scholarly journals Functional, size and taxonomic diversity of fish along a depth gradient in the deep sea

PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e2387 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth L. Mindel ◽  
Francis C. Neat ◽  
Clive N. Trueman ◽  
Thomas J. Webb ◽  
Julia L. Blanchard
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Continental Slope ◽  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Morphological Traits ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Functional Divergence ◽  
Feeding Guilds ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Size Diversity

Biodiversity is well studied in ecology and the concept has been developed to include traits of species, rather than solely taxonomy, to better reflect the functional diversity of a system. The deep sea provides a natural environmental gradient within which to study changes in different diversity metrics, but traits of deep-sea fish are not widely known, hampering the application of functional diversity to this globally important system. We used morphological traits to determine the functional richness and functional divergence of demersal fish assemblages along the continental slope in the Northeast Atlantic, at depths of 300–2,000 m. We compared these metrics to size diversity based on individual body size and species richness. Functional richness and size diversity showed similar patterns, with the highest diversity at intermediate depths; functional divergence showed the opposite pattern, with the highest values at the shallowest and deepest parts of the study site. Species richness increased with depth. The functional implications of these patterns were deduced by examining depth-related changes in morphological traits and the dominance of feeding guilds as illustrated by stable isotope analyses. The patterns in diversity and the variation in certain morphological traits can potentially be explained by changes in the relative dominance of pelagic and benthic feeding guilds. All measures of diversity examined here suggest that the deep areas of the continental slope may be equally or more diverse than assemblages just beyond the continental shelf.

scholarly journals The Effect of Climate and Human Pressures on Functional Diversity and Species Richness Patterns of Amphibians, Reptiles and Mammals in Europe

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 275
Author(s):  
Mariana A. Tsianou ◽  
Maria Lazarina ◽  
Danai-Eleni Michailidou ◽  
Aristi Andrikou-Charitidou ◽  
Stefanos P. Sgardelis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Influential Factor ◽  
Climatic Variables ◽  
Quadratic Entropy ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Precipitation Seasonality ◽  
Rao’S Quadratic Entropy ◽  
Richness Patterns

The ongoing biodiversity crisis reinforces the urgent need to unravel diversity patterns and the underlying processes shaping them. Although taxonomic diversity has been extensively studied and is considered the common currency, simultaneously conserving other facets of diversity (e.g., functional diversity) is critical to ensure ecosystem functioning and the provision of ecosystem services. Here, we explored the effect of key climatic factors (temperature, precipitation, temperature seasonality, and precipitation seasonality) and factors reflecting human pressures (agricultural land, urban land, land-cover diversity, and human population density) on the functional diversity (functional richness and Rao’s quadratic entropy) and species richness of amphibians (68 species), reptiles (107 species), and mammals (176 species) in Europe. We explored the relationship between different predictors and diversity metrics using generalized additive mixed model analysis, to capture non-linear relationships and to account for spatial autocorrelation. We found that at this broad continental spatial scale, climatic variables exerted a significant effect on the functional diversity and species richness of all taxa. On the other hand, variables reflecting human pressures contributed significantly in the models even though their explanatory power was lower compared to climatic variables. In most cases, functional richness and Rao’s quadratic entropy responded similarly to climate and human pressures. In conclusion, climate is the most influential factor in shaping both the functional diversity and species richness patterns of amphibians, reptiles, and mammals in Europe. However, incorporating factors reflecting human pressures complementary to climate could be conducive to us understanding the drivers of functional diversity and richness patterns.

scholarly journals Impact of urbanization on functional diversity in macromycete communities along an urban ecosystem in Southwest Mexico

PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e12191
Author(s):  
Marko Gómez-Hernández ◽  
Emily Avendaño-Villegas ◽  
María Toledo-Garibaldi ◽  
Etelvina Gándara
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Urban Ecosystem ◽  
Niche Space ◽  
Urbanization Gradient ◽  
Urbanization Level ◽  
Functional Value ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Available Resources

