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Related Concept Videos

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What is Biodiversity?

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Biodiversity describes the variety of living things at multiple organizational levels: genetic, species and ecosystem diversity. Species diversity includes all branches of the evolutionary tree from single-celled prokaryotic organisms, bacteria, and archaea, to the eukaryotic kingdoms: plants; animals; fungi; and protists. To date, there have been about 1.75 million species identified, and new species are discovered every week.
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All organisms in an ecosystem occupy a trophic level in the food chain. The lowest level consists of primary producers, which synthesize their food from either solar or chemical energy. Each subsequent level obtains energy from the levels below. Detritivores can occupy any of the levels above primary producers.
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Biological organization is the classification of biological structures, ranging from atoms at the bottom of the hierarchy to the Earth's biosphere. Each level of the hierarchy represents an increase in complexity that builds upon the previous level.
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There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...
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Related Experiment Video

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JenaTron - An Experimental Approach to Study the Effects of Plant History and Soil History on Grassland Ecosystem Functioning
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Biodiversity at multiple trophic levels is needed for ecosystem multifunctionality.

Santiago Soliveres, Fons van der Plas, Peter Manning

    Nature
    |August 18, 2016
    PubMed
    Summary
    This summary is machine-generated.

    High species richness across multiple trophic groups (multitrophic richness) enhances ecosystem services more than single-group diversity. This multitrophic biodiversity is crucial for ecosystem functioning and multifunctionality in real-world grasslands.

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    Area of Science:

    • Ecology
    • Biodiversity Science
    • Ecosystem Services

    Background:

    • Biodiversity loss impairs ecosystem services essential for human well-being.
    • Previous experiments often oversimplify ecosystems and focus on single trophic groups.
    • The functional impact of one trophic group can depend on others, necessitating a broader view.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To analyze the relationship between multitrophic species richness/abundance and ecosystem services/multifunctionality.
    • To compare the effects of multitrophic richness versus single-group richness on ecosystem functions.
    • To assess the influence of biodiversity across multiple trophic levels in real-world grasslands.

    Main Methods:

    • Analysis of species richness and abundance across nine trophic groups (4,600 taxa).
    • Evaluation of 14 ecosystem services and their simultaneous provision (multifunctionality).
    • Study conducted in 150 grassland ecosystems, considering abiotic conditions and land use.

    Main Results:

    • Multitrophic richness significantly enhanced ecosystem services and multifunctionality, outperforming single-group richness.
    • Each ecosystem service was influenced by an average of three trophic groups.
    • Multitrophic abundance positively affected supporting services, while richness benefited regulating and cultural services.
    • Multitrophic biodiversity's impact on ecosystem functioning was comparable to abiotic factors and land-use intensity.

    Conclusions:

    • A focus on single trophic groups underestimates the functional importance of biodiversity.
    • Multitrophic richness and abundance are key drivers of ecosystem functioning and service provision.
    • Conservation and management strategies should consider the diversity of multiple trophic groups for robust ecosystem services.