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Levine JI, Pacala SW, Levine JM. Competition for time: Evidence for an overlooked, diversity-maintaining competitive mechanism. Ecol Lett 2024; 27:e14422. [PMID: 38549235 DOI: 10.1111/ele.14422] [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: 09/14/2023] [Revised: 02/28/2024] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024]
Abstract
Understanding how diversity is maintained in plant communities requires that we first understand the mechanisms of competition for limiting resources. In ecology, there is an underappreciated but fundamental distinction between systems in which the depletion of limiting resources reduces the growth rates of competitors and systems in which resource depletion reduces the time available for competitors to grow, a mechanism we call 'competition for time'. Importantly, modern community ecology and our framing of the coexistence problem are built on the implicit assumption that competition reduces the growth rate. However, recent theoretical work suggests competition for time may be the predominant competitive mechanism in a broad array of natural communities, a significant advance given that when species compete for time, diversity-maintaining trade-offs emerge organically. In this study, we first introduce competition for time conceptually using a simple model of interacting species. Then, we perform an experiment in a Mediterranean annual grassland to determine whether competition for time is an important competitive mechanism in a field system. Indeed, we find that species respond to increased competition through reductions in their lifespan rather than their rate of growth. In total, our study suggests competition for time may be overlooked as a mechanism of biodiversity maintenance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob I Levine
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
| | - Stephen W Pacala
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
| | - Jonathan M Levine
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
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2
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Pavlin J, Nagel TA, Svitok M, Di Filippo A, Mikac S, Keren S, Dikku A, Toromani E, Panayotov M, Zlatanov T, Haruta O, Dorog S, Chaskovskyy O, Bače R, Begović K, Buechling A, Dušátko M, Frankovič M, Janda P, Kameniar O, Kozák D, Marchand W, Mikoláš M, Rodrigo R, Svoboda M. Pathways and drivers of canopy accession across primary temperate forests of Europe. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 906:167593. [PMID: 37802334 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.167593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Revised: 10/01/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/08/2023]
Abstract
Canopy accession strategies reveal much about tree life histories and forest stand dynamics. However, the protracted nature of ascending to the canopy makes direct observation challenging. We use a reconstructive approach based on an extensive tree ring database to study the variability of canopy accession patterns of dominant tree species (Abies alba, Acer pseudoplatanus, Fagus sylvatica, Picea abies) in temperate mountain forests of Europe and elucidate how disturbance histories, climate, and topography affect canopy accession. All four species exhibited high variability of radial growth histories leading to canopy accession and indicated varying levels of shade tolerance. Individuals of all four species survived at least 100 years of initial suppression. Fir and particularly beech, however, survived longer periods of initial suppression, exhibited more release events, and reached the canopy later on average, with a larger share of trees accessing the canopy after initially suppressed growth. These results indicate the superior shade tolerance of beech and fir compared to spruce and maple. The two less shade-tolerant species conversely relied on faster growth rates, revealing their competitive advantage in non-suppressed conditions. Additionally, spruce from higher-elevation spruce-dominated forests survived shorter periods of initial shading and exhibited fewer releases, with a larger share of trees reaching the canopy after open canopy recruitment (i.e. in absence of suppression) and no subsequent releases compared to spruce growing in lower-elevation mixed forests. Finally, disturbance factors were identified as the primary driver of canopy accession, whereby disturbances accelerate canopy accession and consequently regulate competitive interactions. Intensifying disturbance regimes could thus promote shifts in species composition, particularly in favour of faster-growing, more light-demanding species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jakob Pavlin
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Thomas A Nagel
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic; Department of Forestry and Renewable Forest Resources, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Večna pot 83, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Marek Svitok
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic; Department of Biology and General Ecology, Faculty of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Technical University in Zvolen, Masaryka 24, 96053 Zvolen, Slovakia
| | - Alfredo Di Filippo
- Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences (DAFNE), University of Tuscia, Via SC de Lellis, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
| | - Stjepan Mikac
- Department of Forest Ecology and Silviculture, Faculty of Forestry, University of Zagreb, Svetošimunska cesta 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Srdjan Keren
- Faculty of Forestry, University of Agriculture in Krakow, Al. 29 Listopada 46, 31-425 Kraków, Poland
| | | | - Elvin Toromani
