity and food-web dynamics are revealed.
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19
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Vijayan S, Balaban-Feld J, Badichi S, Tamar Tov-Elem L, Kotler BP, Mitchell WA, Abramsky Z. The bigger the better? Predation and prey size choice in a patchy environment. ETHOL ECOL EVOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2021.1913449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sundararaj Vijayan
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Jesse Balaban-Feld
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Shamir Badichi
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
| | | | - Burt P. Kotler
- Marco and Louise Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, SIDEER, BIDR, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Midreshet Ben-Gurion 8499000, Israel
| | - William A. Mitchell
- Department of Biology, Indiana State University, Terra Haute, Indiana 47809, USA
| | - Zvika Abramsky
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
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20
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Tobias JA, Sheard C, Pigot AL, Devenish AJM, Yang J, Sayol F, Neate-Clegg MHC, Alioravainen N, Weeks TL, Barber RA, Walkden PA, MacGregor HEA, Jones SEI, Vincent C, Phillips AG, Marples NM, Montaño-Centellas FA, Leandro-Silva V, Claramunt S, Darski B, Freeman BG, Bregman TP, Cooney CR, Hughes EC, Capp EJR, Varley ZK, Friedman NR, Korntheuer H, Corrales-Vargas A, Trisos CH, Weeks BC, Hanz DM, Töpfer T, Bravo GA, Remeš V, Nowak L, Carneiro LS, Moncada R AJ, Matysioková B, Baldassarre DT, Martínez-Salinas A, Wolfe JD, Chapman PM, Daly BG, Sorensen MC, Neu A, Ford MA, Mayhew RJ, Fabio Silveira L, Kelly DJ, Annorbah NND, Pollock HS, Grabowska-Zhang AM, McEntee JP, Carlos T Gonzalez J, Meneses CG, Muñoz MC, Powell LL, Jamie GA, Matthews TJ, Johnson O, Brito GRR, Zyskowski K, Crates R, Harvey MG, Jurado Zevallos M, Hosner PA, Bradfer-Lawrence T, Maley JM, Stiles FG, Lima HS, Provost KL, Chibesa M, Mashao M, Howard JT, Mlamba E, Chua MAH, Li B, Gómez MI, García NC, Päckert M, Fuchs J, Ali JR, Derryberry EP, Carlson ML, Urriza RC, Brzeski KE, Prawiradilaga DM, Rayner MJ, Miller ET, Bowie RCK, Lafontaine RM, Scofield RP, Lou Y, Somarathna L, Lepage D, Illif M, Neuschulz EL, Templin M, Dehling DM, Cooper JC, Pauwels OSG, Analuddin K, Fjeldså J, Seddon N, Sweet PR, DeClerck FAJ, Naka LN, Brawn JD, Aleixo A, Böhning-Gaese K, Rahbek C, Fritz SA, Thomas GH, Schleuning M. AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecol Lett 2022; 25:581-597. [PMID: 35199922 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 169] [Impact Index Per Article: 84.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Revised: 04/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Functional traits offer a rich quantitative framework for developing and testing theories in evolutionary biology, ecology and ecosystem science. However, the potential of functional traits to drive theoretical advances and refine models of global change can only be fully realised when species-level information is complete. Here we present the AVONET dataset containing comprehensive functional trait data for all birds, including six ecological variables, 11 continuous morphological traits, and information on range size and location. Raw morphological measurements are presented from 90,020 individuals of 11,009 extant bird species sampled from 181 countries. These data are also summarised as species averages in three taxonomic formats, allowing integration with a global phylogeny, geographical range maps, IUCN Red List data and the eBird citizen science database. The AVONET dataset provides the most detailed picture of continuous trait variation for any major radiation of organisms, offering a global template for testing hypotheses and exploring the evolutionary origins, structure and functioning of biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph A Tobias
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK.,Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Catherine Sheard
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Alex L Pigot
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
| | | | - Jingyi Yang
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK
| | - Ferran Sayol
- Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
| | - Montague H C Neate-Clegg
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
| | - Nico Alioravainen
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,Natural Resources Institute Finland, Natural resources - Migratory fish and regulated rivers, Oulu, Finland
| | - Thomas L Weeks
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK.,Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, UK
| | - Robert A Barber
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK
| | - Patrick A Walkden
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK.,Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, UK
| | - Hannah E A MacGregor
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Samuel E I Jones
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK
| | - Claire Vincent
- UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), Cambridge, UK
| | - Anna G Phillips
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Nicola M Marples
- Department of Zoology, School of Natural Sciences, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Flavia A Montaño-Centellas
- Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Mayor de San Andres, La Paz, Bolivia.,Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | - Victor Leandro-Silva
- Laboratório de Ecologia e Evolução de Aves, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil
| | - Santiago Claramunt
- Department of Natural History, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Bianca Darski
- Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Benjamin G Freeman
- Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Tom P Bregman
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,Future-Fit Foundation, Spitalfields, London, UK
| | | | - Emma C Hughes
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Elliot J R Capp
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Zoë K Varley
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.,Bird Group, Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Tring, UK
| | - Nicholas R Friedman
- Biodiversity and Biocomplexity Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Heiko Korntheuer
- Department of Ecology, Institute of Zoology, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Andrea Corrales-Vargas
- Central American Institute for Studies on Toxic Substances (IRET), Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica, Heredia, Costa Rica
| | - Christopher H Trisos
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,African Climate and Development Initiative, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.,Centre for Statistics in Ecology, the Environment and Conservation, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Brian C Weeks
- School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.,Department of Ornithology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA
| | - Dagmar M Hanz
- Biogeography and Biodiversity Lab, Institute of Physical Geography, Goethe University Frankfurt, , Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Till Töpfer
- Ornithology Section, Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, Bonn, Germany
| | - Gustavo A Bravo
- Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Vladimír Remeš
- Department of Zoology, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic.,Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Praha, Czech Republic
| | - Larissa Nowak
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Institute for Ecology, Evolution and Diversity, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Lincoln S Carneiro
- Coordenação de Zoologia, Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, Belém, Pará, Brazil
| | - Amilkar J Moncada R
- CATIE (Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza), Cartago, Turrialba, Costa Rica
| | | | | | | | - Jared D Wolfe
- College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | | | | | - Marjorie C Sorensen
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
| | - Alexander Neu
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Department of Biological Sciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Michael A Ford
- South African Ringing Unit, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Rebekah J Mayhew
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK
| | - Luis Fabio Silveira
- Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de Sao Paulo (MZUSP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - David J Kelly
- Department of Zoology, School of Natural Sciences, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Nathaniel N D Annorbah
- Department of Biological, Physical and Mathematical Sciences, University of Environment and Sustainable Development, Somanya, Ghana
| | - Henry S Pollock
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | | | - Jay P McEntee
- Department of Biology, Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri, USA
| | - Juan Carlos T Gonzalez
