Climate Change, Keystone Predation, and Biodiversity Loss

• DOI: 10.1126/science.1210199
• Publication Date: 2011-11-24T19:16:20Z
• Authors: Christopher D. G....
• Keywords: Keystone species

Climate change can affect organisms both directly via physiological stress and indirectly changing relationships among species. However, we do not fully understand how interspecific contribute to community- ecosystem-level responses environmental forcing. I used experiments spatial temporal comparisons demonstrate that warming substantially reduces predator-free space on rocky shores. The vertical extent of mussel beds decreased by 51% in 52 years, reproductive populations mussels disappeared at several sites. Prey species were able occupy a hot, extralimital site if predation pressure was experimentally reduced, local richness more than doubled as result. These results suggest anthropogenic climate alter interactions produce unexpected changes distributions, community structure, diversity.