Northern Cerrado Native Vegetation is a Refuge for Birds Under Current Climate Change

Climate Change is already seen as one of the biggest threats to biodiversity in the 21 st century. Not much studies direct attention to its effects on whole communities of threatened hotspots. In the present work, we combine ecological niche modelling (ENM) with a future climate scenario of greenhouse gases emissions to study the future changes in alpha and beta diversity of birds of the Brazilian Cerrado biome, a hotspot of biodiversity with high velocity of climate change and agricultural expansion. In general, we found heterogeneous results for changes in species richness, spatial and temporal taxonomic and functional beta diversity, and mean ecological distinctiveness. Contrary to a previous study on Cerrado mammals, species richness is expected to increase in Northern Cerrado, where homogenization of communities (decreasing spatial turnover) is also expected to occur especially through local invasions. We show that biotic homogenization (which is composed of local extinction of natives and local invasion of exotic species) will occur in two biological groups but through different subprocesses: local extinctions for mammals and local invasions for birds. Distinct conservation management actions should be directed depending on the outcomes of analyzes of alpha and spatial and temporal beta diversity, for example controlling species invasions in Northern Cerrado. Conservation studies should continue evaluating Cerrado in Brazil even under covid pandemic, as environmental situation in the country is not good and incentives for scientific studies are almost nonexistent.

Download Full-text

Rates of Species Accumulation and Taxonomic Diversification during Phototrophic Biofilm Development Are Controlled by both Nutrient Supply and Current Velocity

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.03788-12 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 79 (6) ◽

pp. 2054-2060 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Chad A. Larson ◽

Sophia I. Passy

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Current Velocity ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Taxon Richness ◽

Temporal Heterogeneity ◽

Nutrient Inputs ◽

Species Accumulation ◽

High Nutrient ◽

Temporal Beta Diversity ◽

Biofilm Development

ABSTRACTThe accumulation of new and taxonomically diverse species is a marked feature of community development, but the role of the environment in this process is not well understood. To address this problem, we subjected periphyton in laboratory streams to low (10-cm · s−1), high (30-cm · s−1), and variable (9- to 32-cm · s−1) current velocity and low- versus high-nutrient inputs. We examined how current velocity and resource supply constrained (i) the rates of species accumulation, a measure of temporal beta-diversity, and (ii) the rates of diversification of higher taxonomic categories, defined here as the rate of higher taxon richness increase with the increase of species richness. Temporal biofilm dynamics were controlled by a strong nutrient-current interaction. Nutrients accelerated the rates of accumulation of new species, when flow velocity was not too stressful. Species were more taxonomically diverse under variable than under low-flow conditions, indicating that flow heterogeneity increased the niche diversity in the high-nutrient treatments. Conversely, the lower diversification rates under high- than under low-nutrient conditions at low velocity are explained with finer resource partitioning among species, belonging to a limited number of related genera. The overall low rates of diversification in high-current treatments suggest that the ability to withstand current stress was conserved within closely related species. Temporal heterogeneity of disturbance has been shown to promote species richness, but here we further demonstrate that it also affects two other components of biodiversity, i.e., temporal beta-diversity and diversification rate. Therefore, management efforts for preserving the inherent temporal heterogeneity of natural ecosystems will have detectable positive effects on biodiversity.

Download Full-text

Cladoceran diversity dynamics in lakes from a northern mining region: responses to multiple stressors characterized by alpha and beta diversity

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/cjfas-2016-0449 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 74 (10) ◽

pp. 1654-1667 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Amanda K. Winegardner ◽

Natasha Salter ◽

Stéphane Aebischer ◽

Reinhard Pienitz ◽

Alison M. Derry ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Beta Diversity ◽

