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Lewthwaite JMM, Baiotto TM, Brown BV, Cheung YY, Baker AJ, Lehnen C, McGlynn TP, Shirey V, Gonzalez L, Hartop E, Kerr PH, Wood E, Guzman LM. Drivers of arthropod biodiversity in an urban ecosystem. Sci Rep 2024; 14:390. [PMID: 38172148 PMCID: PMC10764344 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-50675-3] [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: 08/10/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Our world is becoming increasingly urbanized with a growing human population concentrated around cities. The expansion of urban areas has important consequences for biodiversity, yet the abiotic drivers of biodiversity in urban ecosystems have not been well characterized for the most diverse group of animals on the planet, arthropods. Given their great diversity, comparatively small home ranges, and ability to disperse, arthropods make an excellent model for studying which factors can most accurately predict urban biodiversity. We assessed the effects of (i) topography (distance to natural areas and to ocean) (ii) abiotic factors (mean annual temperature and diurnal range), and (iii) anthropogenic drivers (land value and amount of impervious surface) on the occurrence of six arthropod groups represented in Malaise trap collections run by the BioSCAN project across the Greater Los Angeles Area. We found striking heterogeneity in responses to all factors both within and between taxonomic groups. Diurnal temperature range had a consistently negative effect on occupancy but this effect was only significant in Phoridae. Anthropogenic drivers had mixed though mostly insignificant effects, as some groups and species were most diverse in highly urbanized areas, while other groups showed suppressed diversity. Only Phoridae was significantly affected by land value, where most species were more likely to occur in areas with lower land value. Los Angeles can support high regional arthropod diversity, but spatial community composition is highly dependent on the taxonomic group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jayme M M Lewthwaite
- Marine and Environmental Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
| | - Teagan M Baiotto
- Marine and Environmental Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
| | - Brian V Brown
- Department of Entomology, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, 90007, USA
| | - Yan Yin Cheung
- Marine and Environmental Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
| | - Austin J Baker
- Marine and Environmental Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
- Department of Entomology, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, 90007, USA
| | - Charles Lehnen
- Marine and Environmental Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
- Human Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
| | - Terrence P McGlynn
- Department of Entomology, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, 90007, USA
- Department of Biology, California State University Dominguez Hills, Carson, 90747, USA
| | - Vaughn Shirey
- Marine and Environmental Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA
- Department of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 20057, USA
| | - Lisa Gonzalez
- Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, 90007, USA
| | - Emily Hartop
- Center for Integrative Biodiversity Discovery, Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, Germany
| | - Peter H Kerr
- California State Collection of Arthropods, CDFA Plant Pest Diagnostics Center, Sacramento, CA, 95832, USA
| | - Eric Wood
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State University Los Angeles, 5151 State University Drive, Los Angeles, 90032, USA
| | - Laura Melissa Guzman
- Marine and Environmental Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, USA.
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