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,Museum of Natural History, University of the Philippines Los, Baños, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines.,Animal Biology Division, Institute of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Los, Baños, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines
| | - Camila G Meneses
- Museum of Natural History, University of the Philippines Los, Baños, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines
| | - Marcia C Muñoz
- Programa de Biología, Universidad de la Salle, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Luke L Powell
- Institute of Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.,Biodiversity Initiative, Houghton, Michigan, USA.,CIBIO-InBIO, Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, University of Porto, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Gabriel A Jamie
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Thomas J Matthews
- GEES (School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences) and Birmingham Institute of Forest Research, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.,CE3C (Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes/Azorean Biodiversity Group and Universidade, dos Açores), Depto de Ciências Agráriase Engenharia do Ambiente, Angra do Heroísmo, Açores, Portugal
| | - Oscar Johnson
- Department of Biological Sciences and Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisina, USA
| | - Guilherme R R Brito
- Depto. de Ecologia e Zoologia, Centro de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil
| | - Kristof Zyskowski
- Peabody Museum of Natural History, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Ross Crates
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Michael G Harvey
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biodiversity Collections, The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas, USA
| | | | - Peter A Hosner
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.,Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - James M Maley
- Moore Laboratory of Zoology, Occidental College, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - F Gary Stiles
- Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Hevana S Lima
- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Manaus, Brazil
| | - Kaiya L Provost
- Department of Ornithology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA.,Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Moses Chibesa
- Department of Zoology and Aquatic Sciences, Copperbelt University, Kitwe, Zambia
| | | | - Jeffrey T Howard
- Department of Biological Sciences and Museum of Natural Science, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisina, USA.,Louisiana State University, Health Sciences Center Shreveport, Shreveport, Louisina, USA
| | - Edson Mlamba
- Department of Zoology, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Marcus A H Chua
- Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.,Department of Environmental Science and Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
| | - Bicheng Li
- Natural History Research Center, Shanghai Natural History Museum, Shanghai, China
| | - M Isabel Gómez
- Colección Boliviana de Fauna - Museo Nacional de Historia Natural, Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Agua, La Paz, Bolivia
| | - Natalia C García
- División Ornitología, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia", CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Martin Päckert
- Senckenberg Natural History Collections, Museum of Zoology, Dresden, Germany
| | - Jérôme Fuchs
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, SU, EPHE, UA, Paris, France
| | - Jarome R Ali
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
| | - Elizabeth P Derryberry
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Monica L Carlson
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
| | - Rolly C Urriza
- Ornithology Section, Zoology Division, Philippine National Museum, Rizal Park, Manila, Philippines
| | - Kristin E Brzeski
- College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, USA
| | - Dewi M Prawiradilaga
- Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense, Research Centre for Biology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), Bogor, Indonesia
| | - Matt J Rayner
- Auckland Museum, Auckland, New Zealand.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | | | - Rauri C K Bowie
- Museum of Vertebrate Zoology and Department of Integrative Biology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA
| | - René-Marie Lafontaine
- Operational Directorate Natural Environment, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS), Brussels, Belgium
| | | | - Yingqiang Lou
- Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Lankani Somarathna
- Natural History Section, Department of National Museum, Colombo, Sri Lanka
| | | | | | - Eike Lena Neuschulz
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Mathias Templin
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - D Matthias Dehling
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | | | - Olivier S G Pauwels
- Department of Recent Vertebrates, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Kangkuso Analuddin
- Department of Biotechnology, Halu Oleo University, Kendari, Sulawesi Tenggara, Indonesia
| | - Jon Fjeldså
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.,Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Nathalie Seddon
- Nature-based Solutions Initiative, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Paul R Sweet
- Department of Ornithology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA
| | - Fabrice A J DeClerck
- Bioversity International, CGIAR, Parc Scientifique Agropolis II, Montpellier, France
| | - Luciano N Naka
- Laboratório de Ecologia e Evolução de Aves, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil
| | - Jeffrey D Brawn
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Alexandre Aleixo
- Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Katrin Böhning-Gaese
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Institute for Ecology, Evolution and Diversity, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.,Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.,Danish Institute for Advanced Study, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.,Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Susanne A Fritz
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Institut für Geowissenschaften, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Gavin H Thomas
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.,Bird Group, Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Tring, UK
| | - Matthias Schleuning
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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21
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Caron D, Maiorano L, Thuiller W, Pollock LJ. Addressing the Eltonian shortfall with trait-based interaction models. Ecol Lett 2022; 25:889-899. [PMID: 35032411 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2021] [Revised: 12/03/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
We have very limited knowledge of how species interact in most communities and ecosystems despite trophic relationships being fundamental for linking biodiversity to ecosystem functioning. A promising approach to fill this gap is to predict interactions based on functional traits, but many questions remain about how well we can predict interactions for different taxa, ecosystems and amounts of input data. Here, we built a new traits-based model of trophic interactions for European vertebrates and found that even models calibrated with 0.1% of the interactions (100 out of 71 k) estimated the full European vertebrate food web reasonably well. However, predators were easier to predict than prey, especially for some clades (e.g. fowl and storks) and local food web connectance was consistently overestimated. Our results demonstrate the ability to rapidly generate food webs when empirical data are lacking-an important step towards a more complete and spatially explicit description of food webs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dominique Caron
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.,Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Luigi Maiorano
- Department of Biology and Biotechnologies "Charles Darwin", Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Wilfried Thuiller
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, Grenoble, France
| | - Laura J Pollock
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.,Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montreal, QC, Canada
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22
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Changes in the functional feeding groups of macrobenthos following artificial reef construction in Daya Bay, China. Glob Ecol Conserv 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
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23
