Functional traits shape small mammal-helminth network: patterns and processes in species interactions

Dinoflagellates and diatoms are among the most prominent microeukaryotic plankton groups, and they have evolved different functional traits reflecting their roles within ecosystems. However, links between their metabolic processes and functional traits within different environmental contexts warrant further study. The functional biodiversity of dinoflagellates and diatoms was accessed with metatranscriptomics using Pfam protein domains as proxies for functional processes. Despite the overall geographic similarity of functional responses, abiotic (i.e., temperature and salinity; ~800 Pfam domains) and biotic (i.e., taxonomic group; ~1500 Pfam domains) factors influencing particular functional responses were identified. Salinity and temperature were identified as the main drivers of community composition. Higher temperatures were associated with an increase of Pfam domains involved in energy metabolism and a decrease of processes associated with translation and the sulfur cycle. Salinity changes were correlated with the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites (e.g., terpenoids and polyketides) and signal transduction processes, indicating an overall strong effect on the biota. The abundance of dinoflagellates was positively correlated with nitrogen metabolism, vesicular transport and signal transduction, highlighting their link to biotic interactions (more so than diatoms) and suggesting the central role of species interactions in the evolution of dinoflagellates. Diatoms were associated with metabolites (e.g., isoprenoids and carotenoids), as well as lysine degradation, which highlights their ecological role as important primary producers and indicates the physiological importance of these metabolic pathways for diatoms in their natural environment. These approaches and gathered information will support ecological questions concerning the marine ecosystem state and metabolic interactions in the marine environment.

Download Full-text

Patterns and scale of habitat use in two temperate-zone, small mammal faunas

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z84-225 ◽

1984 ◽

Vol 62 (8) ◽

pp. 1540-1547 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Douglas W. Morris

Keyword(s):

Habitat Selection ◽

Small Mammals ◽

Species Distribution ◽

Small Mammal ◽

Habitat Preference ◽

Species Interactions ◽

Microhabitat Use ◽

Microhabitat Selection ◽

Extinction Probabilities ◽

Mammal Faunas

Small mammals were livetrapped and habitat quantified in replicates of six macrohabitats in Alberta and in temporal replicates of four macrohabitats in Ontario, Canada. Similar patterns emerged in both locations. The relative abundances of small mammals depended upon macrohabitat; within macrohabitats, species differed significantly in microhabitat use. The patterns were dynamic and probably the result of habitat preference instead of species interactions. Macrohabitat differences may in part be outcomes of microhabitat selection, but are unlikely to be completely understood without superimposing colonization and extinction probabilities on habitat selection models. Field biologists must recognize both scales of habitat to interpret patterns of species distribution.

Download Full-text

Competitive asymmetry confers polyploid advantage under environmental stress

10.1101/2021.11.08.467667 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Wen Guo ◽

Na Wei ◽

Guang-You Hao ◽

Shi-Jian Yang ◽

Zhi-Yong Zhu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Stress ◽

Water Use ◽

Functional Traits ◽

Species Interactions ◽

High Water ◽

Plant Evolution ◽

Stress Conditions ◽

Heterogeneous Environments ◽

Ploidy Levels ◽

Competitive Effects

Competitive asymmetry across heterogeneous environments is crucial for the success of polyploid plants, however, little is known about it. As the major force in plant evolution, polyploids are predicted to maintain the competitive dominance relative to diploids under increased stress conditions. To evaluate the hypothesis of competitive asymmetry, we competed tetraploid and diploid plants of perennial herbaceous Chrysanthemum indicum L. (Asteraceae) at different relative frequencies under low and high water stress. We quantified the interaction intensity between competing plants of the same (intraploidy) and different ploidy levels (interploidy), and measured functional traits related to gas exchange and plant water use to understand the underlying mechanisms. Stronger competitive effects of the tetraploid on diploid provided evidence for the competitive asymmetry between polyploid and diploid plants in C. indicum. Such competitive asymmetry was not only maintained under drought (increased water stress), but also translated into higher fitness of the tetraploid consistently across water stress conditions. Functional traits associated with fast growth and efficient water use likely explained the competitive dominance of the tetraploid. These results will advance our understanding of species interactions between polyploid and diploid plants, and provide insights into population dynamics and species distribution under environmental change.

Download Full-text

Low-intensity monitoring of small-mammal habitat associations and species interactions in an urban forest-preserve network

Wildlife Research ◽

10.1071/wr18082 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 47 (2) ◽

pp. 114 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Kevin W. Cassel ◽

Dana J. Morin ◽

Clayton K. Nielsen ◽

Timothy S. Preuss ◽

Gary A. Glowacki

Keyword(s):