Nutrient Loading ◽

Multiple Stressors ◽

Sediment Cores ◽

Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽

Mining Region ◽

Combined Use ◽

Temporal Beta Diversity ◽

Cladoceran Zooplankton ◽

Diversity Dynamics

The lakes surrounding the iron ore mining region of Schefferville, Quebec, Canada, sit within a landscape of historical disturbances, two of which have been relatively well documented over time: metal contamination and nutrient loading. Based on the analysis of sediment cores, we used cladoceran zooplankton subfossil assemblages from two lakes located in Schefferville to track both alpha and beta diversity over the last 100+ years. We showed that high metal concentrations were correlated with decreased cladoceran diversity, and that the site that experienced both direct wastewater input and atmospheric metal loading (Lake Dauriat) had the greatest declines in cladoceran richness. In both lakes, turnover in cladoceran assemblages was highest in the mining period. During the period of mine closures and improvement of wastewater treatment, some decreases in metal enrichment in the sediments and increases in cladoceran richness were observed in Lake Dauriat. Overall, a combined use of species richness and beta diversity metrics showed alpha and beta diversity are not always congruent, and that there are various ways to interpret scenarios of temporal beta diversity in northern freshwater systems.

Download Full-text

Grazed Pannonian grassland beta-diversity changes due to C4 yellow bluestem

Open Life Sciences ◽

10.2478/s11535-012-0101-9 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 7 (6) ◽

pp. 1055-1065 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Szilárd Szentes ◽

Zsuzsanna Sutyinszki ◽

Gábor Szabó ◽

Zita Zimmermann ◽

Judit Házi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Standard Protocol ◽

Fine Scale ◽

C4 Species ◽

C4 Grass ◽

Diversity Assessment ◽

Local Extinctions ◽

Belt Transect ◽

Dominant Grasses

AbstractThis study investigates how yellow bluestem affects biodiversity in a typical Pannonian grassland. Beta diversity (i.e. the finescale spatial variability of species compositions), was estimated by the realized number of species combinations sampled at various scales. Sampling was performed by a standard protocol. Presences of plant species were recorded along 52.2 m long belt transect of 1044 units of 0.05x0.05 m contiguous microquadrats. According to the results the massive presence of tested C4 grass significantly reduced species richness of the grassland. Beta diversity assessment revealed that 90% of species combinations were lost due to yellow bluestem invasion. Fine-scale spatial pattern analyses showed complete local extinctions of other species from microsites dominated by yellow bluestem. This local extinction is enhanced by the specific clonal architecture of this species and by the accumulation of litter. Other dominant grasses had no effect on fine scale diversity, i.e. they could coexist well with other elements of the local flora. This study presents currently developed microhabitat types, forecasts and also draws attention to the danger that climate warming will probably enhance the spread of this detrimental C4 species.

Download Full-text

Contrasting multitaxon responses to climate change in Mediterranean mountains

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-83866-x ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Luca Di Nuzzo ◽

Chiara Vallese ◽

Renato Benesperi ◽

Paolo Giordani ◽

Alessandro Chiarucci ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Species Richness ◽

Functional Traits ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Vascular Plants ◽

Climatic Factors ◽

Species Traits ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Climate Change Scenarios ◽

Diversity Patterns

AbstractWe explored the influence of climatic factors on diversity patterns of multiple taxa (lichens, bryophytes, and vascular plants) along a steep elevational gradient to predict communities’ dynamics under future climate change scenarios in Mediterranean regions. We analysed (1) species richness patterns in terms of heat-adapted, intermediate, and cold-adapted species; (2) pairwise beta-diversity patterns, also accounting for its two different components, species replacement and richness difference; (3) the influence of climatic variables on species functional traits. Species richness is influenced by different factors between three taxonomic groups, while beta diversity differs mainly between plants and cryptogams. Functional traits are influenced by different factors in each taxonomic group. On the basis of our observations, poikilohydric cryptogams could be more impacted by climate change than vascular plants. However, contrasting species-climate and traits-climate relationships were also found between lichens and bryophytes suggesting that each group may be sensitive to different components of climate change. Our study supports the usefulness of a multi-taxon approach coupled with a species traits analysis to better unravel the response of terrestrial communities to climate change. This would be especially relevant for lichens and bryophytes, whose response to climate change is still poorly explored.

