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Guo Q, Lu X, Xie C, Zhang J, Xu X, Qian Y, Luo X, Duan Y. Trophic Niche Differentiation in Two Sympatric Nuthatch Species ( Sitta yunnanensis and Sitta nagaensis). Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:1146. [PMID: 38672294 DOI: 10.3390/ani14081146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2024] [Revised: 03/30/2024] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Sympatric closely related species may experience interspecific trophic competition due to ecological similarity; they may isolate in terms of diet or habitat use as a strategy to avoid competition. The body tissues of consumers contain stable isotope signatures information that can be applied to infer their dietary information. In this study, δ13C and δ15N stable isotopes were analyzed to determine the dietary information and trophic niches of sympatric coexisting Sitta yunnanensis and Sitta nagaensis. The results showed that the food sources of S. yunnanensis and S. nagaensis were from six orders, including Orthoptera, and the cumulative contribution rate was 99.97%, with the two species eating similar diets but at different rates. The larger δ13C of S. yunnanensis indicates that it had a wider range of habitats for feeding, while the difference in δ15N values was not significant (p > 0.05), indicating that both species feed on similar nutrient levels. As determined by Bayesian ellipses, the isotopic niches of S. yunnanensis and S. nagaensis were differentiated; the isotopic niche width of S. yunnanensis is 2.69‱2, which was larger than that of S. nagaensis (0.73‱2), indicates that differentiation between the two species in diet or habitat use reduced competition. Trophic niche differentiation and differences in foraging proportions may be the principal resource allocation mechanisms behind S. yunnanensis and S. nagaensis coexistence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Guo
- Key Laboratory for Forest Resources Conservation and Utilization in the Southwest Mountains of China, Ministry of Education, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
- College of Forestry, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
| | - Xi Lu
- Key Laboratory for Forest Resources Conservation and Utilization in the Southwest Mountains of China, Ministry of Education, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
- Key Laboratory for Conserving Wildlife with Small Populations in Yunnan, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
| | - Chongxin Xie
- College of Forestry, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
| | - Jiansong Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Forest Resources Conservation and Utilization in the Southwest Mountains of China, Ministry of Education, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
- Key Laboratory for Conserving Wildlife with Small Populations in Yunnan, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
| | - Xianyin Xu
- Administration of Zixi Mountain Provincial Nature Reserve, Chuxiong 675008, China
| | - Yuhan Qian
- College of Forestry, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
| | - Xu Luo
- Key Laboratory for Forest Resources Conservation and Utilization in the Southwest Mountains of China, Ministry of Education, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
| | - Yubao Duan
- Key Laboratory for Forest Resources Conservation and Utilization in the Southwest Mountains of China, Ministry of Education, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
- College of Forestry, Southwest Forestry University, Kunming 650224, China
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Gómez JM, Schupp EW, Jordano P. The ecological and evolutionary significance of effectiveness landscapes in mutualistic interactions. Ecol Lett 2021; 25:264-277. [PMID: 34971487 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13939] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Revised: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Mutualism effectiveness, the contribution of an interacting organism to its partner's fitness, is defined as the number of immediate outcomes of the interactions (quantity component) multiplied by the probability that an immediate outcome results in a new individual (quality component). These components form a two-dimensional effectiveness landscape with each species' location determined by its values of quantity (x-axis) and quality (y-axis). We propose that the evolutionary history of mutualistic interactions leaves a footprint that can be identified by three properties of the spatial structure of effectiveness values: dispersion of effectiveness values, relative contribution of each component to the effectiveness values and correlation between effectiveness components. We illustrate this approach using a large dataset on synzoochory, seed dispersal by seed-caching animals. The synzoochory landscape was clumped, with effectiveness determined primarily by the quality component, and with quantity and quality positively correlated. We suggest this type of landscape structure is common in generalised coevolved mutualisms, where multiple functionally equivalent, high-quality partners exert similarly strong selection. Presumably, only those organisms located in high-quality regions will impact the evolution of their partner. Exploring properties of effectiveness landscapes in other mutualisms will provide new insight into the evolutionary and ecological consequences of mutualisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- José María Gómez
- Departamento de Ecología Funcional y Evolutiva, Estación Experimental de Zonas Áridas (EEZA- CSIC), Almería, Spain
| | - Eugene W Schupp
- Department of Wildland Resources and Ecology Center, S. J. and Jesse E. Quinney College of Natural Resources, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA.,Integrative Ecology Group, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain
| | - Pedro Jordano
- Integrative Ecology Group, Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain.,Departamento de Biología Vegetal y Ecología, Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, Spain
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