Small Mammal ◽

Species Interactions ◽

Interspecific Interactions ◽

Habitat Associations ◽

Mammal Species ◽

Meadow Voles ◽

Low Intensity ◽

Small Mammal Community ◽

Small Mammal Species ◽

Reserve Networks

Abstract ContextAnthropogenic landscape modification and fragmentation result in loss of species and can alter ecosystem function. Assessment of the ecological value of urban reserve networks requires baseline and continued monitoring. However, depending on the desired indicators and parameters, effective monitoring can involve extensive sampling that is often financially or logistically infeasible. AimsWe employed a low-intensity, mixed-detector survey design to monitor the small-mammal community across a network of 53 fragmented forest preserves (225 sites) in a highly urbanised landscape in the Chicago metropolitan area from August to October, 2009–2012. MethodsWe used a sequential process to fit single-season occupancy and pairwise co-occurrence models for six common small mammal species to evaluate habitat associations and interspecific interactions. Key resultsShrew species and meadow voles occurred more often in open canopy-associated habitats, whereas occupancy was greater for eastern chipmunks, grey squirrels and white-footed mice in closed-canopy habitats. Habitat associations were complicated by negative pairwise interactions, resulting in reduced occurrence of meadow voles when predatory short-tailed shrews were present and lower occupancy rates of white-footed mouse when chipmunk competitors where present. White-footed mice co-occurred with short-tailed shrews, but detection of white-footed mice was lower when either eastern chipmunks or short-tailed shrews were present, suggesting that densities of these species could be inversely related. ConclusionsWe found evidence for both habitat segregation and interspecific interactions among small mammal species, by using low-intensity sampling across the reserve network. Thus, our sampling and analysis approach allowed for adequate assessment of the habitat associations and species interactions within a small-mammal community. ImplicationsOur findings demonstrated the utility of this monitoring strategy and community as bioindicators for urban-reserve networks. The approach described holds promise for efficient monitoring of reserve networks in fragmented landscapes, critical as human population densities and urbanisation increase, and we discuss how adaptive sampling methods could be incorporated to further benefit conservation efforts.

Download Full-text

Last glacial maximum environments in northwestern Patagonia revealed by fossil small mammals

Quaternary Research ◽

10.1016/j.yqres.2014.04.015 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 82 (1) ◽

pp. 198-208 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Mauro N. Tammone ◽

Adan Hajduk ◽

Pablo Arias ◽

Pablo Teta ◽

Eileen A. Lacey ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Last Glacial Maximum ◽

Small Mammal ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Species Abundance ◽

Glacial Maximum ◽

Last Glacial ◽

Northern Patagonia ◽

Minimum Number ◽

Patterns And Processes ◽

Owl Pellets

AbstractComparisons of historical and modern assemblages of mammals can yield important insights into patterns and processes of environmental change. Here, we present the first analyses of small mammal assemblages present in northern Patagonia during the last glacial maximum (LGM). Using remains obtained from owl pellets excavated from an archeological cave site (Arroyo Corral I, levels VII–V, carbon dates of 22,400–21,530 cal yr BP), we generate estimates of the minimum number of individuals for all species detected; these estimates, in turn are used to determine relative species abundances. Comparisons of these data with similar analyses of small mammal remains obtained from a second archeological site (ACoII, levels IV–V, carbon dates of 10,010–9220 cal yr BP) as well as from modern owl pellets reveal pronounced changes in relative species abundance since the LGM. In particular, Euneomys chinchilloides and Ctenomys sociabilis – the predominant species during the LGM – declined markedly, suggesting a change from open, bare habitat punctuated by patches of wet meadows and shrubs to the more densely vegetated mosaic of ecotone habitats found in this region today. These data provide important new insights into the environmental changes that have occurred in northern Patagonia over the last 20,000 years.

Download Full-text

Multiple cleaner species provide simultaneous services to coral reef fish clients

Biology Letters ◽

10.1098/rsbl.2020.0723 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 16 (12) ◽

pp. 20200723

Author(s):

Amelia Rose ◽

Benjamin M. Titus ◽

Joseph Romain ◽

Clayton Vondriska ◽

Dan A. Exton

Keyword(s):

Species Interactions ◽

Niche Overlap ◽

Total Body Length ◽

Tropical Coral ◽

Ideal Model System ◽

The Caribbean ◽

Total Body ◽

Patterns And Processes ◽

Cleaning Stations ◽

Fish Clients

Cleaning symbioses on tropical coral reefs are typically documented between two species: a single client fish and one or more conspecific cleaners. However, multiple cleaner species living sympatrically in the Caribbean have been anecdotally reported to simultaneously clean the same client. Nothing is known about the patterns and processes driving these interactions, which may differ from those involving a single cleaner species. Here, we used remote underwater videography on three reefs in Honduras to record simultaneous cleaning interactions involving Pederson's cleaner shrimp ( Ancylomenes pedersoni ) and cleaner gobies ( Elacatinus spp.). A pilot study on adjacent shrimp and goby stations found interactions were always initiated by shrimp. A larger, multi-year dataset shows cleaner gobies joined 28% of all interactions initiated at A. pedersoni cleaning stations with cleaner gobies residing nearby. Client body size significantly predicted simultaneous cleaning interactions, with 45% of interactions simultaneous for clients greater than 20 cm total body length compared with only 8% for clients less than 20 cm. We also found that simultaneous cleaning interactions lasted over twice as long as shrimp-only interactions. We propose these novel multi-species interactions to be an ideal model system to explore broader questions about coexistence, niche overlap and functional redundancy among sympatric cleaner species.