Download Full-text

The role of alpha and beta diversity in buffering the effects of intensifying natural disturbance regimes

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-8248 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Julius Sebald ◽

Timothy Thrippleton ◽

Werner Rammer ◽

Harald Bugmann ◽

Rupert Seidl

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Forest Management ◽

Species Diversity ◽

Tree Species ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Alpha Diversity ◽

Tree Species Diversity ◽

Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽

Disturbance Regimes ◽

The Impact

<div> <div> <div> <p>Forests are strongly affected by climatic changes, but impacts vary between tree species and prevailing site conditions. A number of studies suggest that increasing tree species diversity is a potent management strategy to decrease climate change impacts in general, and increase the resilience of forest ecosystems to changing disturbance regimes. However, most studies to date have focused on stand-level diversity in tree species (alpha diversity), which is often difficult to implement in operational forest management. Inter-species competition requires frequent management interventions to maintain species mixture and complicates the production of high-quality stemwood. An alternative option to increasing alpha diversity is to increase tree species diversity between forest stands (beta diversity). Here we quantify the effects of alpha and beta diversity on the impact of forest disturbances under climate change. We conducted a simulation experiment applying two forest landscape models (i.e. iLand and LandClim) in two landscapes with strongly contrasting environmental conditions in Central Europe. Simulations investigate different levels of tree species diversity (no diversity, low diversity and high diversity) in different spatial arrangements (alpha diversity, beta diversity). Subsequently a standard forest management regime and a series of prescribed disturbances are applied over 200 years. By analyzing biomass values relative to a no-disturbance run, variation in biomass over time and the number of trees > 30 cm dbh per hectare, we isolate the effect of tree species diversity on the resistance of forests to disturbances.</p> </div> </div> </div>

Download Full-text

Temporal variation of regional bird assemblages in highly dynamic fluvial wetlands: seasonality and influence of water level and habitat availability

Revista de Biología Tropical ◽

10.15517/rbt.v67i6.36734 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 67 (6) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rodrigo Ezequiel Lorenzón ◽

Adolfo Héctor Beltzer ◽

Pamela Olguín ◽

Evelina León ◽

Lorena Sovrano ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Temporal Variation ◽

Water Level ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Habitat Availability ◽

Fluvial System ◽

Bird Assemblages ◽

Temporal Beta Diversity ◽

Fluvial Wetlands ◽

Bird Composition

Study of temporal variation of bird assemblages may be particularly important in highly dynamic ecosystems as fluvial wetlands to identify the factors that influence and contribute to the maintaining of regional diversity. We study temporal variation in regional bird species composition and richness and the factors that drive it in the fluvial system of the Paraná River in Argentina. We sampled birds on a regional scale by performing surveys during 2 years (2011-2013; 16 total surveys) at 60 sites located along the fluvial system. We recorded a total of 162 species and 12,738 individuals, with a mean of 72.7 ± 1.9 species and 796.1 ± 41 individuals per survey. Temporal beta diversity accounted for 57% of regional species richness. Bird composition varied seasonally because of the turnover (and not nestedness) of species between autumn-winter and spring-summer periods; migrant species contributed to but did not account for all these differences. Difference in bird composition between years was caused primarily by turnover of species within autumn-winter periods; that turnover was related to changes in water levels. Temporal variation in availability of habitats across the regional extent of the fluvial system accounted for the highest proportion of temporal beta diversity. Species richness did not vary seasonally nor was it related to fluctuations in water level or habitats. Our results showed that climatic seasonality and environmental dynamics of the fluvial system, as a function of water-level fluctuations and of variations in habitat availability, jointly influence regional composition of birds through temporal turnover of species. These variations in regional composition were not related to variations in regional species richness. These results show the importance of the natural dynamic of the fluvial system to conserve the processes that maintain the regional assemblage of birds.

Download Full-text

Diversity of Butterflies (Lepidoptera) in Sierra de Huautla, Morelos, México: A Conservation Approach

Annals of the Entomological Society of America ◽

10.1093/aesa/saz022 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 112 (4) ◽

pp. 409-417

Author(s):