Macromycetes are a group of fungi characterized by the production of fruit bodies and are highly relevant in most terrestrial ecosystems as pathogens, mutualists, and organic matter decomposers. Habitat transformation can drastically alter macromycete communities and diminish the contribution of these organisms to ecosystem functioning; however, knowledge on the effect of urbanization on macrofungal communities is scarce. Diversity metrics based on functional traits of macromycete species have shown to be valuable tools to predict how species contribute to ecosystem functionality since traits determine the performance of species in ecosystems. The aim of this study was to assess patterns of species richness, functional diversity, and composition of macrofungi in an urban ecosystem in Southwest Mexico, and to identify microclimatic, environmental, and urban factors related to these patterns in order to infer the effect of urbanization on macromycete communities. We selected four oak forests along an urbanization gradient and established a permanent sampling area of 0.1 ha at each site. Macromycete sampling was carried out every week from June to October 2017. The indices used to measure functional diversity were functional richness (FRic), functional divergence (FDig), and functional evenness (FEve). The metric used to assess variation of macrofungal ecological function along the study area was the functional value. We recorded a total of 134 macromycete species and 223 individuals. Our results indicated a decline of species richness with increased urbanization level related mainly to microclimatic variables, and a high turnover of species composition among study sites, which appears to be related to microclimatic and urbanization variables. FRic decreased with urbanization level, indicating that some of the available resources in the niche space within the most urbanized sites are not being utilized. FDig increased with urbanization, which suggests a high degree of niche differentiation among macromycete species within communities in urbanized areas. FEve did not show notable differences along the urbanization gradient, indicating few variations in the distribution of abundances within the occupied sections of the niche space. Similarly, the functional value was markedly higher in the less urbanized site, suggesting greater performance of functional guilds in that area. Our findings suggest that urbanization has led to a loss of macromycete species and a decrease in functional diversity, causing some sections of the niche space to be hardly occupied and available resources to be under-utilized, which could, to a certain extent, affect ecosystem functioning and stability.

scholarly journals The costs of ignoring species detectability on functional diversity estimation

The Auk ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 137 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Facundo Xavier Palacio ◽  
René E Maragliano ◽  
Diego Montalti
Keyword(s):  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Functional Divergence ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Imperfect Detection ◽  
East Central ◽  
Functional Types ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Species Occupancy

Abstract Functional diversity (FD) approaches have been increasingly used to understand ecosystem functioning in bird communities. These approaches typically rely on the assumption that species are perfectly detected in the field, despite the fact that imperfect detection represents a ubiquitous source of bias in biodiversity studies. This may be notably important in FD studies, because detection may depend on the functional traits used to compute FD metrics. However, little effort has been devoted to account for imperfect detection in FD studies, and therefore the degree to which species traits and detectability affects FD remains poorly understood. We predict that observed FD metrics may either underestimate or overestimate detection-corrected FD, because FD has multiple independent dimensions with different data properties. We assessed whether detection was related to bird traits (body mass, diet, and foraging stratum), accounting for habitat type, season, and phylogeny. We then used a multi-species occupancy model to obtain detection-corrected FD metrics (functional richness [FRic], functional evenness [FEve], and functional divergence [FDiv]), and compared observed and detection-corrected FD estimates in bird communities from east-central Argentina. Some functional types of birds (raptors and insectivores) were more easily overlooked, whereas others (seed and leaf eaters) were more easily detected. Some observed FD metrics underestimated detection-corrected FD (FRic and FDiv), whereas some others (FEve) overestimated detection-corrected FD. Both observed and detection-corrected FRic revealed differences between seasons, but not between habitat types. However, detection-corrected FEve and FDiv showed differences between seasons, contrary to observed estimates. Our results indicate that failure to account for unequal ease of detecting species can lead to erroneous estimates of FD because some functional types of birds are more easily overlooked. We outline some guidelines to help ornithologists identifying under which circumstances detection may be a concern and warn against the indiscriminate use of FD metrics without accounting for species detection.

scholarly journals Global change in the functional diversity of marine fisheries exploitation over the past 65 years

2020 ◽  
Vol 287 (1933) ◽  
pp. 20200889 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isaac Trindade-Santos ◽  
Faye Moyes ◽  
Anne E. Magurran
Keyword(s):  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Functional Divergence ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Functional Trait ◽  
Marine Fisheries ◽  
Large Marine Ecosystems ◽  
The Past ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Trends

Overexploitation is recognized as one of the main threats to global biodiversity. Here, we report a widespread change in the functional diversity of fisheries catches from the large marine ecosystems (LMEs) of the world over the past 65 years (1950 to 2014). The spatial and temporal trends of functional diversity exploited from the LMEs were calculated using global reconstructed marine fisheries catch data provided by the Sea Around Us initiative (including subsistence, artisanal, recreational, industrial fisheries, and discards) and functional trait data available in FishBase. Our analyses uncovered a substantial increase in the functional richness of both ray-finned fishes (80% of LMEs) and cartilaginous species (sharks and rays) (75% of LMESs), in line with an increase in the taxonomic richness, extracted from these ecosystems. The functional evenness and functional divergence of these catches have also altered substantially over the time span of this study, with considerable geographic variation in the patterns detected. These trends show that global fisheries are increasingly targeting species that play diverse roles within the marine ecosystem and underline the importance of incorporating functional diversity in ecosystem management.