- Faculty of Forestry Sciences, Agricultural University of Tirana, 1029 Koder-Kamez, Albania
| | - Momchil Panayotov
- Department of Dendrology, University of Forestry Sofia, Kliment Ohridski 10 Blvd., 1797 Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Tzvetan Zlatanov
- Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Gagarin Street 2, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Ovidiu Haruta
- Forestry and Forest Engineering Department, University of Oradea, Oradea, Romania
| | - Sorin Dorog
- Forestry and Forest Engineering Department, University of Oradea, Oradea, Romania
| | - Oleh Chaskovskyy
- Institute of Forest Management, Ukrainian National Forestry University, Vul. Henerala Chuprynky 103, 79031 Lviv, Ukraine
| | - Radek Bače
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Krešimir Begović
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Arne Buechling
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Dušátko
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Frankovič
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Pavel Janda
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Ondrej Kameniar
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Daniel Kozák
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - William Marchand
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Mikoláš
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Ruffy Rodrigo
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Miroslav Svoboda
- Department of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
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3
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Quetin GR, Anderegg LDL, Boving I, Anderegg WRL, Trugman AT. Observed forest trait velocities have not kept pace with hydraulic stress from climate change. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2023; 29:5415-5428. [PMID: 37421154 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.16847] [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: 03/24/2023] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 07/09/2023]
Abstract
The extent to which future climate change will increase forest stress and the amount to which species and forest ecosystems can acclimate or adapt to increased stress is a major unknown. We used high-resolution maps of hydraulic traits representing the diversity in tree drought tolerance across the United States, a hydraulically enabled tree model, and forest inventory observations of demographic shifts to quantify the ability for within-species acclimation and between-species range shifts to mediate climate stress. We found that forests are likely to experience increases in both acute and chronic hydraulic stress with climate change. Based on current species distributions, regional hydraulic trait diversity was sufficient to buffer against increased stress in 88% of forested areas. However, observed trait velocities in 81% of forested areas are not keeping up with the rate required to ameliorate projected future stress without leaf area acclimation.
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Affiliation(s)
- G R Quetin
- Department of Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
| | - L D L Anderegg
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
| | - I Boving
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
| | - W R L Anderegg
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
| | - A T Trugman
- Department of Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
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4
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Kerr KL, Fickle JC, Anderegg WRL. Decoupling of functional traits from intraspecific patterns of growth and drought stress resistance. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2023. [PMID: 37129078 DOI: 10.1111/nph.18937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Intraspecific variation in functional traits may mediate tree species' drought resistance, yet whether trait variation is due to genotype (G), environment (E), or G×E interactions remains unknown. Understanding the drivers of intraspecific trait variation and whether variation mediates drought response can improve predictions of species' response to future drought. Using populations of quaking aspen spanning a climate gradient, we investigated intraspecific variation in functional traits in the field as well as the influence of G and E among propagules in a common garden. We also tested for trait-mediated trade-offs in growth and drought stress tolerance. We observed intraspecific trait variation among the populations, yet this variation did not necessarily translate to higher drought stress tolerance in hotter/drier populations. Additionally, plasticity in the common garden was low, especially in propagules derived from the hottest/driest population. We found no growth-drought stress tolerance trade-offs and few traits exhibited significant relationships with mortality in the natural populations, suggesting that intraspecific trait variation among the traits measured did not strongly mediate responses to drought stress. Our results highlight the limits of trait-mediated responses to drought stress and the complex G×E interactions that may underlie drought stress tolerance variation in forests in dry environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly L Kerr
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - Jaycie C Fickle
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - William R L Anderegg
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
- Wilkes Center for Climate Science and Policy, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
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5
