Journal ArticleDOI
Dominant species maintain ecosystem function with non‐random species loss
Melinda D. Smith,Alan K. Knapp +1 more
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It is concluded that the dominant species can provide short-term resistance to reductions in ecosystem function when species loss is nonrandom and the concurrent loss of complementary interactions among rare and uncommon species, the most diverse component of communities, may contribute to additional species loss and portends erosion of ecosystem function in the long term.Abstract:
Loss of species caused by widespread stressors, such as drought and fragmentation, is likely to be non-random depending on species abundance in the community. We experimentally reduced the number of rare and uncommon plant species while independently reducing only the abundance of dominant grass species in intact, native grassland. This allowed us to simulate a non-random pattern of species loss, based on species abundances, from communities shaped by natural ecological interactions and characterized by uneven species abundance distributions. Over two growing seasons, total above-ground net primary productivity (ANPP) declined with reductions in abundance of the dominant species but was unaffected by a threefold decline in richness of less common species. In contrast, productivity of the remaining rare and uncommon species decreased with declining richness, in part due to loss of complementary interactions among these species. However, increased production of the dominant grasses offset the negative effects of species loss. We conclude that the dominant species, as controllers of ecosystem function, can provide short-term resistance to reductions in ecosystem function when species loss is nonrandom. However, the concurrent loss of complementary interactions among rare and uncommon species, the most diverse component of communities, may contribute to additional species loss and portends erosion of ecosystem function in the long term.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
The Theory of Island Biogeography
TL;DR: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols used xiii 1.
Journal ArticleDOI
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning
TL;DR: Diversity loss has an effect as great as, or greater than, the effects of herbivory, fire, drought, nitrogen addition, elevated CO2, and other drivers of environm...
Journal ArticleDOI
Are invasive species the drivers or passengers of change in degraded ecosystems
TL;DR: Examination of the impact of two invasive dominant perennial grasses on community structure in an invaded, fragmented, and fire-suppressed oak savanna suggests that relative abundance is determined more by trade-offs relating to environmental conditions than to traits relating to resource capture.
Journal ArticleDOI
Do invasive species show higher phenotypic plasticity than native species and, if so, is it adaptive? A meta‐analysis
TL;DR: The finding that invasive species are more plastic in a variety of traits but that non-invasive species respond just as well, if not better, when resources are limiting, has interesting implications for predicting responses to global change.
Journal ArticleDOI
Biodiversity-Ecosystem Function Research: Is It Relevant to Conservation?
Diane S. Srivastava,Mark Vellend +1 more
TL;DR: The conservation case is stronger for stability measures of function than stock and flux measures, in part because it is easier to attribute value unambiguously to stability and in partBecause stock and fluid measures of functions are anticipated to be more affected by multitrophic communities.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
The Theory of Island Biogeography
TL;DR: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols used xiii 1.
Book
The Theory of Island Biogeography
TL;DR: The Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols Used xiii 1. The Importance of Islands 3 2. Area and Number of Speicies 8 3. Further Explanations of the Area-Diversity Pattern 19 4. The Strategy of Colonization 68 5. Invasibility and the Variable Niche 94 6. Stepping Stones and Biotic Exchange 123 7. Evolutionary Changes Following Colonization 145 8. Prospect 181 Glossary 185 References 193 Index 201
Journal ArticleDOI
Human Domination of Earth's Ecosystems
TL;DR: Human alteration of Earth is substantial and growing as discussed by the authors, between one-third and one-half of the land surface has been transformed by human action; the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere has increased by nearly 30 percent since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution; more atmospheric nitrogen is fixed by humanity than by all natural terrestrial sources combined; more than half of all accessible surface fresh water is put to use by humanity; and about one-quarter of the bird species on Earth have been driven to extinction.
Book
The Unified Neutral Theory of Biodiversity and Biogeography
TL;DR: A study of the issue indicates that it is not a serious problem for neutral theory, and there is sometimes a difference between some of the simulation-based results of Hubbell and the analytical results of Volkov et al. (2003).
Journal ArticleDOI
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning: Current Knowledge and Future Challenges
Michel Loreau,Shahid Naeem,Pablo Inchausti,Jan Bengtsson,J. P. Grime,Andy Hector,David U. Hooper,Michael A. Huston,Dave Raffaelli,Bernhard Schmid,David Tilman,David A. Wardle +11 more
TL;DR: Larger numbers of species are probably needed to reduce temporal variability in ecosystem processes in changing environments and to determine how biodiversity dynamics, ecosystem processes, and abiotic factors interact.