A new probabilistic method for quantifying <i>n</i>‐dimensional ecological niches and niche overlap

Swanson, Heidi K.; Lysy, Martin; Power, Michael; Stasko, Ashley D.; Johnson, Jim D.; Reist, James D.

doi:10.1890/14-0235.1

Cited by 397 publications

(401 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…However, this is a relatively new metric which has yet to undergo the assessment stipulated by Table 3 and it is still unclear whether this metric satisfies other properties. In addition to the n-dimensional hypervolume, other recent developments include; Range box (Qiao et al 2017), Minimum ellipse (Swanson et al 2015), Dynamic range box (Junker et al 2016) and Probabilistic hypervolume (Carmona et al 2016). However, these metrics also have yet to undergo stringent tests to reveal whether they conform to important properties or have a link to ecosystem functioning.…”

Section: Structural Properties Of Metricsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation and selection of functional diversity metrics with recommendations for their use in life cycle assessments

Ahmed

Bodegom

Tukker

2018

Int J Life Cycle Assess

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Purpose In life cycle assessments (LCAs), the focus of modelling the impact of human-induced pressures on biodiversity has been mainly on taxonomic diversity measures such as species richness. More recently, increasing availability of trait data and the understanding that functional diversity is more directly related to human-induced pressures suggests functional diversity as a promising metric. One major challenge relates to the selection process of the correct metric. Our purpose is to categorise and identify appropriate metrics of functional diversity for LCA model developers based on a justified choice of its structural properties and its links to human-induced pressures. Methods We conducted a meta-analysis of literature to identify those functional diversity metrics that are frequently applied (not necessarily within LCA studies) and that possess a strong link to ecosystem functioning and human-induced pressures. Also, we provide a compilation of metrics that conform to important and desirable structural properties stipulated from literature. By reconciling these highlighted key properties with the strength of metric link, we make propositions for functional diversity use in LCA. Results and discussion To capture impacts on functional diversity, the combination of functional richness, evenness and divergence needs to be considered. The mean strength of functional diversity metrics was highest for temperature rise and CO 2 elevation, as related to climate change, and less to eutrophication and land use change. Studies on impacts of water use change and other important human-induced pressures on functional diversity seem not available. When combined with desired structural properties such as independence and scale invariance, a combination of functional dendrogram (FR D ), functional evenness (FE m ) and functional logarithmic variance (FD var ) is preferred to comprehensively determine human impacts on biodiversity in LCAs. However, if a set of multi-dimensional components is sought, then the best option is functional volume (FR V ), functional evenness (FE m ) and functional divergence (FD m ). Conclusions Through this reconciliation of usage, mean strength and key properties, the LCA model developer is able to apply consistent and useful metrics in LCA studies.

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Section: Structural Properties Of Metricsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation and selection of functional diversity metrics with recommendations for their use in life cycle assessments

Ahmed

Bodegom

Tukker

2018

Int J Life Cycle Assess

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“…Importantly, these nutritional and metabolic requirements can often be expressed in only a few well-established dimensions, potentially resolving some of the ambiguity in selecting traits. In particular, isotopic ecology (Layman et al, 2007;Newsome et al, 2007;Jackson et al, 2011;Cucherousset and Villéger, 2015;Swanson et al, 2015), the geometric framework of nutrition (Simpson and Raubenheimer, 1993;Raubenheimer and Simpson, 2004;Raubenheimer et al, 2009Raubenheimer et al, , 2015Kearney et al, 2010;Raubenheimer, 2011), and ecological stoichiometry (Elser et al, 2000;Peñuelas et al, 2008Peñuelas et al, , 2010 have all represented the ecological niche using the chemistry of living organisms.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Multidimensional Stoichiometric Niche