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Ma KCK, Monsinjon JR, Froneman PW, McQuaid CD. Thermal stress gradient causes increasingly negative effects towards the range limit of an invasive mussel. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 865:161184. [PMID: 36581263 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.161184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Revised: 12/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Environmental filtering (EF), the abiotic exclusion of species, can have first order, direct effects with cascading consequences for population dynamics, especially at range edges where abiotic conditions are suboptimal. Abiotic stress gradients associated with EF may also drive indirect second order effects, including exacerbating the effects of competitors, disease, and parasites on marginal populations because of suboptimal physiological performance. We predicted a cascade of first and second order EF-associated effects on marginal populations of the invasive mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis, plus a third order effect of EF of increased epibiont load due to second order shell degradation by endoliths. Mussel populations on rocky shores were surveyed across 850 km of the south-southeast coast of South Africa, from the species' warm-edge range limit to sites in the centre of their distribution, to quantify second order (endolithic shell degradation) and third order (number of barnacle epibionts) EF-associated effects as a function of along-shore distance from the range edge. Inshore temperature data were interpolated from the literature. Using in situ temperature logger data, we calculated the effective shore level for several sites by determining the duration of immersion and emersion. Summer and winter inshore water temperatures were linked to distance from the mussel's warm range edge (our proxy for an EF-associated stress gradient), suggesting that seasonality in temperature contributes to first order effects. The gradient in thermal stress clearly affected densities, but its influence on mussel size, shell degradation, and epibiosis was weaker. Relationships among mussel size, shell degradation, and epibiosis were more robust. Larger, older mussels had more degraded shells and more epibionts, with endolithic damage facilitating epibiosis. EF associated with a gradient in thermal stress directly limits the distribution, abundance, and size structure of mussel populations, with important indirect second and third order effects of parasitic disease and epibiont load, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin C K Ma
- Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa; Department of Ocean Sciences, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
| | - Jonathan R Monsinjon
- Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa; Ifremer, Indian Ocean Delegation, Le Port, La Réunion, France
| | - P William Froneman
- Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa
| | - Christopher D McQuaid
- Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa
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Yang J, Zhang Q, Song W, Zhang X, Wang X. Radial Growth of Trees Rather Than Shrubs in Boreal Forests Is Inhibited by Drought. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:912916. [PMID: 35720605 PMCID: PMC9201406 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.912916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Of all forest biomes, boreal forests are experiencing the most significant warming. Drought caused by warming has a dramatic impact on species in boreal forests. However, little is known about whether the growth of trees and shrubs in boreal forests responds consistently to warming and drought. We obtained the tree-ring width data of 308 trees (Larix gmelinii and Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica) and 133 shrubs (Pinus pumila) from 26 sites in northeastern China. According to the climate data from 1950 to 2014, we determined three extreme drought years (1954, 1967, and 2008). The response difference of radial growth of trees and shrubs in boreal forests to drought was compared using resilience index, moving correlation and response analysis. The results showed that high temperature (mean and maximum temperature) in previous and current growing seasons promoted the growth of P. pumila, but inhibited the growth of trees. On the contrary, wetter conditions (higher PDSI) promoted tree growth but were not conducive to P. pumila growth in high latitudes. Moving correlation analysis showed similar results. In addition, water deficit was more likely to inhibit P. pumila growth in low latitudes. The drought resistance of P. pumila was stronger than that of L. gmelinii and P. sylvestris var. mongolica. Therefore, the growth loss and recovery time of P. pumila during drought was less than those of trees. We concluded that L. gmelinii and P. sylvestris var. mongolica are more prone to growth decline than P. pumila after the drought caused by climate warming. In the future climate warming, shrub growth may benefit more than trees. Our findings are of great significance in predicting the future changes in ecosystem composition and species distribution dynamics in extreme climate susceptible areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingwen Yang
- School of Life, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, China
- College of Forestry, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, China
- Center for Ecological Research and Key Laboratory of Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Management–Ministry of Education, College of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, China
| | - Qiuliang Zhang
- College of Forestry, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, China
| | - Wenqi Song
- Center for Ecological Research and Key Laboratory of Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Management–Ministry of Education, College of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, China
