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Uhey DA, Hofstetter RW, Earl S, Holden J, Sprague T, Rowe H. Living on the edge: The sensitivity of arthropods to development and climate along an urban-wildland interface in the Sonoran Desert of central Arizona. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0297227. [PMID: 38635739 PMCID: PMC11025936 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0297227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 04/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Preservation of undeveloped land near urban areas is a common conservation practice. However, ecological processes may still be affected by adjacent anthropogenic activities. Ground-dwelling arthropods are a diverse group of organisms that are critical to ecological processes such as nutrient cycling, which are sensitive to anthropogenic activities. Here, we study arthropod dynamics in a preserve located in a heavily urbanized part of the Sonoran Desert, Arizona, U.S.. We compared arthropod biodiversity and community composition at ten locations, four paired sites representing the urban edge and one pair in the Preserve interior. In total, we captured and identified 25,477 arthropod individuals belonging to 287 lowest practical taxa (LPT) over eight years of sampling. This included 192 LPTs shared between interior and edge sites, with 44 LPTs occurring exclusively in interior sites and 48 LPTs occurring exclusively in edge sites. We found two site pairs had higher arthropod richness on the preserve interior, but results for evenness were mixed among site pairs. Compositionally, the interior and edge sites were more than 40% dissimilar, driven by species turnover. Importantly, we found that some differences were only apparent seasonally; for example edge sites had more fire ants than interior sites only during the summer. We also found that temperature and precipitation were strong predictors of arthropod composition. Our study highlights that climate can interact with urban edge effects on arthropod biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derek A. Uhey
- School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona
| | | | - Stevan Earl
- Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
| | - Jerry Holden
- McDowell Sonoran Conservancy Citizen Science Program, Scottsdale, Arizona
| | | | - Helen Rowe
- McDowell Sonoran Conservancy Citizen Science Program, Scottsdale, Arizona
- School of Earth and Sustainability, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona
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2
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Han W, Chen L, Su X, Liu D, Jin T, Shi S, Li T, Liu G. Effects of Soil Physico-Chemical Properties on Plant Species Diversity Along an Elevation Gradient Over Alpine Grassland on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:822268. [PMID: 35185987 PMCID: PMC8854778 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.822268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Elevation gradient can reflect the effects of soil physico-chemical properties on plant species diversity. Alpine grassland on the QTP has suffered from a serious decline in plant species diversity. In this study, we investigated 112 sites recording plant community characteristics and collecting soil samples along an elevation gradient (3,500-5,200 m asl) in alpine meadow on the QTP. We analyzed the effects of soil physico-chemical properties on plant species composition and diversity by canonical ordination and spatial regression along an elevation gradient. The results showed that species richness of the overall plant communities decreased with the increasing elevation, and the Simpson dissimilarity index (β sim ) had a maximum at low elevation (3,500-4,000 m) with the value of 0.37. Soil available nitrogen content was the primary soil parameter affecting plant species composition and diversity in alpine grassland. The effect of soil available nitrogen content on plant species richness varied at different elevations. For Gramineae plants (G), plant species richness declined with the increase in soil available nitrogen content at low elevation (3,500-4,000 m), but rose at middle elevation (4,000-4,500 m). Soil available nitrogen content had a more significant limiting effect on species richness at high elevation (>4,500 m). These findings increase our understanding about the drivers of plant species diversity changes in alpine grassland on the QTP, and will provide insights into grassland restoration and sustainable management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wangya Han
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Agricultural Meteorology, Institute of Ecology, School of Applied Meteorology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, China
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Li Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Torch High Technology Industry Development Center, Ministry of Science and Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Xukun Su
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Dan Liu
- Institute of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, Southwest Minzu University, Chengdu, China
| | - Tiantian Jin
- China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing, China
| | - Songlin Shi
- College of Tourism and Urban-Rural Planning, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
| | - Tao Li
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Guohua Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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3
