1
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Berrios HK, Coronado I, Marsico TD. High species richness and turnover of vascular epiphytes is associated with water availability along the elevation gradient of Volcán Maderas, Nicaragua. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9501. [PMID: 36440308 PMCID: PMC9682193 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2021] [Revised: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Research that has been conducted documenting species richness patterns on tropical mountains has resulted in conflicting observations: monotonic declines with increasing elevation, monotonic increases with increasing elevation, and a mid‐elevation “bulge.” Currently, it is unclear if these differences are due to environmental differences among study areas, the taxonomic groups or ecological groups (e.g., growth form) sampled, or the scale of study along elevation gradients. Because of the difficulty in sampling and identifying canopy‐dwelling plants, the number of inventories quantifying tropical epiphytes is relatively limited and recent. In this study, we provide a detailed qualitative and quantitative assessment of the vascular epiphyte flora and its spatial distribution on Volcán Maderas, Isla de Ometepe, Nicaragua, including weather and environmental measurements along the entire elevation gradient of the volcano. We sampled epiphytes in five distinct forest types associated with increasing elevation as follows: dry forest, humid forest, wet forest, cloud forest, and elfin forest. Five weather stations were placed along the elevation gradient for us to relate observed patterns to environmental conditions. A mid‐elevation peak in species richness was detected for all vascular epiphytes at approximately 1000 m in elevation (cloud forest), yet epiphyte abundance increased with increasing elevation. In total we identified 206 taxa of vascular epiphytes belonging to 26 families and 73 genera. The most species‐rich family was the Orchidaceae with 55 species for the entire elevation gradient, followed by Bromeliaceae (29 species), Araceae (23), Polypodiaceae (25), Dryopteridaceae (16), and Piperaceae (11), with all other families represented by fewer than 10 species each. We found that richness patterns differ phylogenetically across epiphyte groups, possibly due to different adaptive strategies, and species for the most part appear to be narrowly distributed within specific habitat zones along the elevation gradient. Variables associated with moisture, precipitation, humidity, mist, or cloud cover are key to understanding the observed patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hazel K. Berrios
- Department of Biological Sciences Arkansas State University, State University Jonesboro Arkansas USA
| | - Indiana Coronado
- Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua (UNAN‐León) León Nicaragua
| | - Travis D. Marsico
- Department of Biological Sciences Arkansas State University, State University Jonesboro Arkansas USA
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2
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Sonne J, Dalsgaard B, Borregaard MK, Kennedy J, Fjeldså J, Rahbek C. Biodiversity cradles and museums segregating within hotspots of endemism. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20221102. [PMID: 35975440 PMCID: PMC9382217 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.1102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 07/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The immense concentrations of vertebrate species in tropical mountains remain a prominent but unexplained pattern in biogeography. A long-standing hypothesis suggests that montane biodiversity hotspots result from endemic species aggregating within ecologically stable localities. Here, the persistence of ancient lineages coincides with frequent speciation events, making such areas both 'cradles' (where new species arise) and 'museums' (where old species survive). Although this hypothesis refers to processes operating at the scale of valleys, it remains supported primarily by patterns generated from coarse-scale distribution data. Using high-resolution occurrence and phylogenetic data on Andean hummingbirds, we find that old and young endemic species are not spatially aggregated. The young endemic species tend to have non-overlapping distributions scattered along the Andean treeline, a long and narrow habitat where populations easily become fragmented. By contrast, the old endemic species have more aggregated distributions, but mainly within pockets of cloud forests at lower elevations than the young endemic species. These findings contradict the premise that biogeographical cradles and museums should overlap in valley systems where pockets of stable climate persist through periods of climate change. Instead, Andean biodiversity hotspots may derive from large-scale fluctuating climate complexity in conjunction with local-scale variability in available area and habitat connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesper Sonne
- Center for Global Mountain Biodiversity, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Bo Dalsgaard
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
- Section for Molecular Ecology and Evolution, Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Michael K. Borregaard
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jonathan Kennedy
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
- Zoological Museum of the Natural History Museum of Denmark, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen 2100, Denmark
| | - Jon Fjeldså
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
- Zoological Museum of the Natural History Museum of Denmark, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen 2100, Denmark
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Center for Global Mountain Biodiversity, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Ecology and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China
- Danish Institute for Advanced Study, University of Southern Denmark, 5230 Odense, Denmark
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3
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Extinction, coextinction and colonization dynamics in plant-hummingbird networks under climate change. Nat Ecol Evol 2022; 6:720-729. [PMID: 35347259 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-022-01693-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Climate-driven range shifts may cause local extinctions, while the accompanying loss of biotic interactions may trigger secondary coextinctions. At the same time, climate change may facilitate colonizations from regional source pools, balancing out local species loss. At present, how these extinction-coextinction-colonization dynamics affect biological communities under climate change is poorly understood. Using 84 communities of interacting plants and hummingbirds, we simulated patterns in climate-driven extinctions, coextinctions and colonizations under future climate change scenarios. Our simulations showed clear geographic discrepancies in the communities' vulnerability to climate change. Andean communities were the least affected by future climate change, as they experienced few climate-driven extinctions and coextinctions while having the highest colonization potential. In North America and lowland South America, communities had many climate-driven extinctions and few colonization events. Meanwhile, the pattern of coextinction was highly dependent on the configuration of networks formed by interacting hummingbirds and plants. Notably, North American communities experienced proportionally fewer coextinctions than other regions because climate-driven extinctions here primarily affected species with peripheral network roles. Moreover, coextinctions generally decreased in communities where species have few overlapping interactions, that is, communities with more complementary specialized and modular networks. Together, these results highlight that we should not expect colonizations to adequately balance out local extinctions in the most vulnerable ecoregions.
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4
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Jiang Z, Liu Q, Xu W, Peng C. The Importance of Energy Theory in Shaping Elevational Species Richness Patterns in Plants. BIOLOGY 2022; 11:biology11060819. [PMID: 35741340 PMCID: PMC9219821 DOI: 10.3390/biology11060819] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2022] [Revised: 05/23/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Many hypotheses have been proposed to explain elevational species richness patterns; however, evaluating their importance remains a challenge, as mountains that are nested within different biogeographic regions have different environmental attributes. Here, we conducted a comparative study for trees, shrubs, herbs, and ferns along the same elevational gradient for 22 mountains worldwide, examining the performance of hypotheses of energy, tolerance, climatic variability, and spatial area to explain the elevational species richness patterns for each plant group. Results show that for trees and shrubs, energy-related factors exhibit greater explanatory power than other factors, whereas the factors that are associated with climatic variability performed better in explaining the elevational species richness patterns of herbs and ferns. For colder mountains, energy-related factors emerged as the main drivers of woody species diversity, whereas in hotter and wetter ecosystems, temperature and precipitation were the most important predictors of species richness along elevational gradients. For herbs and ferns, the variation in species richness was less than that of woody species. These findings provide important evidence concerning the generality of the energy theory for explaining the elevational species richness pattern of plants, highlighting that the underlying mechanisms may change among different growth form groups and regions within which mountains are nested.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zihan Jiang
- Department of Biology Sciences, Institute of Environment Sciences, University of Quebec at Montreal, C.P. 8888, Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada; (Z.J.); (Q.L.)
| | - Qiuyu Liu
- Department of Biology Sciences, Institute of Environment Sciences, University of Quebec at Montreal, C.P. 8888, Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada; (Z.J.); (Q.L.)
| | - Wei Xu
- Guangzhou Institute of Geography, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510075, China;
| | - Changhui Peng
- Department of Biology Sciences, Institute of Environment Sciences, University of Quebec at Montreal, C.P. 8888, Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada; (Z.J.); (Q.L.)
- School of Geographic Sciences, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081, China
- Correspondence:
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5
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Cockburn G, Ko MC, Sadanandan KR, Miller ET, Nakagita T, Monte A, Cho S, Roura E, Toda Y, Baldwin MW. Synergism, Bifunctionality, and the Evolution of a Gradual Sensory Trade-off in Hummingbird Taste Receptors. Mol Biol Evol 2022; 39:msab367. [PMID: 34978567 PMCID: PMC8826506 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msab367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Sensory receptor evolution can imply trade-offs between ligands, but the extent to which such trade-offs occur and the underlying processes shaping their evolution is not well understood. For example, hummingbirds have repurposed their ancestral savory receptor (T1R1-T1R3) to detect sugars, but the impact of this sensory shift on amino acid perception is unclear. Here, we use functional and behavioral approaches to show that the hummingbird T1R1-T1R3 acts as a bifunctional receptor responsive to both sugars and amino acids. Our comparative analyses reveal substantial functional diversity across the hummingbird radiation and suggest an evolutionary timeline for T1R1-T1R3 retuning. Finally, we identify a novel form of synergism between sugars and amino acids in vertebrate taste receptors. This work uncovers an unexplored axis of sensory diversity, suggesting new ways in which nectar chemistry and pollinator preferences can coevolve.