| | - Xu Zhang
- College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
| | - Xiaochun Wang
- School of Life, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, China
- Center for Ecological Research and Key Laboratory of Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Management–Ministry of Education, College of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, China
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7
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Willi Y, Van Buskirk J. A review on trade-offs at the warm and cold ends of geographical distributions. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210022. [PMID: 35184594 PMCID: PMC8859520 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 01/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Species' range limits are ubiquitous. This suggests that the evolution of the ecological niche is constrained in general and at the edges of distributions in particular. While there may be many ecological and genetic reasons for this phenomenon, here we focus on the potential role of trade-offs. We performed a literature search on evidence for trade-offs associated with geographical or elevational range limits. The majority of trade-offs were reported as relevant at either the cold end of species' distribution (n = 19), the warm or dry end (n = 19) or both together (n = 14). One common type of trade-off involved accelerating growth or development (27%), often at the cost of small size. Another common type involved resistance to or tolerance of climatic extremes that occur at certain periods of the year (64%), often at the cost of small size or reduced growth. Trade-offs overlapped with some of the classic trade-offs reported in life-history evolution or thermal adaptation. The results highlight several general insights about species' niches and ranges, and we outline how future research should better integrate the ecological context and test for the presence of microevolutionary trade-offs. This article is part of the theme issue 'Species' ranges in the face of changing environments (Part II)'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yvonne Willi
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Basel, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Josh Van Buskirk
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland
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Civantos-Gómez I, García-Algarra J, García-Callejas D, Galeano J, Godoy O, Bartomeus I. Fine scale prediction of ecological community composition using a two-step sequential Machine Learning ensemble. PLoS Comput Biol 2021; 17:e1008906. [PMID: 34871304 PMCID: PMC8675934 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2021] [Revised: 12/16/2021] [Accepted: 11/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Prediction is one of the last frontiers in ecology. Indeed, predicting fine-scale species composition in natural systems is a complex challenge as multiple abiotic and biotic processes operate simultaneously to determine local species abundances. On the one hand, species intrinsic performance and their tolerance limits to different abiotic pressures modulate species abundances. On the other hand, there is growing recognition that species interactions play an equally important role in limiting or promoting such abundances within ecological communities. Here, we present a joint effort between ecologists and data scientists to use data-driven models to predict species abundances using reasonably easy to obtain data. We propose a sequential data-driven modeling approach that in a first step predicts the potential species abundances based on abiotic variables, and in a second step uses these predictions to model the realized abundances once accounting for species competition. Using a curated data set over five years we predict fine-scale species abundances in a highly diverse annual plant community. Our models show a remarkable spatial predictive accuracy using only easy-to-measure variables in the field, yet such predictive power is lost when temporal dynamics are taken into account. This result suggests that predicting future abundances requires longer time series analysis to capture enough variability. In addition, we show that these data-driven models can also suggest how to improve mechanistic models by adding missing variables that affect species performance such as particular soil conditions (e.g. carbonate availability in our case). Robust models for predicting fine-scale species composition informed by the mechanistic understanding of the underlying abiotic and biotic processes can be a pivotal tool for conservation, especially given the human-induced rapid environmental changes we are experiencing. This objective can be achieved by promoting the knowledge gained with classic modelling approaches in ecology and recently developed data-driven models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Icíar Civantos-Gómez
- Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Madrid, Spain
- Complex Systems Group, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - David García-Callejas
- Departamento de Biología, Instituto Universitario de Investigación Marina (INMAR), Universidad de Cádiz, Puerto Real, Spain
- Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
| | - Javier Galeano
- Complex Systems Group, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Oscar Godoy
- Departamento de Biología, Instituto Universitario de Investigación Marina (INMAR), Universidad de Cádiz, Puerto Real, Spain
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Huang S, Tucker MA, Hertel AG, Eyres A, Albrecht J. Scale-dependent effects of niche specialisation: The disconnect between individual and species ranges. Ecol Lett 2021; 24:1408-1419. [PMID: 33960589 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Revised: 03/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