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Dawson SK, Carmona CP, González‐Suárez M, Jönsson M, Chichorro F, Mallen‐Cooper M, Melero Y, Moor H, Simaika JP, Duthie AB. The traits of "trait ecologists": An analysis of the use of trait and functional trait terminology. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:16434-16445. [PMID: 34938447 PMCID: PMC8668725 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2021] [Revised: 10/13/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Trait and functional trait approaches have revolutionized ecology improving our understanding of community assembly, species coexistence, and biodiversity loss. Focusing on traits promotes comparability across spatial and organizational scales, but terms must be used consistently. While several papers have offered definitions, it remains unclear how ecologists operationalize "trait" and "functional trait" terms. Here, we evaluate how researchers and the published literatures use these terms and explore differences among subdisciplines and study systems (taxa and biome). By conducting both a survey and a literature review, we test the hypothesis that ecologists' working definition of "trait" is adapted or altered when confronting the realities of collecting, analyzing and presenting data. From 486 survey responses and 712 reviewed papers, we identified inconsistencies in the understanding and use of terminology among researchers, but also limited inclusion of definitions within the published literature. Discrepancies were not explained by subdiscipline, system of study, or respondent characteristics, suggesting there could be an inconsistent understanding even among those working in related topics. Consistencies among survey responses included the use of morphological, phonological, and physiological traits. Previous studies have called for unification of terminology; yet, our study shows that proposed definitions are not consistently used or accepted. Sources of disagreement include trait heritability, defining and interpreting function, and dealing with organisms in which individuals are not clearly recognizable. We discuss and offer guidelines for overcoming these disagreements. The diversity of life on Earth means traits can represent different features that can be measured and reported in different ways, and thus, narrow definitions that work for one system will fail in others. We recommend ecologists embrace the breadth of biodiversity using a simplified definition of "trait" more consistent with its common use. Trait-based approaches will be most powerful if we accept that traits are at least as diverse as trait ecologists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha K. Dawson
- Swedish Species Information CentreSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUppsalaSweden
| | | | | | - Mari Jönsson
- Swedish Species Information CentreSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUppsalaSweden
| | - Filipe Chichorro
- LIBRe – Laboratory for Integrative Biodiversity ResearchFinnish Museum of Natural HistoryUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
| | - Max Mallen‐Cooper
- Ecology and Evolution Research CentreSchool of Biological, Earth and Environmental SciencesUniversity of New South WalesSydneyNew South WalesAustralia
| | | | - Helen Moor
- Swedish Species Information CentreSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUppsalaSweden
| | - John P. Simaika
- Department of Water Resources and EcosystemsIHE Delft Institute for Water EducationDelftThe Netherlands
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24
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Sinclair JS, Fraker ME, Hood JM, Frank KT, DuFour MR, Gorman AM, Ludsin SA. Functional traits reveal the dominant drivers of long-term community change across a North American Great Lake. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2021; 27:6232-6251. [PMID: 34555234 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15902] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2021] [Revised: 09/02/2021] [Accepted: 09/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Ecosystems worldwide have been impacted by multiple anthropogenic stressors, yet efforts to understand and manage these impacts have been hindered by difficulties in disentangling relative stressor effects. Theoretically, the actions of individual stressors can be delineated based on associated changes in functional traits and these relationships should be generalizable across communities comprised of different species. Thus, combining trait perspectives with community composition data could help to identify the relative influence of different stressors. We evaluated the utility of this combined approach by quantifying shifts in fish species and trait composition in Lake Erie during the past 50 years (1969-2018) in relation to human-driven changes in nutrient inputs, climate warming, and biological invasions. Species and trait shifts were also compared between two Lake Erie basins, which differ in their environmental and biological characteristics, to identify trait responses that were generalizable across different ecosystems versus those that were context dependent. Our analyses revealed consistent species changes across basins, and shifts in feeding and thermal traits, that were primarily associated with altered nutrient inputs (oligotrophication followed by eutrophication). We found no or inconsistent trait-based evidence for the effects of warming and two invasive fishes. Context-dependent trait responses were also evident; nutrient inputs were related to shifts in species tolerant of turbidity in the shallow, eutrophic western basin, which contrasted to shifts between benthopelagic and benthic species in the deeper central basin. Our results reveal the dominant effects of specific stressors on a large freshwater lake and offer a framework for combining species-based and trait-based approaches to delineate the impacts of simultaneous stressors on communities of perturbed natural ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- James S Sinclair
- Aquatic Ecology Laboratory, Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Division of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany
| | - Michael E Fraker
- Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research (CIGLR), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - James M Hood
- Aquatic Ecology Laboratory, Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Kenneth T Frank
- Ocean and Ecosystem Sciences Division, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada
- Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
| | - Mark R DuFour
- Division of Wildlife, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Sandusky Fisheries Research Station, Sandusky, Ohio, USA
| | - Ann Marie Gorman
- Division of Wildlife, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Fairport Fisheries Research Unit, Fairport Harbor, Ohio, USA
| | - Stuart A Ludsin
- Aquatic Ecology Laboratory, Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
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25
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Wootton KL, Curtsdotter A, Roslin T, Bommarco R, Jonsson T. Towards a modular theory of trophic interactions. Funct Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kate L. Wootton
- Department of Ecology Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Uppsala Sweden
- Biofrontiers Institute University of Colorado Boulder CO USA
| | - Alva Curtsdotter
- Insect Ecology Lab, Zoology The University of New England Armidale NSW Australia
| | - Tomas Roslin
- Department of Ecology Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Uppsala Sweden
| | - Riccardo Bommarco
- Department of Ecology Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Uppsala Sweden
| | - Tomas Jonsson
- Department of Ecology Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Uppsala Sweden
- Ecological Modelling Group University of Skövde Skövde Sweden
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26
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Gardarin A, Pigot J, Valantin-Morison M. The hump-shaped effect of plant functional diversity on the biological control of a multi-species pest community. Sci Rep 2021; 11:21635. [PMID: 34737375 PMCID: PMC8568967 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-01160-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Plant taxonomic and functional diversity promotes interactions at higher trophic levels, but the contribution of functional diversity effects to multitrophic interactions and ecosystem functioning remains unclear. We investigated this relationship in a factorial field experiment comparing the effect of contrasting plant communities on parasitism rates in five herbivore species. We used a mechanistic trait-matching approach between plant and parasitoids to determine the amount of nectar available and accessible to parasitoids. This trait-matching approach best explained the rates of parasitism of each herbivorous species, confirming the predominant role of mass-ratio effects. We found evidence for an effect of functional diversity only in analyses considering the ability of plant communities to support the parasitism of all herbivores simultaneously. Multi-species parasitism was maximal at intermediate levels of functional diversity. Plant specific richness had a negligible influence relative to functional metrics. Plant communities providing large amounts of accessible nectar and with intermediate levels of functional diversity were found to be the most likely to enhance the conservation biological control of diverse crop herbivores.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antoine Gardarin
- UMR Agronomie, INRAE, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 78 850, Thiverval-Grignon, France.