Linking functional diversity to ecological indicators: A tool to predict the anthropogenic effects on ecosystem functioning

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leticia Bonilla-Valencia ◽  
Silvia Castillo-Argüero ◽  
José Alejandro Zavala-Hurtado ◽  
Francisco Javier Espinosa-García ◽  
Roberto Lindig-Cisneros ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Plant Traits ◽  
Functional Divergence ◽  
Seed Mass ◽  
Ecosystem Processes ◽  
Ecological Indicators ◽  
Ecological Indicator ◽  
Dry Matter Content ◽  
Weed Species ◽  
Functional Richness

Functional diversity is related to the maintenance of processes and functions in ecosystems. However, there is a lack of a conceptual framework that highlights the application of functional diversity as an ecological indicator. Therefore, we present a new initiative for motivating the development of ecological indicators based on functional diversity. We are interested in showing the challenges and solutions associated with these indicators. We integrated species assemblage theories and literature reviews. We considered plant traits related to ecosystem processes and functions (specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content, wood density, phenology, and seed mass) to show the application of a selection of functional diversity metrics that can be used as ecological indicators (i.e., Community Weighted-Mean, Functional Divergence, Functional Richness and Functional Evenness). We caution that functional diversity as an ecological indicator can be misinterpreted if species composition is unknown. Functional diversity values can be overrepresented by weed species (species established in disturbed sites) and do not maintain original processes and functions in ecosystems. Therefore, we searched for evidence to demonstrate that weed species are ecological indicators of functional diversity changes. We found support for two hypotheses that explain the effect of weed species on ecosystem function: functional homogenization and functional transformation. Likewise, we showed the application of some tools that can help study the anthropogenic effect on functional indicators. This review shows that the paradigm of addressing the effects of disturbances on ecosystem processes by using functional diversity as an ecological indicator can improve environmental evaluation, particularly in areas affected by human activities.

Functional richness, functional evenness and functional divergence: the primary components of functional diversity

Oikos ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 111 (1) ◽  
pp. 112-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norman W. H. Mason ◽  
David Mouillot ◽  
William G. Lee ◽  
J. Bastow Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Functional Divergence ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Functional Evenness

scholarly journals Analyzing the Role of Increasing Water Pollution on Species-Richness, Interspecific-Competition and Abundance-Unevenness in Reef-Associated Fish Communities, off Jakarta Bay (Indonesia)

2021 ◽  
pp. 18-43
Author(s):  
Jean Béguinot
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Interspecific Competition ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Fish Communities ◽  
Empirical Support ◽  
Feeding Guilds ◽  
Common Trend ◽  
Total Species Richness ◽  
Species Abundances ◽  
The One

Not far from the exceptionally rich ‘Coral Triangle’ on the one hand but, on the other hand, exposed to strongly varying degree of anthropogenic environmental stresses, the reef-associated fish assemblages all along ‘Seribu Islands’ (off Jakarta Bay) are, thus, confronted to both positive and negative ecological influences. As such, these fish assemblages offer especially interesting opportunities to analyze these opposite ecological influences, at both the descriptive and the functional points of views. The least-biased numerical extrapolation of a series of recently reported – yet incomplete – samplings has allowed a sub-exhaustive account of both the estimated total species-richness and the completed distribution of species abundances – including the set of those rarer species which had remained unrecorded. Thanks to this numerically completed information, it became possible to tackle some important issues – which otherwise would have remained difficult to address properly. First, a remarkably good correlation was highlighted between the distance of fish assemblages to Jakarta Bay (distance considered as a reliable surrogate to the improvement of environmental conditions for fish assemblages) and a theoretically derived index characterizing the accommodation capacity of sites for fish assemblages. This good correlation suggests that this index offer a way to reliably accounts for the “environmental quality” of marine waters, as appreciated by fish communities. In quite another respect, comparing primary and secondary-feeding guilds, provides still further empirical support to a seemingly common trend according to which the guild of secondary-feeders features usually more species-rich, while exhibiting less interspecific competition intensity at niche overlaps, than does the primary-feeders guild.

scholarly journals Community-weighted mean traits but not functional diversity determine the changes in soil properties during wetland drying on the Tibetan Plateau

Solid Earth ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Li ◽  
Howard E. Epstein ◽  
Zhongming Wen ◽  
Jie Zhao ◽  
Jingwei Jin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Leaf Area ◽  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Functional Divergence ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Dry Matter Content ◽  
Weighted Mean ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Community Weighted Mean