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Affiliation(s)
- Glenn Cockburn
- Evolution of Sensory Systems Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Meng-Ching Ko
- Evolution of Sensory Systems Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Keren R Sadanandan
- Evolution of Sensory Systems Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Eliot T Miller
- Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Tomoya Nakagita
- Department of Agricultural Chemistry, School of Agriculture, Meiji University, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan
- Proteo-Science Center, Ehime University, Matsuyama, Ehime, Japan
| | - Amanda Monte
- Department of Behavioral Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Sungbo Cho
- Centre for Nutrition and Food Sciences, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
| | - Eugeni Roura
- Centre for Nutrition and Food Sciences, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
| | - Yasuka Toda
- Department of Agricultural Chemistry, School of Agriculture, Meiji University, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Maude W Baldwin
- Evolution of Sensory Systems Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
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6
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Leimberger KG, Dalsgaard B, Tobias JA, Wolf C, Betts MG. The evolution, ecology, and conservation of hummingbirds and their interactions with flowering plants. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2022; 97:923-959. [PMID: 35029017 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Revised: 12/06/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
The ecological co-dependency between plants and hummingbirds is a classic example of a mutualistic interaction: hummingbirds rely on floral nectar to fuel their rapid metabolisms, and more than 7000 plant species rely on hummingbirds for pollination. However, threats to hummingbirds are mounting, with 10% of 366 species considered globally threatened and 60% in decline. Despite the important ecological implications of these population declines, no recent review has examined plant-hummingbird interactions in the wider context of their evolution, ecology, and conservation. To provide this overview, we (i) assess the extent to which plants and hummingbirds have coevolved over millions of years, (ii) examine the mechanisms underlying plant-hummingbird interaction frequencies and hummingbird specialization, (iii) explore the factors driving the decline of hummingbird populations, and (iv) map out directions for future research and conservation. We find that, despite close associations between plants and hummingbirds, acquiring evidence for coevolution (versus one-sided adaptation) is difficult because data on fitness outcomes for both partners are required. Thus, linking plant-hummingbird interactions to plant reproduction is not only a major avenue for future coevolutionary work, but also for studies of interaction networks, which rarely incorporate pollinator effectiveness. Nevertheless, over the past decade, a growing body of literature on plant-hummingbird networks suggests that hummingbirds form relationships with plants primarily based on overlapping phenologies and trait-matching between bill length and flower length. On the other hand, species-level specialization appears to depend primarily on local community context, such as hummingbird abundance and nectar availability. Finally, although hummingbirds are commonly viewed as resilient opportunists that thrive in brushy habitats, we find that range size and forest dependency are key predictors of hummingbird extinction risk. A critical direction for future research is to examine how potential stressors - such as habitat loss and fragmentation, climate change, and introduction of non-native plants - may interact to affect hummingbirds and the plants they pollinate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kara G Leimberger
- Forest Biodiversity Research Network, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Oregon State University, 3100 SW Jefferson Way, Corvallis, OR, 97331, U.S.A
| | - Bo Dalsgaard
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø, 2100, Denmark
| | - Joseph A Tobias
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park, Buckhurst Road, Ascot, Berkshire, SL5 7PY, U.K
| | - Christopher Wolf
- Forest Biodiversity Research Network, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Oregon State University, 3100 SW Jefferson Way, Corvallis, OR, 97331, U.S.A
| | - Matthew G Betts
- Forest Biodiversity Research Network, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Oregon State University, 3100 SW Jefferson Way, Corvallis, OR, 97331, U.S.A
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7
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Oita S, Ibáñez A, Lutzoni F, Miadlikowska J, Geml J, Lewis LA, Hom EFY, Carbone I, U'Ren JM, Arnold AE. Climate and seasonality drive the richness and composition of tropical fungal endophytes at a landscape scale. Commun Biol 2021; 4:313. [PMID: 33750915 PMCID: PMC7943826 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-01826-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding how species-rich communities persist is a foundational question in ecology. In tropical forests, tree diversity is structured by edaphic factors, climate, and biotic interactions, with seasonality playing an essential role at landscape scales: wetter and less seasonal forests typically harbor higher tree diversity than more seasonal forests. We posited that the abiotic factors shaping tree diversity extend to hyperdiverse symbionts in leaves-fungal endophytes-that influence plant health, function, and resilience to stress. Through surveys in forests across Panama that considered climate, seasonality, and covarying biotic factors, we demonstrate that endophyte richness varies negatively with temperature seasonality. Endophyte community structure and taxonomic composition reflect both temperature seasonality and climate (mean annual temperature and precipitation). Overall our findings highlight the vital role of climate-related factors in shaping the hyperdiversity of these important and little-known symbionts of the trees that, in turn, form the foundations of tropical forest biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuzo Oita
- School of Plant Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | | | | | | | - József Geml
- MTA-EKE Lendület Environmental Microbiome Research Group, Eszterházy Károly University, Eger, Hungary
| | - Louise A Lewis
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Erik F Y Hom
- Department of Biology, Center for Biodiversity and Conservation Research, University of Mississippi, University, MS, USA
| | - Ignazio Carbone
- Center for Integrated Fungal Research, Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Jana M U'Ren
- Department of Biosystems Engineering and BIO5 Institute, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - A Elizabeth Arnold
- School of Plant Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
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8
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Dispersion fields reveal the compositional structure of South American vertebrate assemblages. Nat Commun 2020; 11:491. [PMID: 31980659 PMCID: PMC6981175 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-14267-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2019] [Accepted: 12/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The causes of continental patterns in species richness continue to spur heated discussion. Hypotheses based on ambient energy have dominated the debate, but are increasingly being challenged by hypotheses that model richness as the overlap of species ranges, ultimately controlled by continental range dynamics of individual species. At the heart of this controversy lies the question of whether species richness of individual grid cells is controlled by local factors, or reflects larger-scale spatial patterns in the turnover of species’ ranges. Here, we develop a new approach based on assemblage dispersion fields, formed by overlaying the geographic ranges of all species co-occurring in a grid cell. We created dispersion fields for all tetrapods of South America, and characterized the orientation and shape of dispersion fields as a vector field. The resulting maps demonstrate the existence of macro-structures in the turnover of biotic similarity at continental scale that are congruent among vertebrate classes. These structures underline the importance of continental-scale processes for species richness in individual assemblages. Ecologists continue to debate whether local species assemblages result from habitat filtering or from turnover among the regional species pool. Here the authors develop a “dispersion field” method to mapping species range overlaps, showing that regional turnover processes are key to local assembly.