| | - Justine Pigot
- UMR Agronomie, INRAE, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 78 850, Thiverval-Grignon, France
| | - Muriel Valantin-Morison
- UMR Agronomie, INRAE, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 78 850, Thiverval-Grignon, France
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27
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Premate E, Zagmajster M, Fišer C. Inferring predator-prey interaction in the subterranean environment: a case study from Dinaric caves. Sci Rep 2021; 11:21682. [PMID: 34737417 PMCID: PMC8568937 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-01249-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Predator–prey interactions are among the most important biotic interactions shaping ecological communities and driving the evolution of defensive traits. These interactions and their effects on species received little attention in extreme and remote environments, where possibilities for direct observations and experimental manipulation of the animals are limited. In this paper, we study such type of environment, namely caves of the Dinarides (Europe), combining spatial and phylogenetic methods. We focused on several species of Niphargus amphipods living in phreatic lakes, as some of them use the dorsal spines as putative morphological defensive traits. We predicted that these spines represent a defense strategy against the olm (Proteus anguinus), a top predator species in the subterranean waters. We tested for spatial overlap of the olm and Niphargus species and showed that spined species live in closer proximity to and co-occur more frequently with the olm than non-spined species. Modeling of the evolution of the spines onto Niphargus phylogeny implies coevolution of this trait in the presence of olm. We conclude that these spines likely evolved as defensive traits in a predator–prey arms race. Combining multiple analyses, we provide an example for a methodological framework to assess predator–prey interactions when in-situ or laboratory observations are not possible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ester Premate
- SubBio Lab, Department of Biology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
| | - Maja Zagmajster
- SubBio Lab, Department of Biology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Cene Fišer
- SubBio Lab, Department of Biology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
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28
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Ficetola GF, Marta S, Guerrieri A, Gobbi M, Ambrosini R, Fontaneto D, Zerboni A, Poulenard J, Caccianiga M, Thuiller W. Dynamics of Ecological Communities Following Current Retreat of Glaciers. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ECOLOGY, EVOLUTION, AND SYSTEMATICS 2021. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-010521-040017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Glaciers are retreating globally, and the resulting ice-free areas provide an experimental system for understanding species colonization patterns, community formation, and dynamics. The last several years have seen crucial advances in our understanding of biotic colonization after glacier retreats, resulting from the integration of methodological innovations and ecological theories. Recent empirical studies have demonstrated how multiple factors can speed up or slow down the velocity of colonization and have helped scientists develop theoretical models that describe spatiotemporalchanges in community structure. There is a growing awareness of how different processes (e.g., time since glacier retreat, onset or interruption of surface processes, abiotic factors, dispersal, biotic interactions) interact to shape community formation and, ultimately, their functional structure through succession. Here, we examine how these studies address key theoretical questions about community dynamics and show how classical approaches are increasingly being combined with environmental DNA metabarcoding and functional trait analysis to document the formation of multitrophic communities, revolutionizing our understanding of the biotic processes that occur following glacier retreat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gentile Francesco Ficetola
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Università degli Studi di Milano, I-20133 Milano, Italy
- Université Grenoble Alpes, Université Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, F-38000, Grenoble, France
| | - Silvio Marta
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Università degli Studi di Milano, I-20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Alessia Guerrieri
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Università degli Studi di Milano, I-20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Mauro Gobbi
- Section of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, MUSE-Science Museum, I-38122 Trento, Italy
| | - Roberto Ambrosini
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Università degli Studi di Milano, I-20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Diego Fontaneto
- Molecular Ecology Group, Water Research Institute (IRSA), Italian National Research Council (CNR), I-28922 Verbania Pallanza, Italy
| | - Andrea Zerboni
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra “A. Desio,” Università degli Studi di Milano, I-20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Jerome Poulenard
- Laboratory of Environments, Dynamics, and Mountain Territories (EDYTEM), Université Savoie Mont Blanc, Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, F‐73000 Chambéry, France
| | - Marco Caccianiga
- Department of Biosciences, Università degli Studi di Milano, I-20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Wilfried Thuiller
- Université Grenoble Alpes, Université Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, F-38000, Grenoble, France
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29
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Belluau M, Paquette A, Gravel D, Reich PB, Stefanski A, Messier C. Exotics are more complementary over time in tree biodiversity–ecosystem functioning experiments. Funct Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Michael Belluau
- Centre d’étude de la forêt Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Montréal QC Canada
| | - Alain Paquette
- Centre d’étude de la forêt Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Montréal QC Canada
| | - Dominique Gravel
- Département de biologie Université de Sherbrooke Sherbrooke QC Canada
| | - Peter B. Reich
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment Western Sydney University Penrith NSW Australia
| | - Artur Stefanski
- Department of Forest Resources University of Minnesota St. Paul MN USA
| | - Christian Messier
- Centre d’étude de la forêt Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Montréal QC Canada
- Département des sciences naturelles and Institut des sciences de la forêt tempérée (ISFORT) Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO) Ripon QC Canada
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30
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McLeod A, Leroux SJ, Gravel D, Chu C, Cirtwill AR, Fortin M, Galiana N, Poisot T, Wood SA. Sampling and asymptotic network properties of spatial multi‐trophic networks. OIKOS 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.08650] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anne McLeod
- Dept of Biology, Memorial Univ. of Newfoundland St. John's NL Canada
| | - Shawn J. Leroux
- Dept of Biology, Memorial Univ. of Newfoundland St. John's NL Canada
| | | | - Cindy Chu
- Aquatic Research and Monitoring Section, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry Peterborough ON Canada
- Great Lakes Laboratory for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada Burlington ON Canada
| | | | - Marie‐Josée Fortin
- Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Univ. of Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Núria Galiana
- Theoretical and Experimental Ecology Station, CNRS and Paul Sabatier Univ. Moulis France
| | - Timothée Poisot
- Dépt de Sciences Biologiques, Univ. de Montréal Montréal QC Canada
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31
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Calderón-Sanou I, Münkemüller T, Zinger L, Schimann H, Yoccoz NG, Gielly L, Foulquier A, Hedde M, Ohlmann M, Roy M, Si-Moussi S, Thuiller W. Cascading effects of moth outbreaks on subarctic soil food webs. Sci Rep 2021; 11:15054. [PMID: 34301993 PMCID: PMC8302651 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-94227-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 07/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The increasing severity and frequency of natural disturbances requires a better understanding of their effects on all compartments of biodiversity. In Northern Fennoscandia, recent large-scale moth outbreaks have led to an abrupt change in plant communities from birch forests dominated by dwarf shrubs to grass-dominated systems. However, the indirect effects on the belowground compartment remained unclear. Here, we combined eDNA surveys of multiple trophic groups with network analyses to demonstrate that moth defoliation has far-reaching consequences on soil food webs. Following this disturbance, diversity and relative abundance of certain trophic groups declined (e.g., ectomycorrhizal fungi), while many others expanded (e.g., bacterivores and omnivores) making soil food webs more diverse and structurally different. Overall, the direct and indirect consequences of moth outbreaks increased belowground diversity at different trophic levels. Our results highlight that a holistic view of ecosystems improves our understanding of cascading effects of major disturbances on soil food webs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Calderón-Sanou
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, 38000, Grenoble, France.