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Lai Y, Liu Y, Liu X. Elevational Diversity Patterns of Green Lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) Uncovered With DNA Barcoding in a Biodiversity Hotspot of Southwest China. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.778686] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Elevational diversity patterns can reflect the responses of biodiversity to climate change spatially. We investigate the species diversity patterns of green lacewings (an important predatory group of insects) along the gradient of elevation from the Shaluli Mountains (Mts. Shaluli), which belong to the Hengduan Mountains in southwestern China, one of the important hotspots of global biodiversity. We combined multiple approaches, including Automatic Barcode Gap Discovery (ABGD), Assemble Species by Automatic Partitioning analysis (ASAP), General Mixed Yule Coalescent (GMYC), Poisson tree processes (bPTP), multi-rate Poisson tree processes (mPTP), to delimit the green lacewings species based on the standard barcoding region of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI). The α-diversity and β-diversity patterns of green lacewings from the Mts. Shaluli along the gradient of elevation were analyzed, with further exploration on how the temperature effect elevational-diversity pattern on broad-scale (county scale) elevational gradients. The DNA barcoding reference library consisted of 40 green lacewing species from the Mts. Shaluli. The α-diversity of green lacewings decreased with the increasing elevation. The temperature was found to have a significant effect on the abundance and Shannon-Wiener diversity index but not on the species richness. Nestedness replaced turnover as the main component of Sørensen’s dissimilarity with the increasing elevation, and greater nestedness occurred at low temperature areas. The combination of a reliable DNA barcoding database could improve the accuracy and efficiency to investigate the species diversity patterns of green lacewings. Temperature, resource, and resultant interspecific competitions may have important roles in explaining the species diversity patterns of green lacewings from the Mts. Shaluli. Priority of conservation should be given to the species at low elevation, middle elevation, and relatively high temperature regions under the background of global climate warming.
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Miller SC, Wiethase JH, Motove Etingue A, Franklin E, Fero M, Wolfe JD, Gonder MK, Powell LL. Interactive effects of elevation and newly paved road on avian community composition in a scientific reserve, Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea. Biotropica 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.13014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Steven C. Miller
- Department of Biology Drexel University Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA
- Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA
| | - Joris H. Wiethase
- College of Medical, Veterinary & Life Sciences University of Glasgow Glasgow UK
| | - Amancio Motove Etingue
- Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA
- Universidad Nacional de Guinea Ecuatorial Malabo Equatorial Guinea
| | | | - Maximilliano Fero
- Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA
- Universidad Nacional de Guinea Ecuatorial Malabo Equatorial Guinea
| | - Jared D. Wolfe
- Biodiversity Initiative Houghton Michigan USA
- Michigan Tech College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science Houghton Michigan USA
| | - Mary K. Gonder
- Department of Biology Drexel University Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA
- Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA
| | - Luke L. Powell
- College of Medical, Veterinary & Life Sciences University of Glasgow Glasgow UK
- Biodiversity Initiative Houghton Michigan USA
- CIBIO‐InBIO Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources University of Porto Vairão Portugal
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5
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Uhey D, Haubensak K, Hofstetter R. Mid-elevational Peaks in Diversity of Ground-dwelling Arthropods with High Species Turnover on the Colorado Plateau. ENVIRONMENTAL ENTOMOLOGY 2021; 50:337-347. [PMID: 33459773 DOI: 10.1093/ee/nvaa166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Patterns of biodiversity along elevational gradients elucidate how climate shapes biological communities and help predict ecosystem responses to environmental change. Arid elevational gradients are particularly interesting because temperature limitations at high elevations and precipitation limitations at low elevations cause mid-elevation peaks in diversity. Ground-dwelling arthropods form highly diverse communities but few studies document elevational patterns of their full diversity. Here we investigate the elevational patterns of ground-dwelling arthropods in northern Arizona on the Colorado Plateau, an arid and understudied region in the United States. We sampled seven sites along an elevation gradient from 1,566 to 2,688 m corresponding to a difference of 6.5°C average annual temperature and 620 mm average annual precipitation. We captured 16,942 specimens comprising 169 species, mostly ants and beetles, and discovered a new ant species. First- and second-order elevation terms significantly correlated to multiple measures of arthropod α and β diversity. Arthropod abundance, richness, and Shannon-Wiener diversity index peaked at mid-elevations, with functional groups (i.e., omnivores, predators, detritivores, and herbivores) showing similar patterns. Community composition varied significantly across the gradient, correlated with changes in elevation, and was driven by shifts of ants dominating low- to mid-elevations, to beetles dominating high-elevations. Dissimilarity among sites was driven by high species turnover with 59% of species exclusive to a single site, whereas nestedness among sites was low except at the lowest elevation site. High rates of turnover and elevation-dependent communities suggest that ground-dwelling arthropods are highly vulnerable to environmental change, particularly at lower elevations in arid regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derek Uhey