One of the most general expectations of species range dynamics is that widespread species tend to have broader niches. However, it remains unclear how this relationship is expressed at different levels of biological organisation, which involve potentially distinctive processes operating at different spatial and temporal scales. Here, we show that range sizes of terrestrial non-volant mammals at the individual and species level show contrasting relationships with two ecological niche dimensions: diet and habitat breadth. While average individual home range size appears to be mainly shaped by the interplay of diet niche breadth and body mass, species geographical range size is primarily related to habitat niche breadth but not to diet niche breadth. Our findings suggest that individual home range size is shaped by the trade-off between energetic requirements, movement capacity and trophic specialisation, whereas species geographical range size is related to the ability to persist under various environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shan Huang
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Marlee A Tucker
- Department of Environmental Science, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Anne G Hertel
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt, Germany.,Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Alison Eyres
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt, Germany.,Department of Biological Sciences, Goethe-University Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany.,RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, Cambridge, UK
| | - Jörg Albrecht
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Frankfurt, Germany
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10
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Martin MP, Peters CM, Asbjornsen H, Ashton MS. Diversity and niche differentiation of a mixed pine–oak forest in the Sierra Norte, Oaxaca, Mexico. Ecosphere 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Meredith P. Martin
- The Forest School Yale School of the Environment New Haven Connecticut06511USA
| | - Charles M. Peters
- The New York Botanical Garden 2900 Southern Boulevard The Bronx New York10458USA
| | - Heidi Asbjornsen
- University of New Hampshire 105 Main Street Durham New Hampshire03824USA
| | - Mark S. Ashton
- The Forest School Yale School of the Environment New Haven Connecticut06511USA
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11
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Shepard ID, Wissinger SA, Greig HS. Elevation alters outcome of competition between resident and range-shifting species. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2021; 27:270-281. [PMID: 33064868 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2020] [Revised: 09/24/2020] [Accepted: 10/02/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Species' geographic range shifts toward higher latitudes and elevations are among the most frequently reported consequences of climate change. However, the role of species interactions in setting range margins remains poorly understood. We used cage experiments in ponds to test competing hypotheses about the role of abiotic and biotic mechanisms for structuring range boundaries of an upslope range-shifting caddisfly Limnephilus picturatus. We found that competition with a ubiquitous species Limnephilus externus significantly decreased L. picturatus survival and emergence at subalpine elevations supporting the notion that species interactions play a critical role in determining upslope range limits. However, without competitors, L. picturatus survival was greater at high-elevation than low-elevation sites. This was contrary to decreases in body mass (a proxy for fecundity) with elevation regardless of the presence of competitors. We ultimately show that species interactions can be important for setting upslope range margins. Yet, our results also highlight the complications in defining what may be abiotically stressful for this species and the importance of considering multiple demographic variables. Understanding how species ranges will respond in a changing climate will require quantifying species interactions and how they are influenced by the abiotic context in which they play out.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isaac D Shepard
- School of Biology and Ecology, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Ecology and Environmental Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, Crested Butte, CO, USA
| | - Scott A Wissinger
- Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, Crested Butte, CO, USA
- Biology and Environmental Science Departments, Allegheny College, Meadville, PA, USA
| | - Hamish S Greig
- School of Biology and Ecology, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Ecology and Environmental Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, Crested Butte, CO, USA
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12
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King TW, Vynne C, Miller D, Fisher S, Fitkin S, Rohrer J, Ransom JI, Thornton DH. The influence of spatial and temporal scale on the relative importance of biotic vs. abiotic factors for species distributions. DIVERS DISTRIB 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Travis W. King
- School of the Environment Washington State University Pullman WA USA
| | | | - David Miller
- Department of Ecosystem Sciences and Management Pennsylvania State University University Park PA USA
| | - Scott Fisher
- Washington State Department of Natural Resources, Northeast Region Colville WA USA
| | - Scott Fitkin
- Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, Okanogan District Winthrop WA USA
| | - John Rohrer
- U.S. Forest Service Okanogan‐Wenatchee National Forest Winthrop WA USA
