scholarly journals Defining Biologically Meaningful Biomes Through Floristic, Functional, and Phylogenetic Data

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Domingos Cardoso ◽  
Peter W. Moonlight ◽  
Gustavo Ramos ◽  
Graeme Oatley ◽  
Christopher Dudley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Categorical Variables ◽  
Limited Area ◽  
Northeast Brazil ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Transition Zones ◽  
Seasonally Dry ◽  
Phylogenetic Data ◽  
Novel Approach

While we have largely improved our understanding on what biomes are and their utility in global change ecology, conservation planning, and evolutionary biology is clear, there is no consensus on how biomes should be delimited or mapped. Existing methods emphasize different aspects of biomes, with different strengths and limitations. We introduce a novel approach to biome delimitation and mapping, based upon combining individual regionalizations derived from floristic, functional, and phylogenetic data linked to environmentally trained species distribution models. We define “core Biomes” as areas where independent regionalizations agree and “transition zones” as those whose biome identity is not corroborated by all analyses. We apply this approach to delimiting the neglected Caatinga seasonally dry tropical forest biome in northeast Brazil. We delimit the “core Caatinga” as a smaller and more climatically limited area than previous definitions, and argue it represents a floristically, functionally, and phylogenetically coherent unit within the driest parts of northeast Brazil. “Caatinga transition zones” represent a large and biologically important area, highlighting that ecological and evolutionary processes work across environmental gradients and that biomes are not categorical variables. We discuss the differences among individual regionalizations in an ecological and evolutionary context and the potential limitations and utility of individual and combined biome delimitations. Our integrated ecological and evolutionary definition of the Caatinga and associated transition zones are argued to best describe and map biologically meaningful biomes.

Community Ecology

Ecology ◽  
2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herman A. Verhoef
Keyword(s):  
Community Ecology ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Functional Integration ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Functional Trait ◽  
Individual Species ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Early 21St Century

At the beginning of the 20th century there was much debate about the “nature” of communities. The driving question was whether the community was a self-organized system of co-occurring species or simply a haphazard collection of populations with minimal functional integration. At that time, two extreme views dominated the discussion: one view considered a community as a superorganism, the member species of which were tightly bound together by interactions that contributed to repeatable patterns of species abundance in space and time. This concept led to the assumption that communities are fundamental entities, to be classified as the Linnaean taxonomy of species. Frederick E. Clements was one of the leading proponents of this approach, and his view became known as the organismic concept of communities. This assumes a common evolutionary history for the integrated species. The opposite view was the individualistic continuum concept, advocated by H. A. Gleason. His focus was on the traits of individual species that allow each to live within specific habitats or geographical ranges. In this view a community is an assemblage of populations of different species whose traits allow persisting in a prescribed area. The spatial boundaries are not sharp, and the species composition can change considerably. Consequently, it was discussed whether ecological communities were sufficiently coherent entities to be considered appropriate study objects. Later, consensus was reached: that properties of communities are of central interest in ecology, regardless of their integrity and coherence. From the 1950s and 1960s onward, the discussion was dominated by the deterministic outcome of local interactions between species and their environments and the building of this into models of communities. This approach, indicated as “traditional community ecology,” led to a morass of theoretical models, without being able to provide general principles about many-species communities. Early-21st-century approaches to bringing general patterns into community ecology concern (1) the metacommunity approach, (2) the functional trait approach, (3) evolutionary community ecology, and (4) the four fundamental processes. The metacommunity approach implicitly recognizes and studies the important role of spatiotemporal dynamics. In the functional trait approach, four themes are focused upon: traits, environmental gradients, the interaction milieu, and performance currencies. This functional, trait-focused approach should have a better prospect of understanding the effects of global changes. Evolutionary community ecology is an approach in which the combination of community ecology and evolutionary biology will lead to a better understanding of the complexity of communities and populations. The four fundamental processes are selection, drift, speciation, and dispersal. This approach concerns an organizational scheme for community ecology, based on these four processes to describe all existing specific models and frameworks, in order to make general statements about process–pattern connections.

scholarly journals Range-wide spatial mapping reveals convergent character displacement of bird song