Abstract. Climate change and human activities have caused a shift in vegetation composition and soil biogeochemical cycles of alpine wetlands on the Tibetan Plateau. The primary goal of this study was to test for associations between community-weighted mean (CWM) traits, functional diversity, and soil properties during wetland drying. We collected soil samples and investigated the aboveground vegetation in swamp, swamp meadow, and typical meadow environments. Four CWM trait values (specific leaf area is SLA, leaf dry matter content is LDMC, leaf area is LA, and mature plant height is MPH) for 42 common species were measured across the three habitats; three components of functional diversity (functional richness, functional evenness, and functional divergence) were also quantified at these sites. Our results showed that the drying of the wetland dramatically altered plant community and soil properties. There was a significant correlation between CWM of traits and soil properties, but not a significant correlation between functional diversity and soil properties. Our results further showed that CWM-LA, CWM-SLA, and CWM-LDMC had positive correlations with soil readily available nutrients (available nitrogen, AN; available phosphorus, AP), but negative correlations with total soil nutrients (soil organic carbon is SOC, total nitrogen is TN, and total phosphorus is TP). Our study demonstrated that simple, quantitative plant functional traits, but not functional diversity, are directly related to soil C and N properties, and they likely play an important role in plant–soil interactions. Our results also suggest that functional identity of species may be more important than functional diversity in influencing ecosystem processes during wetland drying.

scholarly journals Bird Functional Diversity in Agroecosystems and Secondary Forests of the Tropical Andes

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 493
Author(s):  
Vanessa Velásquez-Trujillo ◽  
Juan F. Betancurt-Grisales ◽  
Angela M. Vargas-Daza ◽  
Carlos E. Lara ◽  
Fredy A. Rivera-Páez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Functional Divergence ◽  
Tail Length ◽  
Diversity Indices ◽  
Secondary Forests ◽  
Tropical Andes ◽  
Behavioral Traits ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Wing Chord ◽  
Functional Diversity Indices

Agricultural systems have increased in extension and intensity worldwide, altering vertebrate functional diversity, ecosystem functioning, and ecosystemic services. However, the effects of open monoculture crops on bird functional diversity remain little explored, particularly in highly biodiverse regions such as the tropical Andes. We aim to assess the functional diversity differences of bird guilds between monoculture crops (coffee, cocoa, and citrus) and secondary forests. We use four functional diversity indices (Rao Q, Functional Richness, Functional Evenness, and Functional Divergence) related to relevant morphological, life history, and behavioral traits. We find significant differences in functional diversity between agroecosystem and forest habitats. Particularly, bird functional diversity is quite homogeneous among crop types. Functional traits related to locomotion (body weight, wing-chord length, and tail length), nest type (closed), and foraging strata (canopy and understory) are dominant at the agroecosystems. The bird assemblages found at the agroecosystems are more homogeneous in terms of functional diversity than those found at the secondary forests, as a result of crop structure and management. We recommend promoting more diverse agroecosystems to enhance bird functional diversity and reduce their effects on biodiversity.

scholarly journals Fish functional diversity as an indicator of resilience to industrial fishing in Patagonia Argentina

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martha P Rincon Diaz ◽  
Nelson Dario Bovcon ◽  
Pablo D Cochia ◽  
Maria Eva Gongora ◽  
David E Galvan
Keyword(s):  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Diet Breadth ◽  
Functional Trait ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Functional Roles ◽  
Functional Richness ◽  
Trophic Traits ◽  
Temperate Fish

The relationship between fish functional diversity and fishing levels at which its baselines shift is important to identify the consequences of fishing in ecosystem functioning. For the first time, we implemented a trait-based approach in the Argentine Patagonian sea to identify the vulnerability and spatiotemporal changes in functional diversity of fish assemblages bycatch by a trawling fleet targeting the Argentine red shrimp Pleoticus muelleri (Spence Bate, 1888) between 2003 and 2014. We coupled seven fish trophic traits to a reconstructed fish assemblage for the study area and bycatch and evaluated changes in fish species richness and four complementary functional diversity metrics [functional richness, redundancy, dispersion, and community trait values] along with fishing intensity, temporal use, latitudinal location, and depth of fishing grounds. Resident fishes larger than 30 cm in TL, with depressed and fusiform bodies, intermediate to high trophic levels, and feeding in shallow benthic, benthodemersal, and benthopelagic areas were vulnerable to bycatch. Fish assemblages exhibited a low functional trait redundancy, likely related to species influxes in a biogeographic ecotone with tropicalisation signs. Significantly increases in fish trait richness and dispersion polewards and with depth suggested new functional roles in these grounds, matching trends in community body size, reproductive load, maximum depth, trophic level, and diet breadth. Finally, a temporal increase in fish species and functional trait removal in fishing grounds led to trait homogenisation since the first year of trawling. The identified tipping points in temperate fish functional trait diversity highlight trait-based approaches within ecosystem-based fisheries management.

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