Dispersal traits drive the phylogenetic distance decay of similarity in Neotropical stream metacommunities

Saito, Victor S.; Soininen, Janne; Fonseca-Gessner, Alaíde A.; Siqueira, Tadeu

doi:10.1111/jbi.12577

Cited by 81 publications

(94 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…This inference is based on the fact that the steepness of the distance decay curve can be interpreted in terms of dispersal ability (Qian 2009, Wetzel et al 2012, Saito et al 2015 and this would be particularly true in systems in which similarity between faunas is not related to climatic distance, like ours. flat decays in all cases) suggests that these beetle assemblages are composed of species with similar characteristics (good dispersers), irrespective to the taxon to which they belong.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 77%

Variation among European beetle taxa in patterns of distance decay of similarity suggests a major role of dispersal processes

2018

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The decay of assemblage similarity with spatial distance can be explained by alternative mechanisms: dispersal limitation and species sorting. To understand their relative contributions, we compare the decay in faunal similarity with spatial distance and, independently, with climatic distance, of 21 beetle taxa with varying dispersal abilities and ecological niches, in southern and northern Europe. Similarity in beetle faunas was associated to spatial but not to climatic distances, pointing to the preponderance of dispersal processes rather than niche constraints. In most taxa, southern faunas were more dissimilar than northern ones: smaller initial similarity and steeper distance decay rate. Distance decay patterns in the north were relatively flat and very similar across taxa, suggesting that only good dispersers would have reached those latitudes after the glacial retreat. The difference in distance decay patterns between north and south is correlated with the taxon's slope of the distance decay pattern in the south and with its latitudinal richness difference. That is, in taxa with distance decay patterns similarly flat in the south and the north, the latitudinal richness gradient is weak. This correlation points again to differences in dispersal ability as a major determinant of biogeographic patterns in European beetles. Both dispersal and niche-related characteristics explained north-south slope differences, but dispersal attributes turned out to be more relevant when initial similarity and distance decay strength were considered together. Our results show that, to understand diversity patterns in Europe, closely related biological groups cannot be assumed to be surrogates and regions with different historical biogeography should be analysed separately. Paradoxically, the study of beetle faunas of southern Europe will shed light on the processes controlling the recolonization of northern latitudes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 77%

Variation among European beetle taxa in patterns of distance decay of similarity suggests a major role of dispersal processes

2018

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“…The lack of spatial signal on taxonomic patterns suggests that dispersal limitation or the association with unmeasured environmental variables is probably mediated by the measured traits (Saito et al 2015), of which body size may be a strong candidate. The lack of spatial signal on taxonomic patterns suggests that dispersal limitation or the association with unmeasured environmental variables is probably mediated by the measured traits (Saito et al 2015), of which body size may be a strong candidate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic metacommunity ecology of cladoceran zooplankton along urbanization gradients

et al. 2017

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As human population size increases and cities become denser, several urban-related selection pressures increasingly affect species composition in both terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Yet, it is not well known whether and how urbanization influences other facets of biodiversity, such as the functional and evolutionary composition of communities, and at what spatial scale urbanization acts. Here we used a hierarchical sampling design in which urbanization levels were quantified at seven spatial scales (ranging from 50 to 3200 m radii). We found that urbanization gradients are associated with a strong shift in cladoceran zooplankton species traits, which in turn affected phylogenetic composition of the entire metacommunity, but only when considering urbanization at the smallest spatial scale (50 m radius). Specifically, small cladoceran species dominated in more urbanized ponds whereas large-bodied, strong competitors prevailed in less urbanized systems. We also show that trait and phylogenetic metrics strongly increase the amount of variation in b-diversity that can be explained by degree of urbanization, environmental and spatial factors. This suggests that the mechanisms shaping b-diversity in our study system are mediated by traits and phylogenetic relatedness rather than species identities. Our study indicates that accounting for traits and phylogeny in metacommunity analyses helps to explain seemingly idiosyncratic patterns of variation in zooplankton species composition along urbanization gradients. The fact that urbanization acts only at the smallest spatial scale suggests that correctly managing environmental conditions locally has the power to counteract the effects of urbanization on biodiversity patterns. The multidimensional approach we applied here can be applied to other systems and organism groups and seems to be key in understanding how overall biodiversity changes in response to anthropogenic pressures and how this scales up to affect ecosystem functioning.

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“…Moreover, phylogenetic approaches to metacommunities can identify the contribution of biogeographical history to both local and regional distribution of species 46 , can more specifically predict increasing phylogenetic structure with community size and isolation 47 , and have improved the testability of metacommunity predictions of patterns of beta diversity 48 . Phylogenetic analysis of metacommunities also suggested that non-equilibrium neutral dynamics of total abundance are more compatible with observed phylogenies than steady-state communities 49 .…”

Section: Competitive and Trophic Metacommunitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent advances in metacommunities and meta-ecosystem theories

Guichard

2017

F1000Res

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Metacommunity theory has provided many insights into the general problem of local versus regional control of species diversity and relative abundance. The metacommunity framework has been extended from competitive interactions to whole food webs that can be described as spatial networks of interaction networks. Trophic metacommunity theory greatly contributed to resolving the community complexity-stability debate by predicting its dependence on the regional spatial context. The meta-ecosystem framework has since been suggested as a useful simplification of complex ecosystems to apply this spatial context to spatial flows of both individuals and matter. Reviewing the recent literature on metacommunity and meta-ecosystem theories suggests the importance of unifying theories of interaction strength into a meta-ecosystem framework that captures how the strength of spatial, species, and ecosystem fluxes are distributed across location and trophic levels. Such integration predicts important feedback between local and regional processes that drive the assembly of species, the stability of community, and the emergence of ecosystem functions, from limited spatial fluxes of individuals and (in)organic matter. These predictions are often mediated by the maintenance of environmental or endogenous fluctuations from local to regional scales that create important challenges and opportunities for the validation of metacommunity and meta-ecosystem theories and their application to conservation.

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Dispersal traits drive the phylogenetic distance decay of similarity in Neotropical stream metacommunities

Cited by 81 publications

References 60 publications

Variation among European beetle taxa in patterns of distance decay of similarity suggests a major role of dispersal processes

Variation among European beetle taxa in patterns of distance decay of similarity suggests a major role of dispersal processes

Taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic metacommunity ecology of cladoceran zooplankton along urbanization gradients

Recent advances in metacommunities and meta-ecosystem theories

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