- School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, 200 E. Pine Knoll Dr., Flagstaff, AZ
| | - Karen Haubensak
- Department of Biological Sciences and Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ
| | - Richard Hofstetter
- School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, 200 E. Pine Knoll Dr., Flagstaff, AZ
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6
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Floren A, von Rintelen T, Hebert PDN, de Araujo BC, Schmidt S, Balke M, Narakusumo RP, Peggie D, Ubaidillah R, von Rintelen K, Müller T. Integrative ecological and molecular analysis indicate high diversity and strict elevational separation of canopy beetles in tropical mountain forests. Sci Rep 2020; 10:16677. [PMID: 33028881 PMCID: PMC7541450 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-73519-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2018] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Tropical mountain forests contribute disproportionately to terrestrial biodiversity but little is known about insect diversity in the canopy and how it is distributed between tree species. We sampled tree-specific arthropod communities from 28 trees by canopy fogging and analysed beetle communities which were first morphotyped and then identified by their DNA barcodes. Our results show that communities from forests at 1100 and 1700 m a.s.l. are almost completely distinct. Diversity was much lower in the upper forest while community structure changed from many rare, less abundant species to communities with a pronounced dominance structure. We also found significantly higher beta-diversity between trees at the lower than higher elevation forest where community similarity was high. Comparisons on tree species found at both elevations reinforced these results. There was little species overlap between sites indicating limited elevational ranges. Furthermore, we exploited the advantage of DNA barcodes to patterns of haplotype diversity in some of the commoner species. Our results support the advantage of fogging and DNA barcodes for community studies and underline the need for comprehensive research aimed at the preservation of these last remaining pristine forests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Floren
- Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Hans-Martin-Weg 5, 97074, Würzburg, Germany. .,Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Münchhausenstr. 21, 81247, Munich, Germany. .,Department of Bioinformatics, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, 97074, Würzburg, Germany.
| | - Thomas von Rintelen
- Museum für Naturkunde-Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Paul D N Hebert
- Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | | | - Stefan Schmidt
- Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Münchhausenstr. 21, 81247, Munich, Germany
| | - Michael Balke
- Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Münchhausenstr. 21, 81247, Munich, Germany
| | - Raden Pramesa Narakusumo
- Zoology Division (Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense), Research Center for Biology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Raya Jakarta-Bogor KM 46, Cibinong, Bogor, 16911, Indonesia.,Museum of Natural History Karlsruhe, Erbprinzenstr. 13, 76133, Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Djunijanti Peggie
- Zoology Division (Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense), Research Center for Biology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Raya Jakarta-Bogor KM 46, Cibinong, Bogor, 16911, Indonesia
| | - Rosichon Ubaidillah
- Zoology Division (Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense), Research Center for Biology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Raya Jakarta-Bogor KM 46, Cibinong, Bogor, 16911, Indonesia
| | - Kristina von Rintelen
- Museum für Naturkunde-Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Tobias Müller
- Department of Bioinformatics, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, 97074, Würzburg, Germany
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7