2019 ◽  
Vol 286 (1902) ◽  
pp. 20190443 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander N. G. Kirschel ◽  
Nathalie Seddon ◽  
Joseph A. Tobias
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Remote Sensing Data ◽  
Character Displacement ◽  
Similar Species ◽  
Interspecific Territoriality ◽  
Coexisting Species

A long-held view in evolutionary biology is that character displacement generates divergent phenotypes in closely related coexisting species to avoid the costs of hybridization or ecological competition, whereas an alternative possibility is that signals of dominance or aggression may instead converge to facilitate coexistence among ecological competitors. Although this counterintuitive process—termed convergent agonistic character displacement—is supported by recent theoretical and empirical studies, the extent to which it drives spatial patterns of trait evolution at continental scales remains unclear. By modelling the variation in song structure of two ecologically similar species of Hypocnemis antbird across western Amazonia, we show that their territorial signals converge such that trait similarity peaks in the sympatric zone, where intense interspecific territoriality between these taxa has previously been demonstrated. We also use remote sensing data to show that signal convergence is not explained by environmental gradients and is thus unlikely to evolve by sensory drive (i.e. acoustic adaptation to the sound transmission properties of habitats). Our results suggest that agonistic character displacement driven by interspecific competition can generate spatial patterns opposite to those predicted by classic character displacement theory, and highlight the potential role of social selection in shaping geographical variation in signal phenotypes of ecological competitors.

scholarly journals A framework to bridge scales in distribution modeling of soil microbiota

2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas J Lembrechts ◽  
L Broeders ◽  
J De Gruyter ◽  
D Radujković ◽  
I Ramirez-Rojas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Biotic Interactions ◽  
Environmental Niche ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Soil Microbiota ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Critical Issues ◽  
Multiple Species ◽  
Species Specific

ABSTRACT Creating accurate habitat suitability and distribution models (HSDMs) for soil microbiota is far more challenging than for aboveground organism groups. In this perspective paper, we propose a conceptual framework that addresses several of the critical issues holding back further applications. Most importantly, we tackle the mismatch between the broadscale, long-term averages of environmental variables traditionally used, and the environment as experienced by soil microbiota themselves. We suggest using nested sampling designs across environmental gradients and objectively integrating spatially hierarchic heterogeneity as covariates in HSDMs. Second, to incorporate the crucial role of taxa co-occurrence as driver of soil microbial distributions, we promote the use of joint species distribution models, a class of models that jointly analyze multiple species’ distributions, quantifying both species-specific environmental responses (i.e. the environmental niche) and covariance among species (i.e. biotic interactions). Our approach allows incorporating the environmental niche and its associated distribution across multiple spatial scales. The proposed framework facilitates the inclusion of the true relationships between soil organisms and their abiotic and biotic environments in distribution models, which is crucial to improve predictions of soil microbial redistributions as a result of global change.

scholarly journals Isopod distribution and climate change

ZooKeys ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 801 ◽  
pp. 25-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Spyros Sfenthourakis ◽  
Elisabeth Hornung
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Interspecific Variation ◽  
Limiting Factors ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
Climate Change Effects ◽  
Evolutionary Origins ◽  
Ecological Features ◽  
Geographical Regions

The unique properties of terrestrial isopods regarding responses to limiting factors such as drought and temperature have led to interesting distributional patterns along climatic and other environmental gradients at both species and community level. This paper will focus on the exploration of isopod distributions in evaluating climate change effects on biodiversity at different scales, geographical regions, and environments, in view of isopods’ tolerances to environmental factors, mostly humidity and temperature. Isopod distribution is tightly connected to available habitats and habitat features at a fine spatial scale, even though different species may exhibit a variety of responses to environmental heterogeneity, reflecting the large interspecific variation within the group. Furthermore, isopod distributions show some notable deviations from common global patterns, mainly as a result of their ecological features and evolutionary origins. Responses to human disturbance are not always traceable, but a trend towards community homogenisation is often found under strong global urbanisation processes. In general, even though it is still not clear how predicted climate change will affect isopod distribution, there is evidence that mixed effects are to be expected, depending on the region under study. We still lack robust and extensive analyses of isopod distributions at different scales and at different biomes, as well as applications of distribution models that might help evaluate future trends.