| | - Jason I. Ransom
- National Park Service North Cascades National Park Service Complex Sedro‐Woolley WA USA
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Klesse S, DeRose RJ, Babst F, Black BA, Anderegg LDL, Axelson J, Ettinger A, Griesbauer H, Guiterman CH, Harley G, Harvey JE, Lo YH, Lynch AM, O'Connor C, Restaino C, Sauchyn D, Shaw JD, Smith DJ, Wood L, Villanueva-Díaz J, Evans MEK. Continental-scale tree-ring-based projection of Douglas-fir growth: Testing the limits of space-for-time substitution. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2020; 26:5146-5163. [PMID: 32433807 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2019] [Revised: 04/02/2020] [Accepted: 04/25/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
A central challenge in global change research is the projection of the future behavior of a system based upon past observations. Tree-ring data have been used increasingly over the last decade to project tree growth and forest ecosystem vulnerability under future climate conditions. But how can the response of tree growth to past climate variation predict the future, when the future does not look like the past? Space-for-time substitution (SFTS) is one way to overcome the problem of extrapolation: the response at a given location in a warmer future is assumed to follow the response at a warmer location today. Here we evaluated an SFTS approach to projecting future growth of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), a species that occupies an exceptionally large environmental space in North America. We fit a hierarchical mixed-effects model to capture ring-width variability in response to spatial and temporal variation in climate. We found opposing gradients for productivity and climate sensitivity with highest growth rates and weakest response to interannual climate variation in the mesic coastal part of Douglas-fir's range; narrower rings and stronger climate sensitivity occurred across the semi-arid interior. Ring-width response to spatial versus temporal temperature variation was opposite in sign, suggesting that spatial variation in productivity, caused by local adaptation and other slow processes, cannot be used to anticipate changes in productivity caused by rapid climate change. We thus substituted only climate sensitivities when projecting future tree growth. Growth declines were projected across much of Douglas-fir's distribution, with largest relative decreases in the semiarid U.S. Interior West and smallest in the mesic Pacific Northwest. We further highlight the strengths of mixed-effects modeling for reviving a conceptual cornerstone of dendroecology, Cook's 1987 aggregate growth model, and the great potential to use tree-ring networks and results as a calibration target for next-generation vegetation models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Klesse
- Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Swiss Forest Protection, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Robert Justin DeRose
- U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Forest Inventory and Analysis, Ogden, UT, USA
- Department Wildland Resources and Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | - Flurin Babst
- Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Swiss Forest Protection, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
- Department of Ecology, W. Szafer Institute of Botany, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland
| | - Bryan A Black
- Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Leander D L Anderegg
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Global Ecology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Jodi Axelson
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | | | - Hardy Griesbauer
- Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development, Prince George, BC, Canada
| | | | - Grant Harley
- Department of Geography, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA
| | - Jill E Harvey
- Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Yueh-Hsin Lo
- Department of Science, Universidad Publica de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Ann M Lynch
- Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | | | | | - Dave Sauchyn
- Prairie Adaptation Research Collaborative, University of Regina, Regina, SK, Canada
| | - John D Shaw
- U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Forest Inventory and Analysis, Ogden, UT, USA
| | - Dan J Smith
- Department of Geography, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
| | - Lisa Wood
- Ecosystem Science and Management, University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC, Canada
| | - Jose Villanueva-Díaz
- Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales y Agropecuarias, CENID-RASPA, Gomez Palacio, Mexico
| | - Margaret E K Evans
- Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
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14
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Biological control agent attack timing and population variability, but not density, best explain target weed density across an environmental gradient. Sci Rep 2020; 10:11062. [PMID: 32632176 PMCID: PMC7338522 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-68108-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2020] [Accepted: 06/19/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Spatial variation in plant–herbivore interactions can be important in pest systems, particularly when insect herbivores are used as biological control agents to manage invasive plants. The geographic ranges of the invasive plant alligatorweed (Alternanthera philoxeroides) and its biological control agent the alligatorweed flea beetle (Agasicles hygrophila) do not completely overlap in the southeastern USA, producing spatial heterogeneity in interaction strength that may be related to