Download Full-text

Ecology of High Altitude Waters

10.1093/oso/9780198736868.001.0001 ◽

2017 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Dean Jacobsen ◽

Olivier Dangles

Keyword(s):

High Altitude ◽

Species Interactions ◽

Community Dynamics ◽

Human Impacts ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Stress Gradient ◽

Trophic Relations ◽

Intimate Contact ◽

Climate Change Effects ◽

Patterns And Processes

This book brings together current knowledge on patterns and processes in the ecology of streams, lakes, and wetlands situated at more than 3000 m above sea level. The alpine headwaters of the large Asian rivers and Lake Titicaca are both well-known and iconic examples. High altitude waters include more than these systems—they are both numerous and cover many habitat types, organisms, and specializations. The book provides an overview of the variety of aquatic ecosystems and habitats, their environmental features, prominent species, and their functional adaptations to the harsh aquatic environmental conditions through to global diversity patterns along altitudinal gradients, community dynamics, species interactions and dispersal, trophic relations, and energy flows. High altitude waters are ideal systems to address a broad range of topical themes in ecology because patterns and processes are both diverse and singular. The book highlights how key concepts in ecology (e.g. the stress gradient hypothesis, the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship) could find relevant study models in high altitude waters. The usual perception of pristine mountain waters is far from true, particularly in the case of high altitude waters at low latitudes where human population density is often high, and local communities live in intimate contact with, utilize, influence, and exploit these aquatic systems. Climate change effects, extinction risks of mountain populations due to vanishing glaciers, multiple human impacts, management, and conservation are also treated thoroughly. The book is richly illustrated with diagrams and numerous pictures of these poorly known systems and species.

Download Full-text

Food Webs and Ecosystems: Linking Species Interactions to the Carbon Cycle

Annual Review of Ecology Evolution and Systematics ◽

10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-011720-104730 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 51 (1) ◽

pp. 271-295

Author(s):

Oswald J. Schmitz ◽

Shawn J. Leroux

Keyword(s):

Carbon Cycle ◽

Food Webs ◽

Carbon Cycling ◽

Functional Traits ◽

Species Interactions ◽

Functional Integration ◽

Food Web Structure ◽

Carbon Modeling ◽

Web Structure ◽

Quantitative Synthesis

All species within ecosystems contribute to regulating carbon cycling because of their functional integration into food webs. Yet carbon modeling and accounting still assumes that only plants, microbes, and invertebrate decomposer species are relevant to the carbon cycle. Our multifaceted review develops a case for considering a wider range of species, especially herbivorous and carnivorous wild animals. Animal control over carbon cycling is shaped by the animals’ stoichiometric needs and functional traits in relation to the stoichiometry and functional traits of their resources. Quantitative synthesis reveals that failing to consider these mechanisms can lead to serious inaccuracies in the carbon budget. Newer carbon-cycle models that consider food-web structure based on organismal functional traits and stoichiometry can offer mechanistically informed predictions about the magnitudes of animal effects that will help guide new empirical research aimed at developing a coherent understanding of the interactions and importance of all species within food webs.

Download Full-text

Species interactions modulate the response of saltmarsh plants to flooding

Annals of Botany ◽

10.1093/aob/mcz120 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Ryan S Edge ◽

Martin J P Sullivan ◽

Scott M Pedley ◽

Hannah L Mossman

Keyword(s):

Species Composition ◽

Functional Traits ◽

Species Interactions ◽

Plant Traits ◽

Intraspecific Variability ◽

Community Level ◽

Positive Interactions ◽

Above Ground Biomass ◽

Ground Biomass ◽

Below Ground

Abstract Background and Aims The vegetation that grows on coastal wetlands is important for ecosystem functioning, a role mediated by plant traits. These traits can be affected by environmental stressors and by the competitive environment the plant experiences. The relative importance of these influences on different traits is poorly understood and, despite theoretical expectations for how factors may interact, empirical data are conflicting. Our aims are to determine the effect of flooding, species composition and their interaction on plant functional traits, and assess the role of biodiversity and species composition in driving community-level responses to flooding. Methods We conducted a factorial glasshouse experiment assessing the effects of species composition (all combinations of three saltmarsh species, Aster tripolium, Plantago maritima and Triglochin maritima) and flooding (immersion of roots) on a suite of functional traits. We also related biomass in mixed species pots to that expected from monocultures to assess how species interactions affect community-level biomass. Key Results Species composition frequently interacted with flooding to influence functional traits and community-level properties. However, there was also considerable intraspecific variability in traits within each treatment. Generally, effects of flooding were more pronounced for below-ground than above-ground biomass, while composition affected above-ground biomass more than below-ground biomass. We found both negative and positive interactions between species (indicated by differences in above- and below-ground biomass from expectations under monoculture), meaning that composition was an important determinate of community function. Conclusions While the effect of flooding alone on traits was relatively weak, it interacted with species composition to modify the response of both individual plants and communities. Our results suggest that responses to increased flooding will be complex and depend on neighbourhood species interactions. Furthermore, intraspecific trait variability is a potential resource that may dampen the effects of changes in flooding regime.

Download Full-text