scholarly journals Reconstructing Squamate Biogeography in Afro-Arabia Reveals the Influence of a Complex and Dynamic Geologic Past

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Héctor Tejero-Cicuéndez ◽  
Austin H. Patton ◽  
Daniel S. Caetano ◽  
Jiří Šmíd ◽  
Luke J. Harmon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Arabian Plate ◽  
Range Contraction ◽  
Biogeographic Patterns ◽  
Biogeographic History ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Ideal System ◽  
History Of ◽  
Dispersal Corridor ◽  
External Forces

ABSTRACTThe geographic distribution of biodiversity is central to understanding evolutionary biology. Paleogeographic and paleoclimatic histories often help to explain how biogeographic patterns unfold through time. However, such patterns are also influenced by a variety of other factors, such as lineage diversification, that may affect the probability of certain types of biogeographic events. The complex and well-known geologic and climatic history of Afro-Arabia, together with the extensive research on reptile systematics in the region, makes Afro-Arabian squamate communities an ideal system to investigate biogeographic patterns and their drivers. Here we reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships and the ancestral geographic distributions of several Afro-Arabian reptile clades (totaling 430 species) to estimate the number of dispersal, vicariance and range contraction events. We then compare the observed biogeographic history to a distribution of simulated biogeographic events based on the empirical phylogeny and the best-fit model. This allows us to identify periods in the past where the observed biogeographic history was likely shaped by forces beyond the ones included in the model. We find an increase in vicariance following the Oligocene, most likely caused by the fragmentation of the Afro-Arabian plate. In contrast, we did not find differences between observed and expected dispersal and range contraction levels. This is consistent with diversification enhanced by environmental processes and with the establishment of a dispersal corridor connecting Africa, Arabia and Eurasia since the middle Miocene. Finally, here we show that our novel approach is useful to pinpoint events in the evolutionary history of lineages that might reflect external forces not predicted by the underlying biogeographic model.

Latitudinal and altitudinal variation in ecologically important traits in a widespread butterfly

2019 ◽  
Vol 128 (3) ◽  
pp. 742-755 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franziska Günter ◽  
Michaël Beaulieu ◽  
Massimo Brunetti ◽  
Lena Lange ◽  
Angela Schmitz Ornés ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Individual Development ◽  
Strong Wind ◽  
Flight Performance ◽  
Adaptive Responses ◽  
Complex Environments ◽  
Altitudinal Variation ◽  
Pieris Napi ◽  
Anthropogenic Global Change

Abstract Understanding how organisms adapt to complex environments lies at the very heart of evolutionary biology and ecology, and is of particular concern in the current era of anthropogenic global change. Variation in ecologically important traits associated with environmental gradients is considered to be strong evidence for adaptive responses. Here, we study phenotypic variation along a latitudinal and an altitudinal cline in 968 field-collected males of the widespread European butterfly Pieris napi. In contrast to our expectations, body size decreased with increasing latitude and altitude, suggesting that warmer rather than cooler conditions may be more beneficial for individual development in this species. Higher altitudes but not latitudes seemed to be associated with increased flight performance, suggesting stronger challenges for flight activity in high-altitude environments (e.g. due to strong wind). Moreover, wing melanization increased while yellow reflectance decreased towards colder environments in both clines. Thus, increased melanization under thermally challenging conditions seems to compromise investment into a sexually selected trait, resulting in a trade-off. Our study, although exclusively based on field-collected males, revealed indications of adaptive patterns along geographical clines. It documents the usefulness of field-collected specimens, and the strength of comparing latitudinal and altitudinal clines to identify traits being potentially under thermal selection.