latitude-correlated environmental gradients. We studied this system near the range margin of the alligatorweed flea beetle to test whether spatial variation in alligatorweed density was best explained by agent mean or maximum density, variability in agent density, agent attack timing, or a combination of biological control and environmental (i.e., weather) variables. The pattern that emerged was that mean agent and host densities were negatively and positively associated with latitude, respectively. Variability in agent density increased with latitude and was positively correlated with host density. We further discovered that agent first attack timing was negatively correlated with winter and spring temperatures and spring and summer precipitation, and positively correlated with seasonal temperature extremes, which was then directly influential on agent density and variability in density, and indirectly on host density. This study demonstrates that, contrary to common wisdom, weather-related timing of agent activity and population variability, but not agent mean density, contribute to the spatial heterogeneity observed in alligatorweed populations.
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Sirén APK, Morelli TL. Interactive range-limit theory (iRLT): An extension for predicting range shifts. J Anim Ecol 2020; 89:940-954. [PMID: 31758805 PMCID: PMC7187220 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2019] [Accepted: 10/20/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
A central theme of range-limit theory (RLT) posits that abiotic factors form high-latitude/altitude limits, whereas biotic interactions create lower limits. This hypothesis, often credited to Charles Darwin, is a pattern widely assumed to occur in nature. However, abiotic factors can impose constraints on both limits and there is scant evidence to support the latter prediction. Deviations from these predictions may arise from correlations between abiotic factors and biotic interactions, as a lack of data to evaluate the hypothesis, or be an artifact of scale. Combining two tenets of ecology-niche theory and predator-prey theory-provides an opportunity to understand how biotic interactions influence range limits and how this varies by trophic level. We propose an expansion of RLT, interactive RLT (iRLT), to understand the causes of range limits and predict range shifts. Incorporating the main predictions of Darwin's hypothesis, iRLT hypothesizes that abiotic and biotic factors can interact to impact both limits of a species' range. We summarize current thinking on range limits and perform an integrative review to evaluate support for iRLT and trophic differences along range margins, surveying the mammal community along the boreal-temperate and forest-tundra ecotones of North America. Our review suggests that range-limit dynamics are more nuanced and interactive than classically predicted by RLT. Many (57 of 70) studies indicate that biotic factors can ameliorate harsh climatic conditions along high-latitude/altitude limits. Conversely, abiotic factors can also mediate biotic interactions along low-latitude/altitude limits (44 of 68 studies). Both scenarios facilitate range expansion, contraction or stability depending on the strength and the direction of the abiotic or biotic factors. As predicted, biotic interactions most often occurred along lower limits, yet there were trophic differences. Carnivores were only limited by competitive interactions (n = 25), whereas herbivores were more influenced by predation and parasitism (77%; 55 of 71 studies). We highlight how these differences may create divergent range patterns along lower limits. We conclude by (a) summarizing iRLT; (b) contrasting how our model system and others fit this hypothesis and (c) suggesting future directions for evaluating iRLT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexej P. K. Sirén
- Department of Interior Northeast Climate Adaptation Science CenterU.S. Geological SurveyAmherstMAUSA
- Department of Environmental ConservationUniversity of MassachusettsAmherstMAUSA
| | - Toni Lyn Morelli
- Department of Interior Northeast Climate Adaptation Science CenterU.S. Geological SurveyAmherstMAUSA
- Department of Environmental ConservationUniversity of MassachusettsAmherstMAUSA
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16
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Trait velocities reveal that mortality has driven widespread coordinated shifts in forest hydraulic trait composition. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:8532-8538. [PMID: 32229563 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1917521117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the driving mechanisms behind existing patterns of vegetation hydraulic traits and community trait diversity is critical for advancing predictions of the terrestrial carbon cycle because hydraulic traits affect both ecosystem and Earth system responses to changing water availability. Here, we leverage an extensive trait database and a long-term continental forest plot network to map changes in community trait distributions and quantify "trait velocities" (the rate of change in community-weighted traits) for different regions and different forest types across the United States from 2000 to the present. We show that diversity in hydraulic traits and photosynthetic characteristics is more related to local water availability than overall species diversity. Finally, we find evidence for coordinated shifts toward communities with more drought-tolerant traits driven by tree mortality, but the magnitude of responses differs depending on forest type. The hydraulic trait distribution maps provide a publicly available platform to fundamentally advance understanding of community trait change in response to climate change and predictive abilities of mechanistic vegetation models.