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9
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Sonne J, Zanata TB, Martín González AM, Cumbicus Torres NL, Fjeldså J, Colwell RK, Tinoco BA, Rahbek C, Dalsgaard B. The distributions of morphologically specialized hummingbirds coincide with floral trait matching across an Andean elevational gradient. Biotropica 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.12637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jesper Sonne
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate; Natural History Museum of Denmark; University of Copenhagen; Copenhagen Ø Denmark
| | - Thais B. Zanata
- Laboratório de Interações e Biologia Reprodutiva; Departamento de Botânica; Centro Politécnico; Universidade Federal do Paraná; Curitiba Brasil
| | - Ana M. Martín González
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate; Natural History Museum of Denmark; University of Copenhagen; Copenhagen Ø Denmark
| | - Nixon L. Cumbicus Torres
- Sección Ecología y Sistemática; Departamento Ciencias Biológicas; Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja; Loja Ecuador
| | - Jon Fjeldså
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate; Natural History Museum of Denmark; University of Copenhagen; Copenhagen Ø Denmark
| | - Robert K. Colwell
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate; Natural History Museum of Denmark; University of Copenhagen; Copenhagen Ø Denmark
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; University of Connecticut; Storrs Connecticut
- Department of Entomology; Museum of Natural History; University of Colorado Boulder; Boulder Colorado
| | - Boris A. Tinoco
- Escuela de Biología; Ecología y Gestión; Universidad del Azuay; Cuenca Ecuador
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate; Natural History Museum of Denmark; University of Copenhagen; Copenhagen Ø Denmark
| | - Bo Dalsgaard
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate; Natural History Museum of Denmark; University of Copenhagen; Copenhagen Ø Denmark
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10
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Zhang JT, Wang C. Are Food and Habitat Resources Key Factors Determining Bird Species Richness at Broad Landscape-Scale in the Mainland of China? RUSS J ECOL+ 2019. [DOI: 10.1134/s1067413618060152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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11
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Keil P, Chase JM. Global patterns and drivers of tree diversity integrated across a continuum of spatial grains. Nat Ecol Evol 2019; 3:390-399. [DOI: 10.1038/s41559-019-0799-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2018] [Accepted: 01/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
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12
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Rangel TF, Edwards NR, Holden PB, Diniz-Filho JAF, Gosling WD, Coelho MTP, Cassemiro FAS, Rahbek C, Colwell RK. Modeling the ecology and evolution of biodiversity: Biogeographical cradles, museums, and graves. Science 2018; 361:361/6399/eaar5452. [DOI: 10.1126/science.aar5452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 185] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2017] [Accepted: 06/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Individual processes shaping geographical patterns of biodiversity are increasingly understood, but their complex interactions on broad spatial and temporal scales remain beyond the reach of analytical models and traditional experiments. To meet this challenge, we built a spatially explicit, mechanistic simulation model implementing adaptation, range shifts, fragmentation, speciation, dispersal, competition, and extinction, driven by modeled climates of the past 800,000 years in South America. Experimental topographic smoothing confirmed the impact of climate heterogeneity on diversification. The simulations identified regions and episodes of speciation (cradles), persistence (museums), and extinction (graves). Although the simulations had no target pattern and were not parameterized with empirical data, emerging richness maps closely resembled contemporary maps for major taxa, confirming powerful roles for evolution and diversification driven by topography and climate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thiago F. Rangel
- Departmento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CP 131, 74.001-970 Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil
| | - Neil R. Edwards
- School of Environment, Earth, and Ecosystems, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - Philip B. Holden
- School of Environment, Earth, and Ecosystems, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | | | - William D. Gosling
- School of Environment, Earth, and Ecosystems, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
- Department of Ecosystem and Landscape Dynamics, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Marco Túlio P. Coelho
- Departmento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CP 131, 74.001-970 Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil
| | - Fernanda A. S. Cassemiro
- Departmento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CP 131, 74.001-970 Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil
- Núcleo de Pesquisa em Ictiologia, Limnologia e Aquicultura. Universidade Estadual de Maringá, Maringá, PR, Brazil
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen O, Denmark
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot SL5 7PY, UK
| | - Robert K. Colwell
- Departmento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CP 131, 74.001-970 Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen O, Denmark
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
- University of Colorado Museum of Natural History, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
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13
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Storch D, Bohdalková E, Okie J. The more-individuals hypothesis revisited: the role of community abundance in species richness regulation and the productivity-diversity relationship. Ecol Lett 2018; 21:920-937. [PMID: 29659144 DOI: 10.1111/ele.12941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2017] [Revised: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 02/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Species richness increases with energy availability, yet there is little consensus as to the exact processes driving this species-energy relationship. The most straightforward explanation is the more-individuals hypothesis (MIH). It states that higher energy availability promotes a higher total number of individuals in a community, which consequently increases species richness by allowing for a greater number of species with viable populations. Empirical support for the MIH is mixed, partially due to the lack of proper formalisation of the MIH and consequent confusion as to its exact predictions. Here, we review the evidence of the MIH and evaluate the reliability of various predictions that have been tested. There is only limited evidence that spatial variation in species richness is driven by variation in the total number of individuals. There are also problems with measures of energy availability, with scale-dependence, and with the direction of causality, as the total number of individuals may sometimes itself be driven by the number of species. However, even in such a case the total number of individuals may be involved in diversity regulation. We propose a formal theory that encompasses these processes, clarifying how the different factors affecting diversity dynamics can be disentangled.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Storch
- Center for Theoretical Study, Charles University and the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Praha, Czech Republic.,Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Praha, Czech Republic
| | - Eliška Bohdalková
- Center for Theoretical Study, Charles University and the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Praha, Czech Republic.,Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Praha, Czech Republic
| | - Jordan Okie
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.,School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.,School for the Future of Innovation in Society, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
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14
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Tinoco BA, Santillán VE, Graham CH. Land use change has stronger effects on functional diversity than taxonomic diversity in tropical Andean hummingbirds. Ecol Evol 2018; 8:3478-3490. [PMID: 29607040 PMCID: PMC5869371 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2016] [Revised: 11/10/2017] [Accepted: 12/06/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Land use change modifies the environment at multiple spatial scales, and is a main driver of species declines and deterioration of ecosystem services. However, most of the research on the effects of land use change has focused on taxonomic diversity, while functional diversity, an important predictor of ecosystem services, is often neglected. We explored how local and landscape scale characteristics influence functional and taxonomic diversity of hummingbirds in the Andes Mountains in southern Ecuador. Data was collected in six landscapes along a land use gradient, from an almost intact landscape to one dominated by cattle pastures. We used point counts to sample hummingbirds from 2011 to 2012 to assessed how local factors (i.e., vegetation structure, flowering plants richness, nectar availability) and landscape factors (i.e., landscape heterogeneity, native vegetation cover) influenced taxonomic and functional diversity. Then, we analyzed environment – trait relationships (RLQ test) to explore how different hummingbird functional traits influenced species responses to these factors. Taxonomic and functional diversity of hummingbirds were positively associated with landscape heterogeneity but only functional diversity was positively related to native vegetation coverage. We found a weak response of taxonomic and functional diversity to land use change at the local scale. Environment‐trait associations showed that body mass of hummingbirds likely influenced species sensitivity to land use change. In conclusion, landscape heterogeneity created by land use change can positively influence hummingbird taxonomic and functional diversity; however, a reduction of native vegetation cover could decrease functional diversity. Given that functional diversity can mediate ecosystem services, the conservation of native vegetation cover could play a key role in the maintenance of hummingbird pollination services in the tropical Andes. Moreover, there are particular functional traits, such as body mass, that increase a species sensitivity to land use change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris A Tinoco
- Department of Ecology and Evolution Stony Brook University Stony Brook NY USA.,Escuela de Biología Ecología y Gestión Universidad del Azuay Cuenca Ecuador
| | | | - Catherine H Graham
- Department of Ecology and Evolution Stony Brook University Stony Brook NY USA.,Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL Birmensdorf Switzerland
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15
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Graham LJ, Weinstein BG, Supp SR, Graham CH. Future geographic patterns of novel and disappearing assemblages across three dimensions of diversity: A case study with Ecuadorian hummingbirds. DIVERS DISTRIB 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.12587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Laura J. Graham
- Department of Ecology and Evolution Stony Brook University Stony Brook NY USA
- Geography and Environment University of Southampton Southampton UK
| | - Ben G. Weinstein
- Department of Ecology and Evolution Stony Brook University Stony Brook NY USA
| | | | - Catherine H. Graham
- Department of Ecology and Evolution Stony Brook University Stony Brook NY USA
- Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL Birmensdorf Switzerland
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16
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Historical factors shaped species diversity and composition of Salix in eastern Asia. Sci Rep 2017; 7:42038. [PMID: 28176816 PMCID: PMC5296738 DOI: 10.1038/srep42038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2016] [Accepted: 01/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Ambient energy, niche conservatism, historical climate stability and habitat heterogeneity hypothesis have been proposed to explain the broad-scale species diversity patterns and species compositions, while their relative importance have been controversial. Here, we assessed the relative contributions of contemporary climate, historical climate changes and habitat heterogeneity in shaping Salix species diversity and species composition in whole eastern Asia as well as mountains and lowlands using linear regressions and distance-based redundancy analyses, respectively. Salix diversity was negatively related with mean annual temperature. Habitat heterogeneity was more important than contemporary climate in shaping Salix diversity patterns, and their relative contributions were different in mountains and lowlands. In contrast, the species composition was strongly influenced by contemporary climate and historical climate change than habitat heterogeneity, and their relative contributions were nearly the same both in mountains and lowlands. Our findings supported niche conservatism and habitat heterogeneity hypotheses, but did not support ambient energy and historical climate stability hypotheses. The diversity pattern and species composition of Salix could not be well-explained by any single hypothesis tested, suggesting that other factors such as disturbance history and diversification rate may be also important in shaping the diversity pattern and composition of Salix species.
