A5038647585- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Plant and animal studies
- Rangeland and Wildlife Management
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
- Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics
- Fire effects on ecosystems
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Ecosystem dynamics and resilience
- Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology
- Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
- Landslides and related hazards
- Peatlands and Wetlands Ecology
- Land Use and Ecosystem Services
- Botany and Plant Ecology Studies
- Botany, Ecology, and Taxonomy Studies
- Insurance, Mortality, Demography, Risk Management
- Turfgrass Adaptation and Management
- Evolution and Genetic Dynamics
- Climate variability and models
- Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions
- Climate change and permafrost
- Isotope Analysis in Ecology
- Soil and Water Nutrient Dynamics
- Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation
Utah State University
2016-2025
Ecological Society of America
2016
John Wiley & Sons (United States)
2016
Colorado State University
1999-2006
University of California, Santa Barbara
2004-2006
Yale University
2006
Agricultural Research Service
2006
Kansas State University
2006
University of New Mexico
2006
Washington State University
2006
Summary One of the most pervasive concepts in study community assembly is metaphor environmental filter, which refers to abiotic factors that prevent establishment or persistence species a particular location. The has its origins change during succession and plant dynamics, although it gained considerable attention recently as part surge interest functional trait phylogenetic‐based approaches communities. While filtering clear utility some circumstances, been challenging reconcile concept...
Abstract Biotic resistance describes the ability of resident species in a community to reduce success exotic invasions. Although is well‐accepted phenomenon, less clear are processes that contribute most it, and whether those strong enough completely repel invaders. Current perceptions strong, competition‐driven biotic stem from classic ecological theory, Elton's formulation resistance, general acceptance enemies‐release hypothesis. We conducted meta‐analysis plant invasions literature...
Although research on the role of competitive interactions during community assembly began decades ago, a recent revival interest has led to new discoveries and opportunities. Using contemporary coexistence theory that emphasizes stabilizing niche differences relative fitness differences, we evaluate three empirical approaches for studying assembly. We show experimental manipulations abiotic or biotic environment, assessments trait-phylogeny-environment relationships, investigations...
Ecologists now recognize that controversy over the relative importance of niches and neutrality cannot be resolved by analyzing species abundance patterns. Here, we use classical coexistence theory to reframe debate in terms stabilizing mechanisms (niches) fitness equivalence (neutrality). The neutral model is a special case where are absent have equivalent fitness. Instead asking whether or processes structure communities, advocate determining degree which observed diversity reflects strong...
Abstract Aboveground–belowground interactions exert critical controls on the composition and function of terrestrial ecosystems, yet fundamental relationships between plant diversity soil microbial remain elusive. Theory predicts predominantly positive associations but tests within single sites have shown variable relationships, across broad spatial scales largely unexplored. We compared plant, bacterial, archaeal fungal communities in one hundred forty‐five 1 m 2 plots 25 temperate...
Significance Plants have evolved diverse life history strategies to succeed in Earth’s varied environments. Some species grow quickly, produce copious seeds, and die within a few weeks. Other slowly rarely seeds but live thousands of years. We show that simple morphological measurements can predict where falls the global range strategies: with large long-lived leaves, or dense wood population growth rates influenced primarily by survival, whereas individual fecundity stronger influence on...
For more than 30 years, the relationship between net primary productivity and species richness has generated intense debate in ecology about processes regulating local diversity. The original view, which is still widely accepted, holds that hump-shaped, with first rising then declining increasing productivity. Although recent meta-analyses questioned generality of hump-shaped patterns, these syntheses have been criticized for failing to account methodological differences among studies. We...
Leaf mechanical properties strongly influence leaf lifespan, plant-herbivore interactions, litter decomposition and nutrient cycling, but global patterns in their interspecific variation underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood.We synthesize data across the three major measurement methods, permitting first analyses of mechanics associated traits, for 2819 species from 90 sites worldwide.Key measures resistance varied c. 500-800-fold among species.Contrary to a long-standing hypothesis,...
Summary Advancing the field of ecology relies on understanding generalities and developing theories based empirical functional relationships that integrate across organismal to global spatial scales span temporal scales. Significant advances in predicting responses ecological communities globally extensive anthropogenic perturbations, for example, require role environmental context determining outcomes, which turn requires standardized experiments sites regions. Distributed collaborative can...
Abstract Theory predicts that intraspecific competition should be stronger than interspecific for any pair of stably coexisting species, yet previous literature reviews found little support this pattern. We screened over 5400 publications and identified 39 studies quantified phenomenological interactions in terrestrial plant communities. Of the 67% species pairs which both intra‐ effects were negative (competitive), was, on average, four to five‐fold competition. remaining pairs, 93%...
How expected increases in climate variability will affect species diversity depends on the role of such regulating coexistence competing species. Despite theory linking temporal environmental fluctuations with maintenance diversity, importance for stabilizing remains unknown because a lack appropriate long-term observations. Here, we analyze three decades demographic data from Kansas prairie to demonstrate that interannual promotes common grass Specifically, show ( i ) dynamics satisfy all...
Despite decades of research documenting niche differences between species, we lack a quantitative understanding their effect on coexistence in natural communities. We perturbed an empirical sagebrush steppe community model to remove the demographic and quantify impact coexistence. With stabilizing mechanisms operating, all species showed positive growth rates when rare, generating stable Fluctuation-independent contributed more than temporal variability operated strongly recruitment or...
Abstract In many terrestrial ecosystems, variation in aboveground net primary production ( ANPP ) is positively correlated with interannual precipitation. Global climate change will alter both the mean and variance of annual precipitation, but relative impact these changes precipitation on remains uncertain. At any given site, slope precipitation‐ relationship determines sensitivity to whereas curvature variability. We used 58 existing long‐term data sets characterize relationships...
Understanding long-term coexistence of numerous competing species is a longstanding challenge in ecology. Progress requires determining which processes and differences are most important for when multiple operate differ many ways. Modern theory (MCT), formalised by Chesson, holds out the promise doing that, but empirical applications remain scarce. We argue that MCT's mathematical complexity subtlety have obscured simplicity power its underlying ideas hindered applications. present general...
Niche differences and average fitness jointly determine coexistence. However, little empirical information about the magnitude of these two mechanisms is available. Using multispecies population models fit to long‐term demographic data for common, co‐occurring species in five grassland shrubland plant communities western North America, we estimated strength stabilizing niche differences. In all communities, both pairwise full community comparisons showed evidence strong relatively small For...
Significance The stability of ecological communities under ongoing climate and land-use change is fundamental to the sustainable management natural resources through its effect on critical ecosystem services. Biodiversity hypothesized enhance compensatory effects (decreased synchrony between species). However, relative importance interplay different biotic abiotic drivers remain controversial. By analyzing long-term data from seminatural ecosystems across globe, we found that degree among...