| | - Tamara Münkemüller
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | - Lucie Zinger
- Institut de Biologie de L'ENS (IBENS), Département de biologie, École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Heidy Schimann
- INRA EcoFoG (AgroParisTech, CNRS, CIRAD, INRA, Université Des Antilles, Université de Guyane), Kourou, France
| | - Nigel Gilles Yoccoz
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Ludovic Gielly
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | - Arnaud Foulquier
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | - Mickael Hedde
- Eco&Sols, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, INRA, IRD, Montpellier SupAgro, 34398, Montpellier, France
| | - Marc Ohlmann
- Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, LAMA, 73000, Chambéry, France
| | - Mélanie Roy
- Laboratoire Évolution Et Diversité Biologique, CNRS, UMR 5174 UPS CNRS IRD, Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
- Instituto Franco-Argentino Para El Estudio del Clima Y Sus Impactos (UMI IFAECI/CNRS-CONICET-UBA-IRD), Dpto. de Ciencias de La Atmosfera Y Los Oceanos, FCEN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Intendente Guiraldes 2160 - Ciudad Universitaria (C1428EGA), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sara Si-Moussi
- Eco&Sols, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, INRA, IRD, Montpellier SupAgro, 34398, Montpellier, France
| | - Wilfried Thuiller
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LECA, Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, 38000, Grenoble, France
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32
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Invasive knotweed modifies predator–prey interactions in the soil food web. Biol Invasions 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10530-021-02485-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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van Doan C, Pfander M, Guyer AS, Zhang X, Maurer C, Robert CA. Natural enemies of herbivores maintain their biological control potential under short-term exposure to future CO 2, temperature, and precipitation patterns. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:4182-4192. [PMID: 33976802 PMCID: PMC8093683 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Climate change will profoundly alter the physiology and ecology of plants, insect herbivores, and their natural enemies, resulting in strong effects on multitrophic interactions. Yet, manipulative studies that investigate the direct combined impacts of changes in CO2, temperature, and precipitation on the third trophic level remain rare. Here, we assessed how exposure to elevated CO2, increased temperature, and decreased precipitation directly affect the performance and predation success of species from four major groups of herbivore natural enemies: an entomopathogenic nematode, a wolf spider, a ladybug, and a parasitoid wasp. A four-day exposure to future climatic conditions (RCP 8.5), entailing a 28% decrease in precipitation, a 3.4°C raise in temperature, and a 400 ppm increase in CO2 levels, slightly reduced the survival of entomopathogenic nematodes, but had no effect on the survival of other species. Predation success was not negatively affected in any of the tested species, but it was even increased for wolf spiders and entomopathogenic nematodes. Factorial manipulation of climate variables revealed a positive effect of reduced soil moisture on nematode infectivity, but not of increased temperature or elevated CO2. These results suggest that natural enemies of herbivores may be well adapted to short-term changes in climatic conditions. These findings provide mechanistic insights that will inform future efforts to disentangle the complex interplay of biotic and abiotic factors that drive climate-dependent changes in multitrophic interaction networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cong van Doan
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research (OCCR)University of BernBernSwitzerland
| | - Marc Pfander
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
| | - Anouk S. Guyer
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Present address:
AgroscopeWädenswilSwitzerland
| | - Xi Zhang
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Present address:
Key Laboratory of Plant Stress BiologyState Key Laboratory of Cotton BiologySchool of Life SciencesHenan UniversityKaifengChina
| | - Corina Maurer
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Present address:
Agroecology and EnvironmentAgroscopeZürichSwitzerland
| | - Christelle A.M. Robert
- Institute of Plant SciencesUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research (OCCR)University of BernBernSwitzerland
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McCary MA, Schmitz OJ. Invertebrate functional traits and terrestrial nutrient cycling: Insights from a global meta-analysis. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:1714-1726. [PMID: 33782983 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2021] [Accepted: 03/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Functional traits are useful for characterizing variation in community and ecosystem dynamics. Most advances in trait-based ecology to date centre on plant functional traits, although there is an increasing recognition that animal traits are also key contributors to processes operating at the community or ecosystem scale. Terrestrial invertebrates are incredibly diverse and ubiquitous animals with important roles in nutrient cycling. Despite their widespread influence on ecosystem processes, we currently lack a synthetic understanding of how invertebrate functional traits affect terrestrial nutrient cycling. We present a meta-analysis of 511 paired observations from 122 papers that examined how invertebrate functional traits affected litter decomposition rates, nitrogen pools and litter C:N ratios. Based on the available data, we specifically assessed the effects of feeding mode (bioturbation, detritus shredding, detritus grazing, leaf chewing, leaf piercing, ambush predators, active hunting predators) and body size (macro- and micro-invertebrates) on nutrient cycling. The effects of invertebrates on terrestrial nutrient cycling varied according to functional trait. The inclusion of both macro- (≥2 mm) and micro-invertebrates (<2 mm) increased litter decomposition by 20% and 19%, respectively. All detritivorous feeding modes enhanced litter decomposition rates, with bioturbators, detritus shredders and detritus grazers increasing decomposition by 28%, 22% and 15%, respectively. Neither herbivore feeding mode (e.g. leaf chewers and leaf piercers) nor predator hunting mode (ambush and active hunting) affected decomposition. We also revealed that bioturbators and detritus grazers increased soil nitrogen availability by 99% and 70%, respectively, and that leaf-chewing herbivores had a weak effect on litterfall stoichiometry via reducing C:N ratios by 11%. Although functional traits might be useful predictors of ecosystem processes, our findings suggest context-dependent effects of invertebrate traits on terrestrial nutrient cycling. Detritivore functional traits (i.e. bioturbators, detritus shredders and detritus grazers) are more consistent with increased rates of nutrient cycling, whereas our currently characterized predator and herbivore traits are less predictive. Future research is needed to identify, standardize and deliberately study the impacts of invertebrate functional traits on nutrient cycling in hopes of revealing the key functional traits governing ecosystem functioning worldwide.