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17
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Sonne J, Martín González AM, Maruyama PK, Sandel B, Vizentin-Bugoni J, Schleuning M, Abrahamczyk S, Alarcón R, Araujo AC, Araújo FP, Mendes de Azevedo S, Baquero AC, Cotton PA, Ingversen TT, Kohler G, Lara C, Guedes Las-Casas FM, Machado AO, Machado CG, Maglianesi MA, Moura AC, Nogués-Bravo D, Oliveira GM, Oliveira PE, Ornelas JF, Rodrigues LDC, Rosero-Lasprilla L, Rui AM, Sazima M, Timmermann A, Varassin IG, Wang Z, Watts S, Fjeldså J, Svenning JC, Rahbek C, Dalsgaard B. High proportion of smaller ranged hummingbird species coincides with ecological specialization across the Americas. Proc Biol Sci 2017; 283:rspb.2015.2512. [PMID: 26842573 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.2512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecological communities that experience stable climate conditions have been speculated to preserve more specialized interspecific associations and have higher proportions of smaller ranged species (SRS). Thus, areas with disproportionally large numbers of SRS are expected to coincide geographically with a high degree of community-level ecological specialization, but this suggestion remains poorly supported with empirical evidence. Here, we analysed data for hummingbird resource specialization, range size, contemporary climate, and Late Quaternary climate stability for 46 hummingbird-plant mutualistic networks distributed across the Americas, representing 130 hummingbird species (ca 40% of all hummingbird species). We demonstrate a positive relationship between the proportion of SRS of hummingbirds and community-level specialization, i.e. the division of the floral niche among coexisting hummingbird species. This relationship remained strong even when accounting for climate, furthermore, the effect of SRS on specialization was far stronger than the effect of specialization on SRS, suggesting that climate largely influences specialization through species' range-size dynamics. Irrespective of the exact mechanism involved, our results indicate that communities consisting of higher proportions of SRS may be vulnerable to disturbance not only because of their small geographical ranges, but also because of their high degree of specialization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesper Sonne
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark
| | - Ana M Martín González
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark Pacific Ecoinformatics and Computational Ecology Lab, 1604 McGee Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94703, USA
| | - Pietro K Maruyama
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Cx. Postal 6109, Campinas, SP 13083-865, Brazil
| | - Brody Sandel
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, Aarhus C 8000, Denmark
| | - Jeferson Vizentin-Bugoni
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Cx. Postal 6109, Campinas, SP 13083-865, Brazil
| | - Matthias Schleuning
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (BiK-F), Senckenberganlage 25, Frankfurt (Main) 60325, Germany
| | - Stefan Abrahamczyk
- Nees Institute of Plant Biodiversity, Meckenheimer Allee 170, Bonn 53115, Germany Institute of Systematic Botany, Zollikerstrasse, Zurich 107, Switzerland
| | - Ruben Alarcón
- Biology Program, California State University Channel Islands, Camarillo, CA 93012, USA
| | - Andréa C Araujo
- Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul 79070-900, Brazil
| | - Francielle P Araújo
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Cx. Postal 6109, Campinas, SP 13083-865, Brazil
| | | | - Andrea C Baquero
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark
| | - Peter A Cotton
- Marine Biology and Ecology Research Centre, Plymouth University, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK
| | | | - Glauco Kohler
- Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Avenida André Araújo 2936, Petrópolis, Manaus CEP 69080-971, Brazil
| | - Carlos Lara
- Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala, Km 10.5 Autopista Tlaxcala-San Martín Texmelucan, San Felipe Ixtacuixtla, Tlaxcala 90120, Mexico
| | | | - Adriana O Machado
- Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia -UFU, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Caio Graco Machado
- Laboratório de Ornitologia, Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana, Feira de Santana, Bahia 44036-900, Brazil
| | - María Alejandra Maglianesi
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (BiK-F), Senckenberganlage 25, Frankfurt (Main) 60325, Germany Vicerrectoría de Investigación, Universidad Estatal a Distancia (UNED), San José, Costa Rica
| | - Alan Cerqueira Moura
- Vicerrectoría de Investigación, Universidad Estatal a Distancia (UNED), San José, Costa Rica
| | - David Nogués-Bravo
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark
| | - Genilda M Oliveira
- Instituto Federal do Triângulo Mineiro, Campus Uberlândia, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Paulo E Oliveira
- Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia -UFU, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Juan Francisco Ornelas
- Departamento de Biología Evolutiva, Instituto de Ecología AC, Carretera antigua aCoatepec 351, El Haya, Xalapa, Veracruz 91070, Mexico
| | - Licléia da Cruz Rodrigues
- Laboratory of Ornithology, Department of Zoology, ICB, Minas Gerais Federal University, PO Box 486, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil
| | - Liliana Rosero-Lasprilla
- Grupo de Investigación Biología para la Conservación, Escuela de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia, Tunja, Colombia
| | - Ana Maria Rui
- Departamento de Ecologia, Zoologia e Genética, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Capao do Leao, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Marlies Sazima
- Departamento de Biologia Vegetal, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Cx. Postal 6109, Campinas-SP 13083-970, Brazil
| | - Allan Timmermann
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, Aarhus C 8000, Denmark
| | - Isabela Galarda Varassin
- Laboratório de Ecologia Vegetal, Departamento de Botânica, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81531-980, Brazil
| | - Zhiheng Wang
- Department of Ecology and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China
| | - Stella Watts
- Landscape and Biodiversity Research Group, Department of Geographical and Environmental Sciences, University of Northampton, Avenue Campus, St George's Avenue, Northampton NN2 6JD, UK
| | - Jon Fjeldså
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark
| | - Jens-Christian Svenning
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, Aarhus C 8000, Denmark
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, Berkshire SL5 7PY, UK
| | - Bo Dalsgaard
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen Ø 2100, Denmark
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18
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Camp CD, Wooten JA, Graham SP, Pauley TK. Ecological limits to local species richness in Dusky Salamanders (genus Desmognathus). CAN J ZOOL 2017. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2016-0071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Species richness commonly varies with elevation, but in many montane regions, the greatest number of species occurs at mid-elevations. A recent regional analysis showed this pattern in Appalachian salamanders of the genus Desmognathus Baird, 1850. The authors proposed that the phylogenetic niche conservatism of these salamanders causes species to accumulate at intermediate elevations, which are characterized by the ancestral climate for the genus. They further suggested that physiological tolerances limit dispersal into higher or lower elevations. We tested this hypothesis using geographic information systems (GIS) based analysis of 235 local Desmognathus communities. Consistent with the regional analysis, local species richness was greatest at mid-elevations. However, the number of species is not limited by physiological tolerances but appears to be restricted ecologically by climate variables favoring aridity, as well as by biotic factors. Whether such ecological limits on species richness at the local level influences richness across regions or evolutionary clades remains to be tested.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos D. Camp
- Department of Biology, Piedmont College, P.O. Box 10, Demorest, GA 30535, USA
| | - Jessica A. Wooten
- Department of Biology, Centre College, 600 West Walnut Street, Danville, KY 40422, USA
| | - Sean P. Graham
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Physical Sciences, Sul Ross State University, Box C-64, Alpine, TX 79832, USA
| | - Thomas K. Pauley
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marshall University, 1 John Marshall Drive, Marshall University, Huntington, WV 25755, USA
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19
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Lessard JP, Weinstein BG, Borregaard MK, Marske KA, Martin DR, McGuire JA, Parra JL, Rahbek C, Graham CH. Process-Based Species Pools Reveal the Hidden Signature of Biotic Interactions Amid the Influence of Temperature Filtering. Am Nat 2016; 187:75-88. [PMID: 27277404 DOI: 10.1086/684128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
A persistent challenge in ecology is to tease apart the influence of multiple processes acting simultaneously and interacting in complex ways to shape the structure of species assemblages. We implement a heuristic approach that relies on explicitly defining species pools and permits assessment of the relative influence of the main processes thought to shape assemblage structure: environmental filtering, dispersal limitations, and biotic interactions. We illustrate our approach using data on the assemblage composition and geographic distribution of hummingbirds, a comprehensive phylogeny and morphological traits. The implementation of several process-based species pool definitions in null models suggests that temperature-but not precipitation or dispersal limitation-acts as the main regional filter of assemblage structure. Incorporating this environmental filter directly into the definition of assemblage-specific species pools revealed an otherwise hidden pattern of phylogenetic evenness, indicating that biotic interactions might further influence hummingbird assemblage structure. Such hidden patterns of assemblage structure call for a reexamination of a multitude of phylogenetic- and trait-based studies that did not explicitly consider potentially important processes in their definition of the species pool. Our heuristic approach provides a transparent way to explore patterns and refine interpretations of the underlying causes of assemblage structure.
