Using structural equation modeling to test established theory and develop novel hypotheses for the structuring forces in soil food webs

Shao, Yuanhu; Bao, Weikai; Chen, Dima; Eisenhauer, Nico; Zhang, Weixin; Pang, Xiaoyun; Xu, Guoliang; Fu, Shenglei

doi:10.1016/j.pedobi.2015.06.001

Cited by 33 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…In the abiotic stress example given above, community stress and disturbance are latent variables that account for the correlation in the dataset. Shao et al (2015) applied CFA to constrict the soilnutrition features to one variable that accounted for soil organic carbon, litter total nitrogen, and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio. Also, Capmouteres and Anand (2016) defined the habitat function as an environmental indicator that explained both plant cover and native bird abundance for the forest ecosystems by using CFA.…”

Section: Confirmatory Factor Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Grace (2006) provided the first comprehensive book on SEM basics with key examples from a series of ecosystem studies. Now, in the most recent decade, a rapid increase of SEM in ecological sciences has been witnessed (Eisenhauer et al 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This review is an update on Grace et al (2010) and Eisenhauer et al (2015), who both provided a timely and comprehensive review of SEM applications in ecological studies. This review differs from the above two reviews, which focused on general ecological papers with SEM from 1999 through 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This review differs from the above two reviews, which focused on general ecological papers with SEM from 1999 through 2016. More so, Eisenhauer et al (2015) only focused on SEM applications in soil ecology before 2012. In this review, we included SEM basic applications-as SEM remains unknown to many ecologists-and summarized the potential applications for SEM models that are often overlooked, including the issues and challenges in applying SEM.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Applications of structural equation modeling (SEM) in ecological studies: an updated review

et al. 2016

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Aims: This review was developed to introduce the essential components and variants of structural equation modeling (SEM), synthesize the common issues in SEM applications, and share our views on SEM's future in ecological research. Methods: We searched the Web of Science on SEM applications in ecological studies from 1999 through 2016 and summarized the potential of SEMs, with a special focus on unexplored uses in ecology. We also analyzed and discussed the common issues with SEM applications in previous publications and presented our view for its future applications.Results: We searched and found 146 relevant publications on SEM applications in ecological studies. We found that five SEM variants had not commenly been applied in ecology, including the latent growth curve model, Bayesian SEM, partial least square SEM, hierarchical SEM, and variable/model selection. We identified ten common issues in SEM applications including strength of causal assumption, specification of feedback loops, selection of models and variables, identification of models, methods of estimation, explanation of latent variables, selection of fit indices, report of results, estimation of sample size, and the fit of model. Conclusions:In previous ecological studies, measurements of latent variables, explanations of model parameters, and reports of key statistics were commonly overlooked, while several advanced uses of SEM had been ignored overall. With the increasing availability of data, the use of SEM holds immense potential for ecologists in the future.

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Section: Confirmatory Factor Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Applications of structural equation modeling (SEM) in ecological studies: an updated review

et al. 2016

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“…Even when focusing on specific nematode functional groups, such as plant-feeders, the impacts of climate change on nematode abundance vary considerably across studies (A 'Bear et al, 2014;Ayres et al, 2008;Blankinship et al, 2011;Cesarz et al, 2015;Ferris et al, 2012). The lack of predictability of nematode responses to climate change likely reflects three sources of variation among studies: i) biogeographic variation in how climate change influences soil abiotic conditions (e.g., moisture) and the basal resources of soil food webs, including roots, bacteria, and fungi (García-Palacios et al, 2015), ii) variation in the extent to which various factors regulate soil food web structure (e.g., abiotic vs. biotic factors, top-down vs. bottom-up factors, indirect vs. direct effects of climate change) (Kardol et al, 2010;Shao et al, 2015), and iii) variation in the taxonomic and functional resolution of nematode identification (Cesarz et al, 2015;Neher and Weicht, 2013). Thus, additional studies are required to generate hypotheses and better understand the impacts of climate change on soil nematodes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Elevated CO2 and warming shift the functional composition of soil nematode communities in a semiarid grassland

Mueller

Blumenthal

Carrillo

et al. 2016

Soil Biology and Biochemistry

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and Eisenhauer, Nico, "Elevated CO 2 and warming shift the functional composition of soil nematode communities in a semiarid grassland" (2016 b s t r a c tClimate change can alter soil communities and functions, but the consequences are uncertain for most ecosystems. We assessed the impacts of climate change on soil nematodes in a semiarid grassland using a 7-year, factorial manipulation of temperature and [CO 2 ]. Elevated CO 2 and warming decreased the abundance of plant-feeding nematodes and nematodes with intermediate to high values on the colonizer-persister scale (cp3-5), including predators and omnivores. Thus, under futuristic climate conditions, nematode communities were even more dominated by r-strategists (cp1-2) that feed on bacteria and fungi. These results indicate that climate change could alter soil functioning in semiarid grasslands. For example, the lower abundance of plant-feeding nematodes could facilitate positive effects of elevated CO 2 and warming on plant productivity. The effects of elevated CO 2 and warming on nematode functional composition were typically less than additive, highlighting the need for multi-factor studies.Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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Arthropod Food Webs in the Foreland of a Retreating Greenland Glacier: Integrating Molecular Gut Content Analysis With Structural Equation Modelling

Gravesen,

Dušátková,

Athey

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

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The Arctic has warmed nearly four times faster than the global average since 1979, resulting in rapid glacier retreat and exposing new glacier forelands. These forelands offer unique experimental settings to explore how global warming impacts ecosystems, particularly for highly climate‐sensitive arthropods. Understanding these impacts can help anticipate future biodiversity and ecosystem changes under ongoing warming scenarios. In this study, we integrate data on arthropod diversity from DNA gut content analysis—offering insight into predator diets—with quantitative measures of arthropod activity‐density at a Greenland glacier foreland using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). Our SEM analysis reveals both bottom‐up and top‐down controlled food chains. Bottom‐up control, linked to sit‐and‐wait predator behavior, was prominent for spider and harvestman populations, while top‐down control, associated with active search behavior, was key for ground beetle populations. Bottom‐up controlled dynamics predominated during the early stages of vegetation succession, while top‐down mechanisms dominated in later successional stages further from the glacier, driven largely by increasing temperatures. In advanced successional stages, top‐down cascades intensify intraguild predation (IGP) among arthropod predators. This is especially evident in the linyphiid spider Collinsia holmgreni, whose diet included other linyphiid and lycosid spiders, reflecting high IGP. The IGP ratio in C. holmgreni negatively correlated with the activity‐density of ground‐dwelling prey, likely contributing to the local decline and possible extinction of this cold‐adapted species in warmer, late‐succession habitats where lycosid spiders dominate. These findings suggest that sustained warming and associated shifts in food web dynamics could lead to the loss of cold‐adapted species, while brief warm events may temporarily impact populations without lasting extinction effects.

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Using structural equation modeling to test established theory and develop novel hypotheses for the structuring forces in soil food webs

Cited by 33 publications

References 44 publications

Applications of structural equation modeling (SEM) in ecological studies: an updated review

Applications of structural equation modeling (SEM) in ecological studies: an updated review

Elevated CO2 and warming shift the functional composition of soil nematode communities in a semiarid grassland

Arthropod Food Webs in the Foreland of a Retreating Greenland Glacier: Integrating Molecular Gut Content Analysis With Structural Equation Modelling

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