Ma Ventura Rosas-Echeverría ◽

Carlos Alfredo Coyote-Ávila ◽

Karla Maria Aguilar-Dorantes ◽

Concepcion Martínez-Peralta

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Tropical Dry Forest ◽

Biosphere Reserve ◽

Alpha Diversity ◽

Dry Forest ◽

Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽

Analysis Of Similarity ◽

Species Similarity ◽

First Time

AbstractIn this study, we carried out an inventory of butterfly diversity and an analysis of alpha and beta diversity considering the effects of phenology and degree of disturbance in tropical dry forest. The study included three localities: Cañadas de Ajuchitlán and El Limón, situated within the Sierra de Huautla Biosphere Reserve (REBIOSH) natural protected area, and San Miguel de los Elotes, which is outside of the REBIOSH. We systematically sampled each of the localities using two collection methods once per month for a full year (April 2013 to March 2014). A total of 4,017 specimens belonging to 119 species and 83 genera were collected. We recorded for the first time the presence of Perichares aurina Evans (Lepidoptera, Hesperiidae), in Mexico, 14 additional Hesperiidae species were new records for Morelos, Mexico, and 16% of the species recorded in this study are endemic to Mexico. Species richness was highest in August for the two localities (Cañadas de Ajuchitlán and El Limón), located within the REBIOSH. Species richness was highest in November for San Miguel de los Elotes, which is outside of the REBIOSH. In terms of the alpha diversity values (0D, observed diversity), Cañadas de Ajuchitlán had the highest species richness. In the analysis of similarity (Beta diversity), the two localities within the REBIOSH had the highest species similarity, despite being the most geographically distant.

Download Full-text

Saproxylic species are linked to the amount and isolation of dead wood across spatial scales in a beech forest

Landscape Ecology ◽

10.1007/s10980-020-01115-4 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Elena Haeler ◽

Ariel Bergamini ◽

Stefan Blaser ◽

Christian Ginzler ◽

Karin Hindenlang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Spatial Scale ◽

Beta Diversity ◽

Dead Wood ◽

Spatial Scales ◽

Beech Forest ◽

Habitat Amount ◽

Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽

Local Species Richness ◽

Saproxylic Species

Abstract Context Dead wood is a key habitat for saproxylic species, which are often used as indicators of habitat quality in forests. Understanding how the amount and spatial distribution of dead wood in the landscape affects saproxylic communities is therefore important for maintaining high forest biodiversity. Objectives We investigated effects of the amount and isolation of dead wood on the alpha and beta diversity of four saproxylic species groups, with a focus on how the spatial scale influences results. Methods We inventoried saproxylic beetles, wood-inhabiting fungi, and epixylic bryophytes and lichens on 62 plots in the Sihlwald forest reserve in Switzerland. We used GLMs to relate plot-level species richness to dead wood amount and isolation on spatial scales of 20–200 m radius. Further, we used GDMs to determine how dead wood amount and isolation affected beta diversity. Results A larger amount of dead wood increased beetle richness on all spatial scales, while isolation had no effect. For fungi, bryophytes and lichens this was only true on small spatial scales. On larger scales of our study, dead wood amount had no effect, while greater isolation decreased species richness. Further, we found no strong consistent patterns explaining beta diversity. Conclusions Our multi-taxon study shows that habitat amount and isolation can strongly differ in the spatial scale on which they influence local species richness. To generally support the species richness of different saproxylic groups, dead wood must primarily be available in large amounts but should also be evenly distributed because negative effects of isolation already showed at scales under 100 m.

Download Full-text

Global and Regional Patterns in Riverine Fish Species Richness: A Review

International Journal of Ecology ◽

10.1155/2011/967631 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2011 ◽

pp. 1-12 ◽

Cited By ~ 61

Author(s):

Thierry Oberdorff ◽

Pablo A. Tedesco ◽

Bernard Hugueny ◽

Fabien Leprieur ◽

Olivier Beauchard ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Species Richness ◽

Fish Species ◽

Freshwater Biodiversity ◽

Regional Patterns ◽

Species Invasions ◽

Regional Factors ◽

Richness Patterns ◽

Riverine Fish

We integrate the respective role of global and regional factors driving riverine fish species richness patterns, to develop a synthetic model of potential mechanisms and processes generating these patterns. This framework allows species richness to be broken down into different components specific to each spatial extent and to establish links between these components and the processes involved. This framework should help to answer the questions that are currently being asked by society, including the effects of species invasions, habitat loss, or fragmentation and climate change on freshwater biodiversity.

Download Full-text