Testing the uniqueness of deep terrestrial life

Trontelj, Peter; Borko, Špela; Delić, Teo

doi:10.1038/s41598-019-51610-1

Cited by 15 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…Our results indicate that, at a spatial scale of less than 1 km 2 , there is a single pool of subterranean specialised species that permanently occurs in the subterranean domain. This finding corroborates the idea that caves in close proximity are often interconnected by networks of subterranean habitat spaces (Giachino & Vailati, 2010;Trontelj et al, 2019;Mammola, 2020). Yet, the theoretical expectation of no turnover in the community composition of these caves is not always met.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

“…If microcavernous habitats ensure subterranean habitat connectivity at the local scale, low values of β-diversity should be observed when studying biological communities of caves in close proximity. This pattern was recently confirmed by research exploring the spatial distribution of invertebrate species over the cross section of the Trnovski Gozd massif in Slovenia, demonstrating a limited distinction between shallow (0-50 m) and deep (up to 800 m) cave communities within this karst massif (Trontelj et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 54%

“…Alternatively, the explanation for this relationship may be linked to gravitation-assisted patterns in the distribution of species. Trontelj et al (2019) documented how the distribution of animals within karst massif can be influenced by gravity. They argued that '[ … ] animals from a wider area of shallow subterranean spaces can be funneled towards deeper parts of vertical caves by flowing water or gravity'.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Specimens were identified to the lowest possible taxonomic rank by experts of the different groups (see author contribution and acknowledgements for details). For the purpose of exploring subterranean diversity patterns, we assigned each species to two major ecological groups (Novak et al, 2012;Niemiller & Zigler, 2013;Trontelj et al, 2019): obligate subterranean species ('troglobionts'; Sket, 2008;Trajano & de Carvalho, 2017) and all other species ('non-troglobionts'; Novak et al, 2012) (Appendix S1). We based this classification mainly on the expert opinion of different taxonomists involved in this work but also using data and morphological traits associated with subterranean life (loss of eyes and body pigment) from the literature.…”

Section: Species Identification and Ecological Classificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring the homogeneity of terrestrial subterranean communities at a local spatial scale

Mammola

Chiappetta

Giachino³

et al. 2020

Ecological Entomology

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1. Although caves are generally perceived as isolated habitats, at the local scale, they are often interconnected via a network of fissures in the bedrock. Accordingly, caves in close proximity are expected to host the same, or very similar, animal communities. 2. We explored the extent to which subterranean arthropod communities are homogenous at a local spatial scale of less than 1 km2, along with which cave‐specific environmental features result in a departure from the expected homogeneous pattern. We approached this question by studying richness and turnover in terrestrial invertebrate communities of 27 caves in a small karst massif in the Western Italian Alps. 3. Specialised subterranean species were homogeneously distributed among caves and were not influenced by seasonality. The only factor driving their distribution was the distance from the cave entrance, with deeper caves yielding a greater diversity of species. 4. Significant spatio‐temporal turnover in species not specialised to subterranean life was observed. In summer, there was a significant homogenisation of the community and a more even distribution of species among sites; in winter, these species were missing or found exclusively at greater depths, where environmental conditions were more stable. Furthermore, caves at lower elevations yielded, on average, a greater diversity and abundance of these species. 5. This study demonstrated that the theoretical expectation of no turnover in community composition in caves in close proximity is not always met. Turnover can be mostly attributed to seasonal patterns and sampling depth; thus, our findings have implications for planning sampling and monitoring activities in caves.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 54%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Species Identification and Ecological Classificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Exploring the homogeneity of terrestrial subterranean communities at a local spatial scale

Mammola

Chiappetta

Giachino³

et al. 2020

Ecological Entomology

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“…Hence the analogy of caves to islands in a sea of surface habitat holds for these species (Culver and Pipan 2019;Snowman et al 2010). It is thought that migration of troglobionts must occur via subterranean connections (Culver and Pipan 2019;Trontelj et al 2019). Consistent with this theory, hierarchical clustering of populations for both species paired caves by watershed, rather than physical distance ( Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 68%

Testing the ‘caves as islands’ model in two cave-obligate invertebrates with a genomic approach

Balogh

Dixon

Ngo

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Caves offer selective pressures that are distinct from the surface. Organisms that have evolved to exist under these pressures typically exhibit a suite of convergent characteristics, including a loss or reduction of eyes and pigmentation. As a result, cave-obligate taxa, termed troglobionts, are no longer viable on the surface. This circumstance has led to a "caves as islands" model of troglobiont evolution that predicts extreme genetic divergence between cave populations even across relatively small areas. An effective test of this model would involve (1) common troglobionts from (2) nearby caves in a cavedense region, (3) good sample sizes per cave, (4) multiple taxa, and (5) genome-wide characterization. With these criteria in mind, we used RAD-seq to genotype an average of ten individuals of the troglobiotic spider Nesticus barri and the troglobiotic beetle Ptomaphagus hatchi, each from four closely located caves (ranging from 3-13 km apart) in the cave-rich southern Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee, USA. Consistent with the caves as islands model, we find that populations from separate caves are indeed highly genetically isolated. In addition, nucleotide diversity was correlated to cave length, suggesting that cave size is a dominant force shaping troglobiont population size and genetic diversity. Our results support the idea of caves as natural laboratories for the study of parallel evolutionary processes.

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Stalagmites: from Science Application to Museumization

et al. 2021

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The concept of geoheritage is related to places of geological interest, generally of aesthetic, cultural, socio-economic and/or scientific value. Many geosites are of karstic nature, because of their intrinsic beauty, their singularity and high geodiversity. Caves are among the most visited and economically exploited geological landforms. They constitute geosites as a whole, with their scenic landscapes, hydrogeological importance and the presence of bewildering natural rock and mineral formations including stalactites, stalagmites, flowstones and many other bizarre speleothem shapes. In some cases, a single speleothem, and the palaeoclimate record it contains, can be on its own of extraordinary importance to science. Once studied, these samples are often stored in research institution collections, rarely accessible to the wide public. In this paper, we report on the museumization of a stalagmite that has delivered a unique and exceptionally long glacial climate record from southern Italy, shedding light on the causes that led to the Neanderthal contraction and Modern Human expansion in this mild Mediterranean climate between 45 and 42 thousands years ago. The proposed museumization aims to demonstrate the potential of speleothems, after scientific application, in terms of educational and tourist resources. This approach allows to highlight the scientific importance of karst and cave geosites to the wide public, promoting their conservation and the valorisation of the studied cave-material.

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Testing the uniqueness of deep terrestrial life

Cited by 15 publications

References 37 publications

Exploring the homogeneity of terrestrial subterranean communities at a local spatial scale

Exploring the homogeneity of terrestrial subterranean communities at a local spatial scale

Testing the ‘caves as islands’ model in two cave-obligate invertebrates with a genomic approach

Stalagmites: from Science Application to Museumization

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