et al. 2017

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The niche concept is essential to understanding how biotic and abiotic factors regulate the abundance and distribution of living entities, and how these organisms utilize, affect and compete for resources in the environment. However, it has been challenging to determine the number and types of important niche dimensions. By contrast, there is strong mechanistic theory and empirical evidence showing that the elemental composition of living organisms shapes ecological systems, from organismal physiology to food web structure. We propose an approach based on a multidimensional elemental view of the ecological niche. Visualizing the stoichiometric composition of individuals in multivariate space permits quantification of niche dimensions within and across species. This approach expands on previous elemental characterizations of plant niches, and adapts metrics of niche volume, overlap and nestedness previously used to quantify isotopic niches. We demonstrate the applicability of the multidimensional stoichiometric niche using data on carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus of terrestrial and freshwater communities composed by multiple trophic groups. First, we calculated the stoichiometric niche volumes occupied by terrestrial and freshwater food webs, by trophic groups, by individual species, and by individuals within species, which together give a measure of the extent of stoichiometric diversity within and across levels of organization. Then we evaluated complementarity between these stoichiometric niches, through metrics of overlap and nestedness. Our case study showed that vertebrates, invertebrates, and primary producers do not overlap in their stoichiometric niches, and that large areas of stoichiometric space are unoccupied by organisms. Within invertebrates, niche differences emerged between freshwater and terrestrial food webs, and between herbivores and non-herbivores (detritivores and predators). These niche differences were accompanied by changes in the covariance structure of the three elements, suggesting fundamental shifts in organismal physiology and/or structure. We also demonstrate the sensitivity of results to sample size, and suggest that representative sampling is better than rarefaction in characterizing the stoichiometric niche occupied by food webs. Overall, our approach demonstrates that stoichiometric traits provide a common currency to estimate the dimensionality of stoichiometric niches, and help reduce and rationalize the number of axis required to characterize communities.

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“…We also calculated overlap values between SSR and EZ limiting our analysis to the subset of taxa that were sampled at both sites. We calculated the overlap of both two dimensional ellipses (using each isotope pair C:O, C:N, and N:O) and three dimensional ellipsoids (C:N:O) among groups in each category with the R-package nicheROVER v. 1.0 (Swanson et al, 2015). For a given pair of isotopic distributions (e.g., group A and B), the nicheROVER package employs a Bayesian algorithm to produce posterior estimates of the probability that a member of A falls within the 95% confidence ellipsoid of B (pr{A|B}), and the probability that a member of B falls within the 95% confidence ellipsoid of A (pr{B|A}).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Oxygen Isotope Values in Collagen Reflect the Ecology and Physiology of Neotropical Mammals?

et al. 2015

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Stable isotope data provide insight into the foraging ecology of animals. Traditionally, carbon and nitrogen isotope values have been used to infer dietary and habitat preferences. Oxygen isotopes are used less frequently but may complement the ecological information provided by carbon and nitrogen, particularly in densely forested or arid environments. Additionally, because oxygen is preserved in both bioapatite and collagen, it is useful for paleoecological studies. To investigate the suitability of oxygen isotopes for complementing and building on ecological applications of carbon and nitrogen isotopes, we analyze all three isotopes in bone collagen for nearly identical assemblages of Costa Rican mammals in two ecologically distinct habitats -an evergreen rainforest and a seasonal dry forest. We assess the degree to which differences in habitat, activity pattern, diet, arboreality, and thermoregulation are revealed by each of the isotope systems. Our results highlight the potential of oxygen isotopes in modern and paleoecological contexts. In addition to reflecting habitat type, oxygen isotope values in collagen distinguish species on the basis of vertical habitat stratification and drinking behavior. Within a locality, individuals with low oxygen isotope values likely track meteoric water, whereas those with elevated values most likely consume evaporatively-enriched plant tissues, such as canopy leaves. These patterns will be useful in reconstructing paleoenvironments and interpreting ecological differences among taxa both extant and extinct.

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A new probabilistic method for quantifying n‐dimensional ecological niches and niche overlap

Cited by 397 publications

References 23 publications

Evaluation and selection of functional diversity metrics with recommendations for their use in life cycle assessments

Evaluation and selection of functional diversity metrics with recommendations for their use in life cycle assessments

The Multidimensional Stoichiometric Niche

Do Oxygen Isotope Values in Collagen Reflect the Ecology and Physiology of Neotropical Mammals?

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