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Building food networks from molecular data: Bayesian or fixed-number thresholds for including links. Basic Appl Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.baae.2020.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Forey E, Lodhar S, Gopaul S, Boehmer HJ, Chauvat M. A functional trait‐based approach to assess the impact of an alien palm invasion on plant and soil communities on a South Pacific island. AUSTRAL ECOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/aec.12995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Estelle Forey
- UNIROUEN INRAE ECODIV Normandie Univ. 76000 Rouen France
| | - Sherri Lodhar
- School of Geography, Earth Science and Environment Faculty of Science, Technology and Environment University of the South Pacific Suva Fiji
| | - Sunil Gopaul
- School of Geography, Earth Science and Environment Faculty of Science, Technology and Environment University of the South Pacific Suva Fiji
- Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry University of Guyana Georgetown Guyana
| | - Hans Juergen Boehmer
- School of Geography, Earth Science and Environment Faculty of Science, Technology and Environment University of the South Pacific Suva Fiji
- Institute for Applied Ecological Studies (IFANOS) NurembergGermany
- Institute of Geography University of Jena Jena Germany
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Thomas M, Pasquet A, Aubin J, Nahon S, Lecocq T. When more is more: taking advantage of species diversity to move towards sustainable aquaculture. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2020; 96:767-784. [PMID: 33320418 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2020] [Revised: 11/25/2020] [Accepted: 11/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Human population growth has increased demand for food products, which is expected to double in coming decades. Until recently, this demand has been met by expanding agricultural area and intensifying agrochemical-based monoculture of a few species. However, this development pathway has been criticised due to its negative impacts on the environment and other human activities. Therefore, new production practices are needed to meet human food requirements sustainably in the future. Herein, we assert that polyculture practices can ensure the transition of aquaculture towards sustainable development. We review traditional and recent polyculture practices (ponds, recirculated aquaculture systems, integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, aquaponics, integrated agriculture-aquaculture) to highlight how they improve aquaculture through the coexistence and interactions of species. This overview highlights the importance of species compatibility (i.e. species that can live in the same farming environment without detrimental interactions) and complementarity (i.e. complementary use of available resources and/or commensalism/mutualism) to achieve efficient and ethical aquaculture. Overall, polyculture combines aspects of productivity, environmental protection, resource sharing, and animal welfare. However, several challenges must be addressed to facilitate polyculture development across the world. We developed a four-step conceptual framework for designing innovative polyculture systems. This framework highlights the importance of (i) using prospective approaches to consider which species to combine, (ii) performing integrated assessment of rearing environments to determine in which farming system a particular combination of species is the most relevant, (iii) developing new tools and strategies to facilitate polyculture system management, and (iv) implementing polyculture innovation for relevant stakeholders involved in aquaculture transitions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marielle Thomas
- University of Lorraine, INRAE, URAFPA, Research Unit Animal and Functionalities of Animal Products, University of Lorraine - INRAE, 2 Avenue de la Forêt de Haye, BP 172, 54505, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | - Alain Pasquet
- University of Lorraine, INRAE, URAFPA, Research Unit Animal and Functionalities of Animal Products, University of Lorraine - INRAE, 2 Avenue de la Forêt de Haye, BP 172, 54505, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | - Joël Aubin
- UMR SAS, INRAE, Institut Agro, 35000, Rennes, France
| | - Sarah Nahon
- INRAE, Université de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour, E2S UPPA, UMR 1419, Nutrition, Métabolisme, Aquaculture, F-64310, Saint Pée sur Nivelle, France
| | - Thomas Lecocq
- University of Lorraine, INRAE, URAFPA, Research Unit Animal and Functionalities of Animal Products, University of Lorraine - INRAE, 2 Avenue de la Forêt de Haye, BP 172, 54505, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy, France
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Ho HC, Tylianakis JM, Pawar S. Behaviour moderates the impacts of food-web structure on species coexistence. Ecol Lett 2020; 24:298-309. [PMID: 33205909 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2020] [Revised: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
How species coexistence (mathematical 'feasibility') in food webs emerges from species' trophic interactions remains a long-standing open question. Here we investigate how structure (network topology and body-size structure) and behaviour (foraging strategy and spatial dimensionality of interactions) interactively affect feasibility in food webs. Metabolically-constrained modelling of food-web dynamics based on whole-organism consumption revealed that feasibility is promoted in systems dominated by large-eat-small foraging (consumers eating smaller resources) whenever (1) many top consumers are present, (2) grazing or sit-and-wait foraging strategies are common, and (3) species engage in two-dimensional interactions. Congruently, the first two conditions were associated with dominance of large-eat-small foraging in 74 well-resolved (primarily aquatic) real-world food webs. Our findings provide a new, mechanistic understanding of how behavioural properties can modulate the effects of structural properties on species coexistence in food webs, and suggest that 'being feasible' constrains the spectra of behavioural and structural properties seen in natural food webs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsi-Cheng Ho
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, SL5 7PY, UK
| | - Jason M Tylianakis
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch, New Zealand
| | - Samraat Pawar
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, SL5 7PY, UK
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Guimarães PR. The Structure of Ecological Networks Across Levels of Organization. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ECOLOGY EVOLUTION AND SYSTEMATICS 2020. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-012220-120819] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Interactions connect the units of ecological systems, forming networks. Individual-based networks characterize variation in niches among individuals within populations. These individual-based networks merge with each other, forming species-based networks and food webs that describe the architecture of ecological communities. Networks at broader spatiotemporal scales portray the structure of ecological interactions across landscapes and over macroevolutionary time. Here, I review the patterns observed in ecological networks across multiple levels of biological organization. A fundamental challenge is to understand the amount of interdependence as we move from individual-based networks to species-based networks and beyond. Despite the uneven distribution of studies, regularities in network structure emerge across scales due to the fundamental architectural patterns shared by complex networks and the interplay between traits and numerical effects. I illustrate the integration of these organizational scales by exploring the consequences of the emergence of highly connected species for network structures across scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paulo R. Guimarães
- Departamento de Ecologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, 05508-090, Brazil
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40
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Schmitz OJ, Leroux SJ. Food Webs and Ecosystems: Linking Species Interactions to the Carbon Cycle. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ECOLOGY EVOLUTION AND SYSTEMATICS 2020. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-011720-104730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
All species within ecosystems contribute to regulating carbon cycling because of their functional integration into food webs. Yet carbon modeling and accounting still assumes that only plants, microbes, and invertebrate decomposer species are relevant to the carbon cycle. Our multifaceted review develops a case for considering a wider range of species, especially herbivorous and carnivorous wild animals. Animal control over carbon cycling is shaped by the animals’ stoichiometric needs and functional traits in relation to the stoichiometry and functional traits of their resources. Quantitative synthesis reveals that failing to consider these mechanisms can lead to serious inaccuracies in the carbon budget. Newer carbon-cycle models that consider food-web structure based on organismal functional traits and stoichiometry can offer mechanistically informed predictions about the magnitudes of animal effects that will help guide new empirical research aimed at developing a coherent understanding of the interactions and importance of all species within food webs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oswald J. Schmitz