Understanding the ecological niche to elucidate spatial strategies of the southernmost Tupinambis lizards

2013 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 551-565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofía Lanfri ◽  
Valeria Di Cola ◽  
Sergio Naretto ◽  
Margarita Chiaraviglio ◽  
Gabriela Cardozo
Keyword(s):  
Species Distribution ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Species Distribution Models ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Distribution Patterns ◽  
Niche Differentiation ◽  
Ecological Niches ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Interspecific Differences ◽  
Spatial Strategies

Understanding factors that shape ranges of species is central in evolutionary biology. Species distribution models have become important tools to test biogeographical, ecological and evolutionary hypotheses. Moreover, from an ecological and evolutionary perspective, these models help to elucidate the spatial strategies of species at a regional scale. We modelled species distributions of two phylogenetically, geographically and ecologically close Tupinambis species (Teiidae) that occupy the southernmost area of the genus distribution in South America. We hypothesized that similarities between these species might have induced spatial strategies at the species level, such as niche differentiation and divergence of distribution patterns at a regional scale. Using logistic regression and MaxEnt we obtained species distribution models that revealed interspecific differences in habitat requirements, such as environmental temperature, precipitation and altitude. Moreover, the models obtained suggest that although the ecological niches of Tupinambis merianae and T. rufescens are different, these species might co-occur in a large contact zone. We propose that niche plasticity could be the mechanism enabling their co-occurrence. Therefore, the approach used here allowed us to understand the spatial strategies of two Tupinambis lizards at a regional scale.

scholarly journals Range-wide spatial mapping reveals convergent character displacement of bird song

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander N. G. Kirschel ◽  
Nathalie Seddon ◽  
Joseph A. Tobias
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Remote Sensing Data ◽  
Character Displacement ◽  
Similar Species ◽  
Interspecific Territoriality ◽  
Coexisting Species

AbstractA long-held view in evolutionary biology is that character displacement generates divergent phenotypes in closely related coexisting species to avoid the costs of hybridisation or ecological competition, whereas an alternative possibility is that signals of dominance or aggression may instead converge to facilitate coexistence among ecological competitors. Although this counter-intuitive process—termed convergent agonistic character displacement—is supported by recent theoretical and empirical studies, the extent to which it drives spatial patterns of trait evolution at continental scales remains unclear. By modeling variation in song structure of two ecologically similar species of Hypocnemis antbird across western Amazonia, we show that their territorial signals converge such that trait similarity peaks in the sympatric zone, where intense interspecific territoriality between these taxa has previously been demonstrated. We also use remote sensing data to show that signal convergence is not explained by environmental gradients and is thus unlikely to evolve by sensory drive (i.e. acoustic adaptation to the sound transmission properties of habitats). Our results suggest that agonistic character displacement driven by interspecific competition can generate spatial patterns opposite to those predicted by classic character displacement theory, and highlight the potential role of social selection in shaping geographical variation in signal phenotypes of ecological competitors.

scholarly journals Differential Adaptation to a Harsh Granite Outcrop Habitat between Sympatric Mimulus Species

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen G. Ferris ◽  
John H. Willis
Keyword(s):  
Flowering Time ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Leaf Shape ◽  
Plant Size ◽  
Seasonally Dry ◽  
Granite Outcrops ◽  
Differential Adaptation ◽  
Selective Forces ◽  
Survival Differences ◽  
Lobed Leaf

ABSTRACTA primary goal in evolutionary biology is to understand which environmental variables and traits drive adaptation to harsh environments. This is difficult since many traits evolve simultaneously as populations or species diverge. Here we investigate the ecological variables and traits that underlie Mimulus laciniatus’ adaptation to granite outcrops compared to its sympatric, mesic-adapted progenitor M. guttatus. We use fine scale measurements of soil moisture and herbivory to examine differences in selective forces between the species’ habitats, and measure selection on flowering time, flower size, plant height, and leaf shape in a reciprocal transplant using M. laciniatus x M. guttatus F4 hybrids. We find that differences in drought & herbivory drive survival differences between habitats, that M. laciniatus and M. guttatus are each better adapted to their native habitat, and differential habitat selection on flowering time, plant stature, and leaf shape. We conclude that while early flowering time, small stature, and lobed leaf shape underlie plant fitness in M. laciniatus’ seasonally dry environment, increased plant size is advantageous in a competitive mesic environment replete with herbivores like M. guttatus’.

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