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20
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Zhang C, Quan Q, Wu Y, Chen Y, He P, Qu Y, Lei F. Topographic heterogeneity and temperature amplitude explain species richness patterns of birds in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Curr Zool 2016; 63:131-137. [PMID: 29491970 PMCID: PMC5804158 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zow024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2015] [Accepted: 01/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Large-scale patterns of species richness have gained much attention in recent years; however, the factors that drive high species richness are still controversial in local regions, especially in highly diversified montane regions. The Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau (QTP) and the surrounding mountains are biodiversity hot spots due to a high number of endemic montane species. Here, we explored the factors underlying this high level of diversity by studying the relationship between species richness and environmental variables. The richness patterns of 758 resident bird species were summarized at the scale of 1°×1° grid cell at different taxonomic levels (order, family, genus, and species) and in different taxonomic groups (Passeriformes, Galliformes, Falconiformes, and Columbiformes). These richness patterns were subsequently analyzed against habitat heterogeneity (topographical heterogeneity and land cover), temperature amplitude (annual temperature, annual precipitation, precipitation seasonality, and temperature seasonality) and a vegetation index (net primary productivity). Our results showed that the highest richness was found in the southeastern part of the QTP, the eastern Himalayas. The lowest richness was observed in the central plateau of the QTP. Topographical heterogeneity and temperature amplitude are the primary factors that explain overall patterns of species richness in the QTP, although the specific effect of each environmental variable varies between the different taxonomic groups depending on their own evolutionary histories and ecological requirements. High species richness in the southeastern QTP is mostly due to highly diversified habitat types and temperature zones along elevation gradients, whereas the low species richness in the central plateau of the QTP may be due to environmental and energetic constraints, as the central plateau is harsh environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunlan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China, College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, Guangdong Entomological Institute (South China Institute of Endangered Animals), Guangzhou 510260, China, Key Laboratory of Bioresources and Ecoenvironment (Ministry of Education), College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China, and Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada, and National Zoological Museum, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Qing Quan
- Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China, College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, Guangdong Entomological Institute (South China Institute of Endangered Animals), Guangzhou 510260, China, Key Laboratory of Bioresources and Ecoenvironment (Ministry of Education), College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China, and Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada, and National Zoological Museum, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Yongjie Wu
- Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China, College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, Guangdong Entomological Institute (South China Institute of Endangered Animals), Guangzhou 510260, China, Key Laboratory of Bioresources and Ecoenvironment (Ministry of Education), College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China, and Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada, and National Zoological Museum, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Youhua Chen
- Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China, College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, Guangdong Entomological Institute (South China Institute of Endangered Animals), Guangzhou 510260, China, Key Laboratory of Bioresources and Ecoenvironment (Ministry of Education), College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China, and Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada, and National Zoological Museum, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Peng He
- Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China, College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, Guangdong Entomological Institute (South China Institute of Endangered Animals), Guangzhou 510260, China, Key Laboratory of Bioresources and Ecoenvironment (Ministry of Education), College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China, and Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada, and National Zoological Museum, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Yanhua Qu
- Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China, College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, Guangdong Entomological Institute (South China Institute of Endangered Animals), Guangzhou 510260, China, Key Laboratory of Bioresources and Ecoenvironment (Ministry of Education), College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China, and Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada, and National Zoological Museum, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Fumin Lei
- Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China, College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, Guangdong Entomological Institute (South China Institute of Endangered Animals), Guangzhou 510260, China, Key Laboratory of Bioresources and Ecoenvironment (Ministry of Education), College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China, and Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada, and National Zoological Museum, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
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21
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Rico-Guevara A, Fan TH, Rubega MA. Hummingbird tongues are elastic micropumps. Proc Biol Sci 2015; 282:20151014. [PMID: 26290074 PMCID: PMC4632618 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2015] [Accepted: 07/27/2015] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Pumping is a vital natural process, imitated by humans for thousands of years. We demonstrate that a hitherto undocumented mechanism of fluid transport pumps nectar onto the hummingbird tongue. Using high-speed cameras, we filmed the tongue-fluid interaction in 18 hummingbird species, from seven of the nine main hummingbird clades. During the offloading of the nectar inside the bill, hummingbirds compress their tongues upon extrusion; the compressed tongue remains flattened until it contacts the nectar. After contact with the nectar surface, the tongue reshapes filling entirely with nectar; we did not observe the formation of menisci required for the operation of capillarity during this process. We show that the tongue works as an elastic micropump; fluid at the tip is driven into the tongue's grooves by forces resulting from re-expansion of a collapsed section. This work falsifies the long-standing idea that capillarity is an important force filling hummingbird tongue grooves during nectar feeding. The expansive filling mechanism we report in this paper recruits elastic recovery properties of the groove walls to load nectar into the tongue an order of magnitude faster than capillarity could. Such fast filling allows hummingbirds to extract nectar at higher rates than predicted by capillarity-based foraging models, in agreement with their fast licking rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Rico-Guevara
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá DC, Colombia
| | - Tai-Hsi Fan
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Margaret A Rubega
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
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22
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Baudena M, Sánchez A, Georg CP, Ruiz-Benito P, Rodríguez MÁ, Zavala MA, Rietkerk M. Revealing patterns of local species richness along environmental gradients with a novel network tool. Sci Rep 2015; 5:11561. [PMID: 26109495 PMCID: PMC4479799 DOI: 10.1038/srep11561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2015] [Accepted: 05/26/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
How species richness relates to environmental gradients at large extents is commonly investigated aggregating local site data to coarser grains. However, such relationships often change with the grain of analysis, potentially hiding the local signal. Here we show that a novel network technique, the “method of reflections”, could unveil the relationships between species richness and climate without such drawbacks. We introduced a new index related to potential species richness, which revealed large scale patterns by including at the local community level information about species distribution throughout the dataset (i.e., the network). The method effectively removed noise, identifying how far site richness was from potential. When applying it to study woody species richness patterns in Spain, we observed that annual precipitation and mean annual temperature explained large parts of the variance of the newly defined species richness, highlighting that, at the local scale, communities in drier and warmer areas were potentially the species richest. Our method went far beyond what geographical upscaling of the data could unfold, and the insights obtained strongly suggested that it is a powerful instrument to detect key factors underlying species richness patterns, and that it could have numerous applications in ecology and other fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mara Baudena
- Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Environmental Sciences Group, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80115, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Grupo Interdisciplinar de Sistemas Complejos (GISC), Departamento de Matemáticas, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Avenida de la Universidad 30, 28911 Leganés, Spain
| | - Angel Sánchez
- Grupo Interdisciplinar de Sistemas Complejos (GISC), Departamento de Matemáticas, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Avenida de la Universidad 30, 28911 Leganés, Spain.,Instituto de Biocomputación y Física de Sistemas Complejos (BIFI), Universidad de Zaragoza, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Co-Pierre Georg
- School of Economics and African Institute of Financial Markets and Risk Management, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X1, 7700 Rondebosch (Cape Town), South Africa.,Grupo Interdisciplinar de Sistemas Complejos (GISC), Departamento de Matemáticas, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Avenida de la Universidad 30, 28911 Leganés, Spain
| | - Paloma Ruiz-Benito
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, FK9 4LA (Stirling), United Kingdom.,Forest Ecology and Restoration Group, Department of Life Sciences, University of Alcalá, Edificio de Ciencias, Campus Universitario, 28805 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain
| | - Miguel Á Rodríguez
- Forest Ecology and Restoration Group, Department of Life Sciences, University of Alcalá, Edificio de Ciencias, Campus Universitario, 28805 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain
| | - Miguel A Zavala
- Forest Ecology and Restoration Group, Department of Life Sciences, University of Alcalá, Edificio de Ciencias, Campus Universitario, 28805 Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain
| | - Max Rietkerk
- Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Environmental Sciences Group, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80115, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands
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23
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Rangel TF, Colwell RK, Graves GR, Fučíková K, Rahbek C, Diniz-Filho JAF. Phylogenetic uncertainty revisited: Implications for ecological analyses. Evolution 2015; 69:1301-12. [PMID: 25800868 DOI: 10.1111/evo.12644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2014] [Accepted: 03/11/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Ecologists and biogeographers usually rely on a single phylogenetic tree to study evolutionary processes that affect macroecological patterns. This approach ignores the fact that each phylogenetic tree is a hypothesis about the evolutionary history of a clade, and cannot be directly observed in nature. Also, trees often leave out many extant species, or include missing species as polytomies because of a lack of information on the relationship among taxa. Still, researchers usually do not quantify the effects of phylogenetic uncertainty in ecological analyses. We propose here a novel analytical strategy to maximize the use of incomplete phylogenetic information, while simultaneously accounting for several sources of phylogenetic uncertainty that may distort statistical inferences about evolutionary processes. We illustrate the approach using a clade-wide analysis of the hummingbirds, evaluating how different sources of uncertainty affect several phylogenetic comparative analyses of trait evolution and biogeographic patterns. Although no statistical approximation can fully substitute for a complete and robust phylogeny, the method we describe and illustrate enables researchers to broaden the number of clades for which studies informed by evolutionary relationships are possible, while allowing the estimation and control of statistical error that arises from phylogenetic uncertainty. Software tools to carry out the necessary computations are offered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thiago F Rangel
- Departmento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CP 131, Goiânia, GO, Brasil, 74.001-970.