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Sam K, Koane B. Biomass, abundances, and abundance and geographical range size relationship of birds along a rainforest elevational gradient in Papua New Guinea. PeerJ 2020; 8:e9727. [PMID: 32923179 PMCID: PMC7457928 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.9727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2019] [Accepted: 07/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The usually positive inter-specific relationship between geographical range size and the abundance of local bird populations comes with exceptions. On continents, the majority of these exceptions have been described from tropical montane areas in Africa, where geographically-restricted bird species are unusually abundant. We asked how the local abundances of passerine and non-passerine bird species along an elevational gradient on Mt. Wilhelm, Papua New Guinea relate to their geographical range size. We collected data on bird assemblages at eight elevations (200–3,700 m, at 500 m elevational increments). We used a standardized point-counts at 16 points at each elevational study site. We partitioned the birds into feeding guilds, and we obtained data on geographical range sizes from the Bird-Life International data zone. We observed a positive relationship between abundance and geographical range size in the lowlands. This trend changed to a negative one towards higher elevations. The total abundances of the assemblage showed a hump-shaped pattern along the elevational gradient, with passerine birds, namely passerine insectivores, driving the observed pattern. In contrast to abundances, the mean biomass of the bird assemblages decreased with increasing elevation. Our results show that montane bird species maintain dense populations which compensate for the decreased available area near the top of the mountain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katerina Sam
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Entomology Institute, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,University of South Bohemia, Faculty of Science, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Bonny Koane
- The New Guinea Binatang Research Centre, Madang, Papua New Guinea
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8
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Uhey DA, Riskas HL, Smith AD, Hofstetter RW. Ground-dwelling arthropods of pinyon-juniper woodlands: Arthropod community patterns are driven by climate and overall plant productivity, not host tree species. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0238219. [PMID: 32845929 PMCID: PMC7449382 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0238219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2020] [Accepted: 08/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Pinyon-juniper (PJ) woodlands have drastically changed over the last century with juniper encroaching into adjacent habitats and pinyon experiencing large-scale mortality events from drought. Changes in climate and forest composition may pose challenges for animal communities found in PJ woodlands, especially if animals specialize on tree species sensitive to drought. Here we test habitat specialization of ground-dwelling arthropod (GDA) communities underneath pinyon and juniper trees. We also investigate the role of climate and productivity gradients in structuring GDAs within PJ woodlands using two elevational gradients. We sampled 12,365 individuals comprising 115 taxa over two years. We found no evidence that GDAs differ under pinyon or juniper trees, save for a single species of beetle which preferred junipers. Climate and productivity, however, were strongly associated with GDA communities and appeared to drive differences between sites. Precipitation was strongly associated with arthropod richness, while differences in GDA composition were associated with environmental variables (precipitation, temperature, vapor pressure, and normalized difference vegetation index). These relationships varied among different arthropod taxa (e.g. ants and beetles) and community metrics (e.g. richness, abundance, and composition), with individual taxa also responding differently. Overall, our results suggest that GDAs are not dependent on tree type, but are strongly linked to primary productivity and climate, especially precipitation in PJ woodlands. This implies GDAs in PJ woodlands are more susceptible to changes in climate, especially at lower elevations where it is hot and dry, than changes in dominant vegetation. We discuss management implications and compare our findings to GDA relationships with vegetation in other systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derek Andrew Uhey
- School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Hannah Lee Riskas
- School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, United States of America
| | - Aaron Dennis Smith
- Department of Entomology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States of America
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9
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Mottl O, Fibich P, Klimes P, Volf M, Tropek R, Anderson-Teixeira K, Auga J, Blair T, Butterill P, Carscallen G, Gonzalez-Akre E, Goodman A, Kaman O, Lamarre GPA, Libra M, Losada ME, Manumbor M, Miller SE, Molem K, Nichols G, Plowman NS, Redmond C, Seifert CL, Vrana J, Weiblen GD, Novotny V. Spatial covariance of herbivorous and predatory guilds of forest canopy arthropods along a latitudinal gradient. Ecol Lett 2020; 23:1499-1510. [PMID: 32808457 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2020] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 06/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
