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Krasnov BR, Grabovsky VI, Khokhlova IS, Korallo-Vinarskaya NP, López Berrizbietia MF, Matthee S, Sanchez J, Stanko M, VAN DER Mescht L, Vinarski MV. Structure of compound and component communities of fleas parasitic on small mammals in six different regions as revealed by environmental-based co-occurrence geometry analyses. Integr Zool 2024. [PMID: 38858802 DOI: 10.1111/1749-4877.12856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2024]
Abstract
We inferred the patterns of co-occurrence of flea species in compound (across all host species) and component (across conspecific hosts) communities from six regions of the world (Mongolia, Northwest Argentina, Argentinian Patagonia, West Siberia, Slovakia, and South Africa) using the novel eigenvector ellipsoid method. This method allows us to infer structural community patterns by comparing species' environmental requirements with the pattern of their co-occurrences. We asked whether: (a) communities are characterized by species segregation, nestedness, or modularity; (b) patterns detected by the novel method conform to the patterns identified by traditional methods that search for non-randomness in community structure; and (c) the pattern of flea species co-occurrences in component communities is associated with host species traits. The results of the application of the eigenvector ellipsoid method suggested that the co-occurrence of flea species was random in all compound communities except in South Africa, where this community demonstrated a tendency to be nested. Flea species co-occurrences were random in many component communities. Species segregation was detected in the flea community of one host, whereas the flea communities of 14 hosts from different regions appeared to be nested. No indication of a modular structure in any community was found. The nestedness of flea component communities was mainly characteristic of hosts with a low relative brain mass. We concluded that the application of this novel method that combines data on species distribution and their environmental requirements allows better identification of the community structural patterns and produces more reliable results as compared with traditional methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris R Krasnov
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental and Energy Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Vasily I Grabovsky
- French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Irina S Khokhlova
- French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Natalia P Korallo-Vinarskaya
- Laboratory of Parasitology, Zoological Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation
| | - M Fernanda López Berrizbietia
- Programa de Conservación de los Murciélagos de Argentina (PCMA) and Instituto de Investigaciones de Biodiversidad Argentina (PIDBA)-CCT CONICET Noa Sur (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e IML, UNT, and Fundación Miguel Lillo, San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina
| | - Sonja Matthee
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
| | - Juliana Sanchez
- Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia del Noroeste de la Provincia de Buenos Aires-CITNOBA (UNNOBA-UNSAdA- CONICET), Pergamino, Argentina
| | - Michal Stanko
- Institute of Parasitology and Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Kosice, Slovakia
| | - Luther VAN DER Mescht
- Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
- Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
| | - Maxim V Vinarski
- Laboratory of Macroecology and Biogeography of Invertebrates, Saint-Petersburg State University, Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation
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Brian JI, Aldridge DC. Host and parasite identity interact in scale-dependent fashion to determine parasite community structure. Oecologia 2024; 204:199-211. [PMID: 38206416 PMCID: PMC10830602 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-023-05499-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2022] [Accepted: 12/10/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Understanding the ecological assembly of parasite communities is critical to characterise how changing host and environmental landscapes will alter infection dynamics and outcomes. However, studies frequently assume that (a) closely related parasite species or those with identical life-history strategies are functionally equivalent, and (b) the same factors will drive infection dynamics for a single parasite across multiple host species, oversimplifying community assembly patterns. Here, we challenge these two assumptions using a naturally occurring host-parasite system, with the mussel Anodonta anatina infected by the digenean trematode Echinoparyphium recurvatum, and the snail Viviparus viviparus infected by both E. recurvatum and Echinostoma sp. By analysing the impact of temporal parasite dispersal, host species and size, and the impact of coinfection (moving from broader environmental factors to within-host dynamics), we show that neither assumption holds true, but at different ecological scales. The assumption that closely related parasites can be functionally grouped is challenged when considering dispersal to the host (i.e. larger scales), while the assumption that the same factors will drive infection dynamics for a single parasite across multiple host species is challenged when considering within-host interspecific competition (i.e. smaller scales). Our results demonstrate that host identity, parasite identity and ecological scale require simultaneous consideration in studies of parasite community composition and transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua I Brian
- Aquatic Ecology Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, The David Attenborough Building, Cambridge, CB2 3QZ, UK.
- Department of Geography, Bush House North East, King's College London, London, WC2B 4BG, UK.
| | - David C Aldridge
- Aquatic Ecology Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, The David Attenborough Building, Cambridge, CB2 3QZ, UK
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