| | - Robert K Colwell
- Departmento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CP 131, Goiânia, GO, Brasil, 74.001-970.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 75 North Eagleville Road, Unit 3043, Storrs, Connecticut, 06269-3043.,Museum of Natural History, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, 80309
| | - Gary R Graves
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20013.,Department of Biology, Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100, Copenhagen O, Denmark
| | - Karolina Fučíková
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 75 North Eagleville Road, Unit 3043, Storrs, Connecticut, 06269-3043
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Department of Biology, Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100, Copenhagen O, Denmark
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Herzog SK, Hamel-Leigue AC, Larsen TH, Mann DJ, Soria-Auza RW, Gill BD, Edmonds WD, Spector S. Elevational distribution and conservation biogeography of phanaeine dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) in Bolivia. PLoS One 2013; 8:e64963. [PMID: 23717678 PMCID: PMC3661563 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0064963] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2012] [Accepted: 04/23/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Insect macroecology and conservation biogeography studies are disproportionately scarce, especially in the Neotropics. Dung beetles are an ideal focal taxon for biodiversity research and conservation. Using distribution and body size data on the ecologically important Phanaeini, the best-known Neotropical dung beetle tribe, we determined elevational patterns of species richness, endemism, body size, and elevational range in Bolivia, specifically testing Bergmann’s and Rapoport’s rule. Richness of all 39 species and of 15 ecoregional endemics showed a hump-shaped pattern peaking at 400 m, but overall declined strongly with elevation up to 4000 m. The relationship between endemic and total species richness appeared to be curvilinear, providing only partial support for the null hypothesis that species-rich areas are more likely to be centers of endemism by chance alone. An elevational increase in the proportion of ecoregional endemics suggests that deterministic factors also appear to influence endemism in the Andes. When controlling for the effect of area using different species-area relationships, the statistically significant richness peak became more pronounced and shifted upslope to 750 m. Larger species did not have higher elevational mid-points, and mean body size decreased significantly with elevation, contradicting Bergmann’s rule. Rapoport’s rule was supported: species with higher elevational mid-points had broader elevational ranges, and mean elevational range increased significantly with elevation. The elevational decrease of phanaeine richness is in accordance with studies that demonstrated the combined influence of temperature and water availability on species diversity, but also is consistent with niche conservatism. For invertebrates, confirmation of Rapoport’s and refutation of Bergmann’s rule appear to be scale-invariant general patterns. Analyses of biogeographic patterns across elevational gradients can provide important insights for identifying conservation priorities. Phanaeines with narrow elevational ranges on isolated low-elevation mountains in eastern Bolivia are at greatest climate-change related extinction risk from range-shift gaps and mountaintop extinctions.
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Holt BG, Lessard JP, Borregaard MK, Fritz SA, Araújo MB, Dimitrov D, Fabre PH, Graham CH, Graves GR, Jønsson KA, Nogués-Bravo D, Wang Z, Whittaker RJ, Fjeldså J, Rahbek C. An Update of Wallace’s Zoogeographic Regions of the World. Science 2012; 339:74-8. [PMID: 23258408 DOI: 10.1126/science.1228282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 516] [Impact Index Per Article: 43.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Modern attempts to produce biogeographic maps focus on the distribution of species, and the maps are typically drawn without phylogenetic considerations. Here, we generate a global map of zoogeographic regions by combining data on the distributions and phylogenetic relationships of 21,037 species of amphibians, birds, and mammals. We identify 20 distinct zoogeographic regions, which are grouped into 11 larger realms. We document the lack of support for several regions previously defined based on distributional data and show that spatial turnover in the phylogenetic composition of vertebrate assemblages is higher in the Southern than in the Northern Hemisphere. We further show that the integration of phylogenetic information provides valuable insight on historical relationships among regions, permitting the identification of evolutionarily unique regions of the world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ben G Holt
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution, and Climate, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
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Fjeldså J, Bowie RC, Rahbek C. The Role of Mountain Ranges in the Diversification of Birds. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ECOLOGY EVOLUTION AND SYSTEMATICS 2012. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-102710-145113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 257] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jon Fjeldså
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution, and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark;
| | - Rauri C.K. Bowie
- Museum of Vertebrate Zoology & Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720;
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution, and Climate, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark;
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Graham CH, Parra JL, Tinoco BA, Stiles FG, McGuire JA. Untangling the influence of ecological and evolutionary factors on trait variation across hummingbird assemblages. Ecology 2012. [DOI: 10.1890/11-0493.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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NOVILLO AGUSTINA, OJEDA RICARDOA. Diversity and distribution of small mammals in the South American Dry Andes. AUSTRAL ECOL 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1442-9993.2011.02336.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Abrahamczyk S, Kluge J, Gareca Y, Reichle S, Kessler M. The influence of climatic seasonality on the diversity of different tropical pollinator groups. PLoS One 2011; 6:e27115. [PMID: 22073268 PMCID: PMC3206942 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0027115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2011] [Accepted: 10/11/2011] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Tropical South America is rich in different groups of pollinators, but the biotic and abiotic factors determining the geographical distribution of their species richness are poorly understood. We analyzed the species richness of three groups of pollinators (bees and wasps, butterflies, hummingbirds) in six tropical forests in the Bolivian lowlands along a gradient of climatic seasonality and precipitation ranging from 410 mm to 6250 mm. At each site, we sampled the three pollinator groups and their food plants twice for 16 days in both the dry and rainy seasons. The richness of the pollinator groups was related to climatic factors by linear regressions. Differences in species numbers between pollinator groups were analyzed by Wilcoxon tests for matched pairs and the proportion in species numbers between pollinator groups by correlation analyses. Species richness of hummingbirds was most closely correlated to the continuous availability of food, that of bees and wasps to the number of food plant species and flowers, and that of butterflies to air temperature. Only the species number of butterflies differed significantly between seasons. We were not able to find shifts in the proportion of species numbers of the different groups of pollinators along the study gradient. Thus, we conclude that the diversity of pollinator guilds is determined by group-specific factors and that the constant proportions in species numbers of the different pollinator groups constitute a general pattern.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Abrahamczyk
- Institute for Systematic Botany, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
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30
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Fritz SA, Jønsson KA, Fjeldså J, Rahbek C. Diversification and biogeographic patterns in four island radiations of passerine birds. Evolution 2011; 66:179-90. [PMID: 22220873 DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2011.01430.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Declining diversification rates over time are a well-established evolutionary pattern, often interpreted as indicating initial rapid radiation with filling of ecological niche space. Here, we test the hypothesis that island radiations may show constant net diversification rates over time, due to continued expansion into new niche space in highly dispersive taxa. We investigate diversification patterns of four passerine bird families originating from the Indo-Pacific archipelagos, and link these to biogeographic patterns to provide independent indications of niche filling. We find a declining diversification rate for only one family, the Paradisaeidae (41 species). These are almost completely restricted to New Guinea, and have on average smaller species ranges and higher levels of species richness within grid cells than the other three families. In contrast, we cannot reject constant diversification rates for Campephagidae (93 species), Oriolidae (35 species), and Pachycephalidae (53 species), groups that have independently colonized neighboring archipelagos and continents. We propose that Paradisaeidae have reached the diversity limit imposed by their restricted distribution, whereas high dispersal and colonization success across the geologically dynamic Indo-Pacific archipelagos may have sustained high speciation rates for the other three families. Alternatively, increasing extinction rates may have obscured declining speciation rates in those three phylogenies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanne A Fritz
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 København Ø, Denmark.