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17
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Oldfather MF, Kling MM, Sheth SN, Emery NC, Ackerly DD. Range edges in heterogeneous landscapes: Integrating geographic scale and climate complexity into range dynamics. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2020; 26:1055-1067. [PMID: 31674701 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2019] [Accepted: 10/01/2019] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
The impacts of climate change have re-energized interest in understanding the role of climate in setting species geographic range edges. Despite the strong focus on species' distributions in ecology and evolution, defining a species range edge is theoretically and empirically difficult. The challenge of determining a range edge and its relationship to climate is in part driven by the nested nature of geography and the multidimensionality of climate, which together generate complex patterns of both climate and biotic distributions across landscapes. Because range-limiting processes occur in both geographic and climate space, the relationship between these two spaces plays a critical role in setting range limits. With both conceptual and empirical support, we argue that three factors-climate heterogeneity, collinearity among climate variables, and spatial scale-interact to shape the spatial structure of range edges along climate gradients, and we discuss several ways that these factors influence the stability of species range edges with a changing climate. We demonstrate that geographic and climate edges are often not concordant across species ranges. Furthermore, high climate heterogeneity and low climate collinearity across landscapes increase the spectrum of possible relationships between geographic and climatic space, suggesting that geographic range edges and climatic niche limits correspond less frequently than we may expect. More empirical explorations of how the complexity of real landscapes shapes the ecological and evolutionary processes that determine species range edges will advance the development of range limit theory and its applications to biodiversity conservation in the context of changing climate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meagan F Oldfather
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Matthew M Kling
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Seema N Sheth
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Nancy C Emery
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - David D Ackerly
- Department of Integrative Biology, Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, Jepson Herbarium, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
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18
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Anderegg WRL, Anderegg LDL, Kerr KL, Trugman AT. Widespread drought-induced tree mortality at dry range edges indicates that climate stress exceeds species' compensating mechanisms. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2019; 25:3793-3802. [PMID: 31323157 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2019] [Revised: 07/01/2019] [Accepted: 07/02/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Drought-induced tree mortality is projected to increase due to climate change, which will have manifold ecological and societal impacts including the potential to weaken or reverse the terrestrial carbon sink. Predictions of tree mortality remain limited, in large part because within-species variations in ecophysiology due to plasticity or adaptation and ecosystem adjustments could buffer mortality in dry locations. Here, we conduct a meta-analysis of 50 studies spanning >100 woody plant species globally to quantify how populations within species vary in vulnerability to drought mortality and whether functional traits or climate mediate mortality patterns. We find that mortality predominantly occurs in drier populations and this pattern is more pronounced in species with xylem that can tolerate highly negative water potentials, typically considered to be an adaptive trait for dry regions, and species that experience higher variability in water stress. Our results indicate that climate stress has exceeded physiological and ecosystem-level tolerance or compensating mechanisms by triggering extensive mortality at dry range edges and provides a foundation for future mortality projections in empirical distribution and mechanistic vegetation models.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Leander D L Anderegg
- Department of Global Ecology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Kelly L Kerr
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Anna T Trugman
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
- Department of Geography, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
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