In arthropod community ecology, species richness studies tend to be prioritised over those investigating patterns of abundance. Consequently, the biotic and abiotic drivers of arboreal arthropod abundance are still relatively poorly known. In this cross-continental study, we employ a theoretical framework in order to examine patterns of covariance among herbivorous and predatory arthropod guilds. Leaf-chewing and leaf-mining herbivores, and predatory ants and spiders, were censused on > 1000 trees in nine 0.1 ha forest plots. After controlling for tree size and season, we found no negative pairwise correlations between guild abundances per plot, suggestive of weak signals of both inter-guild competition and top-down regulation of herbivores by predators. Inter-guild interaction strengths did not vary with mean annual temperature, thus opposing the hypothesis that biotic interactions intensify towards the equator. We find evidence for the bottom-up limitation of arthropod abundances via resources and abiotic factors, rather than for competition and predation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ondrej Mottl
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic.,Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Pavel Fibich
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Klimes
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Volf
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, DE, Germany
| | - Robert Tropek
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, Prague, 12843, Czech Republic
| | - Kristina Anderson-Teixeira
- Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA.,Center for Tropical Forest Science- Forest Global Earth Observatory, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Ancon, Panama
| | - John Auga
- The New Guinea Binatang Research Center, P.O. Box 604, Madang, Papua New Guinea
| | - Thomas Blair
- Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA
| | - Phil Butterill
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic.,Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, Prague, 12843, Czech Republic
| | - Grace Carscallen
- Department of Biology, The University of Western Ontario, London, Canada
| | - Erika Gonzalez-Akre
- Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA
| | - Aaron Goodman
- Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA
| | - Ondrej Kaman
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Greg P A Lamarre
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic.,Center for Tropical Forest Science- Forest Global Earth Observatory, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Ancon, Panama
| | - Martin Libra
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic
| | - Maria E Losada
- National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Markus Manumbor
- The New Guinea Binatang Research Center, P.O. Box 604, Madang, Papua New Guinea
| | - Scott E Miller
- National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Kenneth Molem
- The New Guinea Binatang Research Center, P.O. Box 604, Madang, Papua New Guinea
| | - Geoffrey Nichols
- Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA
| | - Nichola S Plowman
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic
| | - Conor Redmond
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic
| | - Carlo L Seifert
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Vrana
- The Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - George D Weiblen
- Bell Museum and Department of Plant & Microbial Biology, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, USA
| | - Vojtech Novotny
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branisovska 1160/31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Branisovska 1760, 370 05, Czech Republic
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10
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Uhey DA, Hofstetter RW, Remke M, Vissa S, Haubensak KA. Climate and vegetation structure shape ant communities along elevational gradients on the Colorado Plateau. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:8313-8322. [PMID: 32788981 PMCID: PMC7417256 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2020] [Revised: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Terrestrial animal communities are largely shaped by vegetation and climate. With climate also shaping vegetation, can we attribute animal patterns solely to climate? Our study observes ant community changes along climatic gradients (i.e., elevational gradients) within different habitat types (i.e., open and forest) on the Colorado Plateau in the southwestern United States. We sampled ants and vegetation along two elevational gradients spanning 1,132 m with average annual temperature and precipitation differences of 5.7°C and 645mm, respectively. We used regression analyses and structural equation modeling to compare the explanatory powers and effect sizes of climate and vegetation variables on ants. Climate variables had the strongest correlations and the largest effect sizes on ant communities, while vegetation composition, richness, and primary productivity had relatively small effects. Precipitation was the strongest predictor for most ant community metrics. Ant richness and abundance had a negative relationship with precipitation in forested habitats, and positive in open habitats. Our results show strong direct climate effects on ants with little or no effects of vegetation composition or primary productivity, but contrasting patterns between vegetation type (i.e., forested vs. open) with precipitation. This indicates vegetation structure can modulate climate responses of ant communities. Our study demonstrates climate-animal relationships may vary among vegetation types which can impact both findings from elevational studies and how communities will react to changes in climate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derek A. Uhey