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31
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Patterns of species richness in relation to temperature, taxonomy and spatial scale in eastern China. ACTA OECOLOGICA-INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY 2011. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2011.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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32
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Werenkraut V, Ruggiero A. Quality of basic data and method to identify shape affect richness–altitude relationships in meta-analysis. Ecology 2011; 92:253-60. [DOI: 10.1890/09-2405.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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33
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Parra J, McGuire J, Graham C. Incorporating Clade Identity in Analyses of Phylogenetic Community Structure: An Example with Hummingbirds. Am Nat 2010; 176:573-87. [DOI: 10.1086/656619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Wu F, Yang XJ, Yang JX. Additive diversity partitioning as a guide to regional montane reserve design in Asia: an example from Yunnan Province, China. DIVERS DISTRIB 2010. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1472-4642.2010.00710.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
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35
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Graham CH, Parra JL, Rahbek C, McGuire JA. Phylogenetic structure in tropical hummingbird communities. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2009; 106 Suppl 2:19673-8. [PMID: 19805042 PMCID: PMC2780942 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0901649106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 179] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2009] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
How biotic interactions, current and historical environment, and biogeographic barriers determine community structure is a fundamental question in ecology and evolution, especially in diverse tropical regions. To evaluate patterns of local and regional diversity, we quantified the phylogenetic composition of 189 hummingbird communities in Ecuador. We assessed how species and phylogenetic composition changed along environmental gradients and across biogeographic barriers. We show that humid, low-elevation communities are phylogenetically overdispersed (coexistence of distant relatives), a pattern that is consistent with the idea that competition influences the local composition of hummingbirds. At higher elevations communities are phylogenetically clustered (coexistence of close relatives), consistent with the expectation of environmental filtering, which may result from the challenge of sustaining an expensive means of locomotion at high elevations. We found that communities in the lowlands on opposite sides of the Andes tend to be phylogenetically similar despite their large differences in species composition, a pattern implicating the Andes as an important dispersal barrier. In contrast, along the steep environmental gradient between the lowlands and the Andes we found evidence that species turnover is comprised of relatively distantly related species. The integration of local and regional patterns of diversity across environmental gradients and biogeographic barriers provides insight into the potential underlying mechanisms that have shaped community composition and phylogenetic diversity in one of the most species-rich, complex regions of the world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine H. Graham
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, 650 Life Sciences Building, Stony Brook, NY 11784-5245
| | - Juan L. Parra
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, 650 Life Sciences Building, Stony Brook, NY 11784-5245
| | - Carsten Rahbek
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution, and Climate, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; and
| | - Jimmy A. McGuire
- Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, 3101 Valley Life Sciences Building, Berkeley, CA 94720-3160
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36
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McGuire JA, Witt CC, Altshuler DL, Remsen JV. Phylogenetic systematics and biogeography of hummingbirds: Bayesian and maximum likelihood analyses of partitioned data and selection of an appropriate partitioning strategy. Syst Biol 2008; 56:837-56. [PMID: 17934998 DOI: 10.1080/10635150701656360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 169] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Hummingbirds are an important model system in avian biology, but to date the group has been the subject of remarkably few phylogenetic investigations. Here we present partitioned Bayesian and maximum likelihood phylogenetic analyses for 151 of approximately 330 species of hummingbirds and 12 outgroup taxa based on two protein-coding mitochondrial genes (ND2 and ND4), flanking tRNAs, and two nuclear introns (AK1 and BFib). We analyzed these data under several partitioning strategies ranging between unpartitioned and a maximum of nine partitions. In order to select a statistically justified partitioning strategy following partitioned Bayesian analysis, we considered four alternative criteria including Bayes factors, modified versions of the Akaike information criterion for small sample sizes (AIC(c)), Bayesian information criterion (BIC), and a decision-theoretic methodology (DT). Following partitioned maximum likelihood analyses, we selected a best-fitting strategy using hierarchical likelihood ratio tests (hLRTS), the conventional AICc, BIC, and DT, concluding that the most stringent criterion, the performance-based DT, was the most appropriate methodology for selecting amongst partitioning strategies. In the context of our well-resolved and well-supported phylogenetic estimate, we consider the historical biogeography of hummingbirds using ancestral state reconstructions of (1) primary geographic region of occurrence (i.e., South America, Central America, North America, Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles), (2) Andean or non-Andean geographic distribution, and (3) minimum elevational occurrence. These analyses indicate that the basal hummingbird assemblages originated in the lowlands of South America, that most of the principle clades of hummingbirds (all but Mountain Gems and possibly Bees) originated on this continent, and that there have been many (at least 30) independent invasions of other primary landmasses, especially Central America.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jimmy A McGuire
- Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, 3101 Valley Life Sciences Building, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3160, USA.
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37
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Davies RG, Orme CDL, Storch D, Olson VA, Thomas GH, Ross SG, Ding TS, Rasmussen PC, Bennett PM, Owens IPF, Blackburn TM, Gaston KJ. Topography, energy and the global distribution of bird species richness. Proc Biol Sci 2007; 274:1189-97. [PMID: 17311781 PMCID: PMC2189561 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2006.0061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2006] [Revised: 01/17/2007] [Accepted: 01/18/2007] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
A major goal of ecology is to determine the causes of the latitudinal gradient in global distribution of species richness. Current evidence points to either energy availability or habitat heterogeneity as the most likely environmental drivers in terrestrial systems, but their relative importance is controversial in the absence of analyses of global (rather than continental or regional) extent. Here we use data on the global distribution of extant continental and continental island bird species to test the explanatory power of energy availability and habitat heterogeneity while simultaneously addressing issues of spatial resolution, spatial autocorrelation, geometric constraints upon species' range dynamics, and the impact of human populations and historical glacial ice-cover. At the finest resolution (1 degree), topographical variability and temperature are identified as the most important global predictors of avian species richness in multi-predictor models. Topographical variability is most important in single-predictor models, followed by productive energy. Adjusting for null expectations based on geometric constraints on species richness improves overall model fit but has negligible impact on tests of environmental predictors. Conclusions concerning the relative importance of environmental predictors of species richness cannot be extrapolated from one biogeographic realm to others or the globe. Rather a global perspective confirms the primary importance of mountain ranges in high-energy areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard G Davies
- Biodiversity and Macroecology Group, Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK.
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38
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Shanmughavel P. An overview on biodiversity information in databases. Bioinformation 2007; 1:367-9. [PMID: 17597923 PMCID: PMC1891718 DOI: 10.6026/97320630001367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2007] [Revised: 03/09/2007] [Accepted: 03/20/2007] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The massive development of biodiversity related information systems over the WWW (World Wide Web) has created much excitement in
recent years. These arrays of new data sources are counterbalanced by the difficulty in knowing their location and nature. However,
biologists and computer scientists have started to pull together in a rising tide of coherence and organization to address this issue.
The fledging field of biodiversity informatics is expected to deliver major advances that could turn the WWW into a giant global biodiversity
information system. The present paper briefly reviews the databases in preserving the biodiversity data.
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Rahbek C, Gotelli NJ, Colwell RK, Entsminger GL, Rangel TFL, Graves GR. Predicting continental-scale patterns of bird species richness with spatially explicit models. Proc Biol Sci 2007; 274:165-74. [PMID: 17148246 PMCID: PMC1685854 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2006.3700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 133] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2006] [Accepted: 08/05/2006] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The causes of global variation in species richness have been debated for nearly two centuries with no clear resolution in sight. Competing hypotheses have typically been evaluated with correlative models that do not explicitly incorporate the mechanisms responsible for biotic diversity gradients. Here, we employ a fundamentally different approach that uses spatially explicit Monte Carlo models of the placement of cohesive geographical ranges in an environmentally heterogeneous landscape. These models predict species richness of endemic South American birds (2248 species) measured at a continental scale. We demonstrate that the principal single-factor and composite (species-energy, water-energy and temperature-kinetics) models proposed thus far fail to predict (r(2) < or =.05) the richness of species with small to moderately large geographical ranges (first three range-size quartiles). These species constitute the bulk of the avifauna and are primary targets for conservation. Climate-driven models performed reasonably well only for species with the largest geographical ranges (fourth quartile) when range cohesion was enforced. Our analyses suggest that present models inadequately explain the extraordinary diversity of avian species in the montane tropics, the most species-rich region on Earth. Our findings imply that correlative climatic models substantially underestimate the importance of historical factors and small-scale niche-driven assembly processes in shaping contemporary species-richness patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carsten Rahbek
- Center of Macroecology, Institute of Biology, University of CopenhagenUniversitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen O, Denmark
| | | | - Robert K Colwell
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of ConnecticutStorrs, CT 06269-3043, USA
| | - Gary L Entsminger
- Acquired Intelligence, Inc., Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory23625 V66 Trail, Montrose, CO 81401, USA
| | - Thiago Fernando L.V.B Rangel
- Graduate Program in Ecology and Evolution, Departamento de Biologia Geral, ICB, Universidade Federal de GoiásCaixa Postal 131, 74.001-970 Goiânia, GO, Brasil
| | - Gary R Graves
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian InstitutionWashington, DC 20560, USA
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Shriner SA, Wilson KR, Flather CH. Reserve networks based on richness hotspots and representation vary with scale. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2006; 16:1660-73. [PMID: 17069361 DOI: 10.1890/1051-0761(2006)016[1660:rnborh]2.0.co;2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
While the importance of spatial scale in ecology is well established, few studies have investigated the impact of data grain on conservation planning outcomes. In this study, we compared species richness hotspot and representation networks developed at five grain sizes. We used species distribution maps for mammals and birds developed by the Arizona and New Mexico Gap Analysis Programs (GAP) to produce 1-km2, 100-kmn2, 625-km2, 2500-km2, and 10,000-km2 grid cell resolution distribution maps. We used these distribution maps to generate species richness and hotspot (95th quantile) maps for each taxon in each state. Species composition information at each grain size was used to develop two types of representation networks using the reserve selection software MARXAN. Reserve selection analyses were restricted to Arizona birds due to considerable computation requirements. We used MARXAN to create best reserve networks based on the minimum area required to represent each species at least once and equal area networks based on irreplaceability values. We also measured the median area of each species' distribution included in hotspot (mammals and birds of Arizona and New Mexico) and irreplaceability (Arizona birds) networks across all species. Mean area overlap between richness hotspot reserves identified at the five grain sizes was 29% (grand mean for four within-taxon/state comparisons), mean overlap for irreplaceability reserve networks was 32%, and mean overlap for best reserve networks was 53%. Hotspots for mammals and birds showed low overlap with a mean of 30%. Comparison of hotspots and irreplaceability networks showed very low overlap with a mean of 13%. For hotspots, median species distribution area protected within reserves declined monotonically from a high of 11% for 1-km2 networks down to 6% for 10,000-km2 networks. Irreplaceability networks showed a similar, but more variable, pattern of decline. This work clearly shows that map resolution has a profound effect on conservation planning outcomes and that hotspot and representation outcomes may be strikingly dissimilar. Thus, conservation planning is scale dependent, such that reserves developed using coarse-grained data do not subsume fine-grained reserves. Moreover, preserving both full species representation and species rich areas may require combined reserve design strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susan A Shriner
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523, USA.