- School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, USA
| | - Shawn J. Leroux
- Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland, A1B 3X9, Canada
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Le Provost G, Badenhausser I, Violle C, Requier F, D’Ottavio M, Roncoroni M, Gross L, Gross N. Grassland-to-crop conversion in agricultural landscapes has lasting impact on the trait diversity of bees. LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY 2020; 36:281-295. [PMID: 33505122 PMCID: PMC7810634 DOI: 10.1007/s10980-020-01141-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2020] [Accepted: 10/10/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
CONTEXT Global pollinator decline has motivated much research to understand the underlying mechanisms. Among the multiple pressures threatening pollinators, habitat loss has been suggested as a key-contributing factor. While habitat destruction is often associated with immediate negative impacts, pollinators can also exhibit delayed responses over time. OBJECTIVES We used a trait-based approach to investigate how past and current land use at both local and landscape levels impact plant and wild bee communities in grasslands through a functional lens. METHODS We measured flower and bee morphological traits that mediate plant-bee trophic linkage in 66 grasslands. Using an extensive database of 20 years of land-use records, we tested the legacy effects of the landscape-level conversion of grassland to crop on flower and bee trait diversity. RESULTS Land-use history was a strong driver of flower and bee trait diversity in grasslands. Particularly, bee trait diversity was lower in landscapes where much of the land was converted from grassland to crop long ago. Bee trait diversity was also strongly driven by plant trait diversity computed with flower traits. However, this relationship was not observed in landscapes with a long history of grassland-to-crop conversion. The effects of land-use history on bee communities were as strong as those of current land use, such as grassland or mass-flowering crop cover in the landscape. CONCLUSIONS Habitat loss that occurred long ago in agricultural landscapes alters the relationship between plants and bees over time. The retention of permanent grassland sanctuaries within intensive agricultural landscapes can offset bee decline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaëtane Le Provost
- Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- INRAE, USC 1339, Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- LTSER « Zone Atelier Plaine & Val de Sèvre », Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre SBIK-F, Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, 60325 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Isabelle Badenhausser
- Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- INRAE, USC 1339, Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- LTSER « Zone Atelier Plaine & Val de Sèvre », Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- INRAE, Unité de Recherche Pluridisciplinaire Prairies Plantes Fourragères, 86600 Lusignan, France
| | - Cyrille Violle
- UMR 5175 CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Univ Paul Valéry 3, 34293 Montpellier, France
| | - Fabrice Requier
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, IRD, UMR Évolution, Génomes, Comportement et Écologie, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Marie D’Ottavio
- Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- INRAE, USC 1339, Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- LTSER « Zone Atelier Plaine & Val de Sèvre », Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- Laboratoire de Lutte Biologique, Département des sciences biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Succ. Centre-Ville, Montréal, QC C.P. 8888 Canada
| | - Marilyn Roncoroni
- Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- INRAE, USC 1339, Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- LTSER « Zone Atelier Plaine & Val de Sèvre », Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, VetAgro Sup, UMR Ecosystème Prairial, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Louis Gross
- Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- INRAE, USC 1339, Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- LTSER « Zone Atelier Plaine & Val de Sèvre », Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé UMR 7372, CNRS, Université de La Rochelle, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
- INRAE, UR 0633, URZF Unité de Recherche Zoologie Forestière, 45075 Orléans, France
| | - Nicolas Gross
- Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, VetAgro Sup, UMR Ecosystème Prairial, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
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Ostandie N, Muneret L, Giffard B, Thiéry D, Rusch A. The shape of the predator biomass distribution affects biological pest control services in agricultural landscapes. Funct Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Noémie Ostandie
- INRAE ISVV UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble Villenave d'Ornon France
| | - Lucile Muneret
- INRAE ISVV UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble Villenave d'Ornon France
- INRAE UMR 1347 Agroécologie Agro Sup Dijon Université Bourgogne Franche‐Comté Dijon France
| | - Brice Giffard
- INRAE ISVV UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble Villenave d'Ornon France
| | - Denis Thiéry
- INRAE ISVV UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble Villenave d'Ornon France
| | - Adrien Rusch
- INRAE ISVV UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble Villenave d'Ornon France
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Gutiérrez‐Cánovas C, Moleón M, Mateo‐Tomás P, Olea PP, Sebastián‐González E, Sánchez‐Zapata JA. Large home range scavengers support higher rates of carcass removal. Funct Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Cayetano Gutiérrez‐Cánovas
- Freshwater Ecology, Hydrology and Management (FEHM) Lab Departament de Biologia Evolutiva Ecologia i Ciències Ambientals Facultat de Biologia Universitat de Barcelona, Diagonal Barcelona Spain
- Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology (CBMA) Department of Biology University of Minho Braga Portugal
- Institute of Science and Innovation for Bio‐Sustainability (IB‐S) University of Minho Braga Portugal
| | - Marcos Moleón
- Department of Zoology University of Granada Granada Spain
| | - Patricia Mateo‐Tomás
- Research Unit of Biodiversity (UO/CSIC/PA) Oviedo University Mieres Spain
- Centre for Functional Ecology Department of Life Sciences University of Coimbra Coimbra Portugal
| | - Pedro P. Olea
- Departamento de Ecología Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Madrid Spain
- Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Cambio Global (CIBC‐UAM) Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Madrid Spain
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South J, Botha TL, Wolmarans NJ, Wepener V, Weyl OLF. Playing with food: Detection of prey injury cues stimulates increased functional foraging traits in Xenopus laevis. AFRICAN ZOOLOGY 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/15627020.2020.1723439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Josie South
- DST/NRF Research Chair in Inland Fisheries and Freshwater Ecology, South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), Grahamstown, South Africa
| | - Tarryn L Botha
- Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
| | - Nico J Wolmarans
- Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
- Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Victor Wepener
- Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
| | - Olaf LF Weyl
- DST/NRF Research Chair in Inland Fisheries and Freshwater Ecology, South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), Grahamstown, South Africa
- Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
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Macroevolutionary convergence connects morphological form to ecological function in birds. Nat Ecol Evol 2020; 4:230-239. [PMID: 31932703 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-019-1070-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 177] [Impact Index Per Article: 44.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2019] [Accepted: 11/20/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Animals have diversified into a bewildering variety of morphological forms exploiting a complex configuration of trophic niches. Their morphological diversity is widely used as an index of ecosystem function, but the extent to which animal traits predict trophic niches and associated ecological processes is unclear. Here we use the measurements of nine key morphological traits for >99% bird species to show that avian trophic diversity is described by a trait space with four dimensions. The position of species within this space maps with 70-85% accuracy onto major niche axes, including trophic level, dietary resource type and finer-scale variation in foraging behaviour. Phylogenetic analyses reveal that these form-function associations reflect convergence towards predictable trait combinations, indicating that morphological variation is organized into a limited set of dimensions by evolutionary adaptation. Our results establish the minimum dimensionality required for avian functional traits to predict subtle variation in trophic niches and provide a global framework for exploring the origin, function and conservation of bird diversity.