- School of ForestryNorthern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffArizonaUSA
| | | | | | - Sneha Vissa
- School of ForestryNorthern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffArizonaUSA
| | - Karen A. Haubensak
- Department of Biological Sciences and Center for Ecosystem Science and SocietyNorthern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffArizonaUSA
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García‐Navas V, Sattler T, Schmid H, Ozgul A. Temporal homogenization of functional and beta diversity in bird communities of the Swiss Alps. DIVERS DISTRIB 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Vicente García‐Navas
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies University of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
| | | | - Hans Schmid
- Swiss Ornithological Institute Sempach Switzerland
| | - Arpat Ozgul
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies University of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
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Supriya K, Price TD, Moreau CS. Competition with insectivorous ants as a contributor to low songbird diversity at low elevations in the eastern Himalaya. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:4280-4290. [PMID: 32489596 PMCID: PMC7246197 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2020] [Accepted: 02/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Competitive interactions between distantly related clades could cause complementary diversity patterns of these clades over large spatial scales. One such example might be ants and birds in the eastern Himalaya; ants are very common at low elevations but almost absent at mid-elevations where the abundance of other arthropods and insectivorous bird diversity peaks. Here, we ask if ants at low elevations could compete with birds for arthropod prey. Specifically, we studied the impact of the Asian weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina), a common aggressive ant at low elevations. Diet analysis using molecular methods demonstrate extensive diet overlap between weaver ants and songbirds at both low and mid-elevations. Trees without weaver ants have greater non-ant arthropod abundance and leaf damage. Experimental removal of weaver ants results in an increase in the abundance of non-ant arthropods. Notably, numbers of Coleoptera and Lepidoptera were most affected by removal experiments and were prominent components of both bird and weaver ant diets. Our results suggest that songbirds and weaver ants might potentially compete with each other for arthropod prey at low elevations, thereby contributing to lower insectivorous bird diversity at low elevations in eastern Himalaya. Competition with ants may shape vertebrate diversity patterns across broad biodiversity gradients.
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Affiliation(s)
- K. Supriya
- School of Life SciencesArizona State UniversityTempeAZUSA
- Committee on Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ChicagoChicagoILUSA
| | - Trevor D. Price
- Committee on Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ChicagoChicagoILUSA
- Department of Ecology and EvolutionUniversity of ChicagoChicagoILUSA
| | - Corrie S. Moreau
- Committee on Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ChicagoChicagoILUSA
- Departments of Entomology and Ecology & Evolutionary BiologyCornell UniversityIthacaNYUSA
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Schumm M, White AE, Supriya K, Price TD. Ecological Limits as the Driver of Bird Species Richness Patterns along the East Himalayan Elevational Gradient. Am Nat 2020; 195:802-817. [PMID: 32364787 DOI: 10.1086/707665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Variation in species richness across environmental gradients results from a combination of historical nonequilibrium processes (time, speciation, extinction) and present-day differences in environmental carrying capacities (i.e., ecological limits affected by species interactions and the abundance and diversity of resources). In a study of bird richness along the subtropical east Himalayan elevational gradient, we test the prediction that species richness patterns are consistent with ecological limits using data on morphology, phylogeny, elevational distribution, and arthropod resources. Species richness peaks at midelevations. Occupied morphological volume is roughly constant from low elevations to midelevations, implying that more species are packed into the same space at midelevations compared with low elevations. However, variance in beak length and differences in beak length between close relatives decline with elevation, which is a consequence of the addition of many small insectivores at midelevations. These patterns are predicted from resource distributions: arthropod size diversity declines from low elevations to midelevations, largely because many more small insects are present at midelevations. Weak correlations of species mean morphological traits with elevation also match predictions based on resources and habitats. Elevational transects in the tropical Andes, New Guinea, and Tanzania similarly show declines in mean arthropod size and mean beak length and, in these cases, likely contribute to declining numbers of insectivorous bird species richness along these gradients. The results imply that conditions for ecological limits are met, although historical nonequilibrium processes are likely to also contribute to the pattern of species richness.
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