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Russell R, Wood SA, Allison G, Menge BA. Scale, environment, and trophic status: the context dependency of community saturation in rocky intertidal communities. Am Nat 2006; 167:e158-70. [PMID: 16685636 DOI: 10.1086/504603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2005] [Accepted: 02/15/2006] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Our understanding of the relative influence of different ecological drivers on the number of species in a place remains limited. Assessing the relative influence of local ecological interactions versus regional species pools on local species richness should help bridge this conceptual gap. Plots of local species richness versus regional species pools have been used to address this question, yet after an active quarter-century of research on the relative influence of local interactions versus regional species pools, consensus remains elusive. We propose a conceptual framework that incorporates spatial scale and ecological interaction strength to reconcile current disparities. We then test this framework using a survey of marine rocky intertidal algal and invertebrate communities from the northeast Pacific. We reach two main conclusions. First, these data show that the power of regional species pools to predict local richness disintegrates at small spatial scales coincident with the scale of biological interactions, when studying ecologically interactive groups of species, and in generally more abiotically stressful habitats (e.g., the high intertidal). Second, conclusions of past studies asserting that the regional species pool is the primary driver of local species richness may be artifacts of large spatial scales or ecologically noninteractive groups of species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roly Russell
- Department of Zoology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331, USA.
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42
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Beever EA, Swihart RK, Bestelmeyer BT. Linking the concept of scale to studies of biological diversity: evolving approaches and tools. DIVERS DISTRIB 2006. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1366-9516.2006.00260.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
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43
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The influence of spatial grain size on the suitability of the higher-taxon approach in continental priority-setting. Anim Conserv 2005. [DOI: 10.1017/s1367943005002362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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Graves GR, Rahbek C. Source pool geometry and the assembly of continental avifaunas. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2005; 102:7871-6. [PMID: 15911769 PMCID: PMC1142364 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0500424102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Classical niche-assembly models propose that the composition of biotic communities in continental landscapes is determined chiefly by the autecology of species, interspecific competition, and the diversity of resources and habitats within a region. In contrast, stochastic models propose that simulation algorithms can replicate the macroecological patterns, if not the mechanisms, of community assembly. Despite fundamental differences in assumptions, both categories of models assume that species are drawn from regional source pools. We explored the implications of source pool geometry on the assembly of avian communities with an analysis of assemblage dispersion fields, which can be visualized by overlaying the geographic ranges of all species that occur in an assemblage. Contours of species richness surrounding focal quadrats illustrate the decay rate of assemblage similarity with distance and the probable geometry of assemblage source pools. We used a geographic database for 2,891 species of South American birds to characterize dispersion fields for assemblages sampled by 1 degrees latitude-longitude quadrats (n = 1,676). We show that the median range size of dispersion fields varies by an order of magnitude across the continent. Because abundance generally correlates with geographic range size within taxonomic groups, the number of individuals per species in avifaunal source pools must also vary by an order of magnitude. Most significantly, dispersion field geometry was surprisingly asymmetrical and exhibited complex geographical patterns that were associated with the distribution of biomes. These results are broadly consistent with the predictions of niche-assembly models but offer little support for stochastic assembly models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gary R Graves
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, MRC-116, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, P.O. Box 37012, Washington, DC 20013-7012, USA.
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Whittaker RJ, Araújo MB, Jepson P, Ladle RJ, Watson JEM, Willis KJ. Conservation Biogeography: assessment and prospect. DIVERS DISTRIB 2005. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1366-9516.2005.00143.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 745] [Impact Index Per Article: 39.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
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Romdal TS, Colwell RK, Rahbek C. THE INFLUENCE OF BAND SUM AREA, DOMAIN EXTENT, AND RANGE SIZES ON THE LATITUDINAL MID-DOMAIN EFFECT. Ecology 2005. [DOI: 10.1890/04-0096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Altshuler DL, Dudley R, McGuire JA. Resolution of a paradox: hummingbird flight at high elevation does not come without a cost. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2004; 101:17731-6. [PMID: 15598748 PMCID: PMC539726 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0405260101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Flight at high elevation is energetically demanding because of parallel reductions in air density and oxygen availability. The hovering flight of hummingbirds is one of the most energetically expensive forms of animal locomotion, but hummingbirds are nonetheless abundant at high elevations throughout the Americas. Two mechanisms enhance aerodynamic performance in high-elevation hummingbirds: increase in wing size and wing stroke amplitude during hovering. How do these changes in morphology, kinematics, and physical properties of air combine to influence the aerodynamic power requirements of flight across elevations? Here, we present data on the flight performance of 43 Andean hummingbird species as well as a 76-taxon multilocus molecular phylogeny that served as the historical framework for comparative analyses. Along a 4,000-m elevational transect, hummingbird body mass increased systematically, placing further aerodynamic demands on high-elevation taxa. However, we found that the minimum power requirements for hovering flight remain constant with respect to elevation because hummingbirds compensate sufficiently through increases in wing size and stroke amplitude. Thus, high-elevation hummingbirds are not limited in their capacity for hovering flight despite the challenges imposed by hypobaric environments. Other flight modes including vertical ascent and fast forward flight are more mechanically and energetically demanding, and we accordingly also tested for the maximum power available to hummingbirds by using a load-lifting assay. In contrast to hovering, excess power availability decreased substantially across elevations, thereby reducing the biomechanical potential for more complex flight such as competitive and escape maneuvers.
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Soberón J, Peterson AT. Biodiversity informatics: managing and applying primary biodiversity data. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2004; 359:689-98. [PMID: 15253354 PMCID: PMC1693343 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2003.1439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 227] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, advances in information technology and an increased willingness to share primary biodiversity data are enabling unprecedented access to it. By combining presences of species data with electronic cartography via a number of algorithms, estimating niches of species and their areas of distribution becomes feasible at resolutions one to three orders of magnitude higher than it was possible a few years ago. Some examples of the power of that technique are presented. For the method to work, limitations such as lack of high-quality taxonomic determination, precise georeferencing of the data and availability of high-quality and updated taxonomic treatments of the groups must be overcome. These are discussed, together with comments on the potential of these biodiversity informatics techniques not only for fundamental studies but also as a way for developing countries to apply state of the art bioinformatic methods and large quantities of data, in practical ways, to tackle issues of biodiversity management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Soberón
- Instituto de Ecología, National University of Mexico and Comisión Nacional de Biodiversidad, México, Periférico-Insurgentes 4903, Tlalpan, 14010 DF, Mexico.
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Abstract
Community ecology seeks to explain the number and relative abundance of coexisting species. Four research frontiers in community ecology are closely tied to research in systematics and taxonomy: the statistics of species richness estimators, global patterns of biodiversity, the influence of global climate change on community structure, and phylogenetic influences on community structure. The most pressing needs for taxonomic information in community ecology research are usable taxonomic keys, current nomenclature, species occurrence records and resolved phylogenies. These products can best be obtained from Internet-based phylogenetic and taxonomic resources, but the lack of trained professional systematists and taxonomists threatens this effort. Community ecologists will benefit most directly from research in systematics and taxonomy by making better use of resources in museums and herbaria, and by actively seeking training, information and collaborations with taxonomic specialists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas J Gotelli
- Department of Biology, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405, USA.
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