The Evolutionary Strategies that Shape Ecosystems

Grime, J. Philip; Pierce, Simon

doi:10.1002/9781118223246

Cited by 325 publications

(437 citation statements)

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“…Lichens as stress tolerators respond to environmental stresses through physiological variability (Grime and Pierce, 2012) so that divergent traits in BSC performance between the sites should reflect the stress level. One such difference can be found in their optimal water contents for NP.…”

Section: Photosynthetic Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to the Competitor-Stress toleratorRuderal Triangle theory, they are stress tolerators, a grouping that is typically found in areas of highintensity stress and low-intensity disturbance (Grime, 2002) such as alpine or arid habitats, deep shade, nutrient deficient soils and areas of extreme pH levels (Grime and Pierce, 2012). Species classified as stress tolerators generally have slow growth rates, high rates of nutrient retention and low-phenotypic plasticity (Grime and Pierce, 2012) and respond to environmental stresses through physiological variability. Lichens grow and survive under a wide range of stressful conditions and are known to show considerable plasticity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Habitat stress initiates changes in composition, CO2 gas exchange and C-allocation as life traits in biological soil crusts

et al. 2014

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Biological soil crusts (BSC) are the dominant functional vegetation unit in some of the harshest habitats in the world. We assessed BSC response to stress through changes in biotic composition, CO 2 gas exchange and carbon allocation in three lichen-dominated BSC from habitats with different stress levels, two more extreme sites in Antarctica and one moderate site in Germany. Maximal net photosynthesis (NP) was identical, whereas the water content to achieve maximal NP was substantially lower in the Antarctic sites, this apparently being achieved by changes in biomass allocation. Optimal NP temperatures reflected local climate. The Antarctic BSC allocated fixed carbon (tracked using 14 CO 2 ) mostly to the alcohol soluble pool (low-molecular weight sugars, sugar alcohols), which has an important role in desiccation and freezing resistance and antioxidant protection. In contrast, BSC at the moderate site showed greater carbon allocation into the polysaccharide pool, indicating a tendency towards growth. The results indicate that the BSC of the more stressed Antarctic sites emphasise survival rather than growth. Changes in BSC are adaptive and at multiple levels and we identify benefits and risks attached to changing life traits, as well as describing the ecophysiological mechanisms that underlie them.

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Section: Photosynthetic Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat stress initiates changes in composition, CO2 gas exchange and C-allocation as life traits in biological soil crusts

et al. 2014

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“…Such exclusive statistical procedure does not permit to detect mechanisms of compensation between processes along a given dimension of functional specialization and mechanisms of addition with different processes playing on independent dimensions of functional niche. However, it is more and more observed that not a single but several niche-based processes interact concomitantly to explain the structure of communities (Grime and Pierce 2012). Hence, there is an important toolkit to develop in the next future to better detect where and how much each of the niche-based process occur within and among communities, especially in grassland where drivers of environment and management can be plural.…”

Section: Going Through the Debate Of Opposing Niche-based Theoriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grass strategies and grassland community responses to environmental drivers: a review

Pontes

Maire

Schellberg

et al. 2015

Agron. Sustain. Dev.

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Grassland covers about one quarter of the Earth's land area and is currently estimated to contribute to the livelihoods of over 800 million people. Grassland provides ecosystem goods and services, mainly through the provisioning of milk and meat. Therefore, the proper use of grasslands will be essential for feeding the nine billion people that will inhabit planet Earth by 2050. In the context of a changing climate, we should better understand the interactions of environment, management and grass crop at individual, community and ecosystem levels. Functional ecology focuses on the roles and functions that species play in the community or ecosystem in which they occur. Functional ecology thus aims to understand how plant species adapt to environmental conditions and how management can alter this adaptation. Here, we review the latest advances in plant functional traits research and on species strategies to the main environmental factors occurring in grassland ecosystems: nutrient availability, grazing, cutting and shading. Functional ecology also provides a framework to better understand how species strategies interact with the species composition at the community level. Therefore, the literature on community assembling theories in relation to ecosystem processes most relevant to grassland management and services is also reviewed. Finally, future research questions and some new orientations for grassland experts are offered in order to meet the challenge of maintaining productivity and preservation of these semi-natural environments in the face of global change.

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“…Nutrient enrichment can lead to competitive exclusion of inferior competitors for light 19,20 , but herbivores can remove plant biomass, potentially alleviating understory light limitation. However, herbivory creates another axis of potential trade-offs among plant species, involving investment in rapid growth and light capture versus investment in defence against herbivory [23][24][25][26] . These interactions result in a dynamic local community in which composition responds quickly to changes in the strength of nutrient limitation or herbivory 25,26 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, herbivory creates another axis of potential trade-offs among plant species, involving investment in rapid growth and light capture versus investment in defence against herbivory [23][24][25][26] . These interactions result in a dynamic local community in which composition responds quickly to changes in the strength of nutrient limitation or herbivory 25,26 . In eutrophied systems, where nutrient limitation is alleviated and productivity is increased, theory predicts that these tradeoffs among plant strategies will simplify the plant community to species sharing an herbivore and competing for a single resourcelight 9,19 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%