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Pinsky ML, Selden RL, Kitchel ZJ. Climate-Driven Shifts in Marine Species Ranges: Scaling from Organisms to Communities. ANNUAL REVIEW OF MARINE SCIENCE 2020; 12:153-179. [PMID: 31505130 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-marine-010419-010916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 119] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
The geographic distributions of marine species are changing rapidly, with leading range edges following climate poleward, deeper, and in other directions and trailing range edges often contracting in similar directions. These shifts have their roots in fine-scale interactions between organisms and their environment-including mosaics and gradients of temperature and oxygen-mediated by physiology, behavior, evolution, dispersal, and species interactions. These shifts reassemble food webs and can have dramatic consequences. Compared with species on land, marine species are more sensitive to changing climate but have a greater capacity for colonization. These differences suggest that species cope with climate change at different spatial scales in the two realms and that range shifts across wide spatial scales are a key mechanism at sea. Additional research is needed to understand how processes interact to promote or constrain range shifts, how the dominant responses vary among species, and how the emergent communities of the future ocean will function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malin L Pinsky
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901, USA;
| | - Rebecca L Selden
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901, USA;
| | - Zoë J Kitchel
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901, USA;
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47
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Speights CJ, Barton BT. Timing is everything: Effects of day and night warming on predator functional traits. FOOD WEBS 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.fooweb.2019.e00130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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48
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Mizsei E, Boros Z, Lovas‐Kiss Á, Szepesváry C, Szabolcs M, Rák G, Ujszegi J, Gál Z, Lengyel S, Puskás G. A trait‐based framework for understanding predator–prey relationships: Trait matching between a specialist snake and its insect prey. Funct Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Edvárd Mizsei
- Department of Tisza River Research Danube Research Institute Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Debrecen Hungary
- Department of Ecology University of Debrecen Debrecen Hungary
| | | | - Ádám Lovas‐Kiss
- Department of Tisza River Research Danube Research Institute Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Debrecen Hungary
| | - Csaba Szepesváry
- Department of Tisza River Research Danube Research Institute Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Debrecen Hungary
- GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Tihany Hungary
| | - Márton Szabolcs
- Department of Tisza River Research Danube Research Institute Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Debrecen Hungary
- GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Tihany Hungary
| | - Gergő Rák
- Department of Ecology University of Veterinary Medicine Budapest Hungary
| | - János Ujszegi
- Lendület Evolutionary Ecology Research Group Plant Protection Institute Centre for Agricultural Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Budapest Hungary
| | - Zoltán Gál
- NARIC Agricultural Biotechnology Institute Gödöllő Hungary
| | - Szabolcs Lengyel
- Department of Tisza River Research Danube Research Institute Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Debrecen Hungary
- GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group Centre for Ecological Research Hungarian Academy of Sciences Tihany Hungary
| | - Gellért Puskás
- Department of Zoology Hungarian Natural History Museum Budapest Hungary
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Brousseau PM, Gravel D, Handa IT. Traits of litter-dwelling forest arthropod predators and detritivores covary spatially with traits of their resources. Ecology 2019; 100:e02815. [PMID: 31287928 PMCID: PMC6852231 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.2815] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2018] [Revised: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 05/28/2019] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
The functional trait approach proposes that relating traits of organisms within a community to variation in abiotic and biotic characteristics of their environment will provide insight on the mechanisms of community assembly. As traits at a given trophic level might act as filters for the selection of traits at another trophic level, we hypothesized that traits of consumers and of their resources covary in space. We evaluated complementary predictions about top‐down (negative) and bottom‐up (positive) trait covariation in a detrital food web. Additionally, we tested whether positive trait covariation was better explained by the Resource Concentration Hypothesis (i.e., most commonly represented trait values attract abundant consumers) or the Resource Specialization Hypothesis (i.e., resource diversity increases niche availability for the consumers). Macroarthopods were collected with pitfall traps over two summers in three forested sites of southern Quebec in 110 plots that varied in tree species composition. Six feeding traits of consumers (detritivores and predators) and six palatability traits of their resources (leaf litter and prey) were matched to assess spatial covariation. Trait matches included consumer biting force/resource toughness, detritivore mandibular gape/leaf thickness, predator/prey body size ratio, etc. Our results demonstrate for the first time a covariation between feeding traits of detritivores and palatability traits of leaf litter (31–34%), and between feeding traits of litter‐dwelling predators and palatability traits of potential prey (38–44%). The observed positive covariation supports both the Resource Concentration Hypothesis and Resource Specialization Hypothesis. Spatial covariation of consumer and resource traits provides a new tool to partially predict the structure of the detrital food web. Nonetheless, top‐down regulation remains difficult to confirm. Further research on top‐down processes will be undoubtedly necessary to refine our capacity to interpret the effect of biotic interactions on co‐distribution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pierre-Marc Brousseau
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, H2X 1Y4, Canada
| | - Dominique Gravel
- Canada Research Chair in Integrative Ecology, Département de Biologie, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec, J1K 2X9, Canada
| | - I Tanya Handa
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, H2X 1Y4, Canada
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50
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Ho HC, Tylianakis JM, Zheng JX, Pawar S. Predation risk influences food-web structure by constraining species diet choice. Ecol Lett 2019; 22:1734-1745. [PMID: 31389145 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2019] [Revised: 05/23/2019] [Accepted: 06/09/2019] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
The foraging behaviour of species determines their diet and, therefore, also emergent food-web structure. Optimal foraging theory (OFT) has previously been applied to understand the emergence of food-web structure through a consumer-centric consideration of diet choice. However, the resource-centric viewpoint, where species adjust their behaviour to reduce the risk of predation, has not been considered. We develop a mechanistic model that merges metabolic theory with OFT to incorporate the effect of predation risk on diet choice to assemble food webs. This 'predation-risk-compromise' (PR) model better captures the nestedness and modularity of empirical food webs relative to the classical optimal foraging model. Specifically, compared with optimal foraging alone, risk-mitigated foraging leads to more-nested but less-modular webs by broadening the diet of consumers at intermediate trophic levels. Thus, predation risk significantly affects food-web structure by constraining species' ability to forage optimally, and needs to be considered in future work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsi-Cheng Ho
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, SL5 7PY, UK
| | - Jason M Tylianakis
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, SL5 7PY, UK.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch, NZ
| | - Jonathan X Zheng
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Samraat Pawar
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, SL5 7PY, UK
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