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Predicting ecosystem vulnerability to biodiversity loss from community composition.

Sebastian A Heilpern¹, Brian C Weeks^1,2,3, Shahid Naeem^1,4

¹Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, New York, 10027, USA.

|March 24, 2018

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Ecosystem vulnerability to biodiversity loss depends on species traits and community structure. Trait covariation and variance, along with trophic interactions, predict whether ecosystems gain or lose function.

Keywords:

biodiversity loss compensation disassembly ecosystem function and services functional diversity functional traits resilience resistance vulnerability

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Area of Science:

Ecology
Ecosystem Science
Biodiversity Research

Background:

Ecosystems exhibit varied responses to biodiversity changes, ranging from dramatic function loss to high resilience.
Generalizations are hindered by the infrequent joint evaluation of factors like trophic structure, compensation, and functional trait diversity.
Ecosystem vulnerability is determined by species' response traits (sensitivity to change) and effect traits (contribution to function).

Purpose of the Study:

To extend the response-effect trait framework for quantifying ecosystem vulnerability.
To investigate how trophic structure, trait variance, and trait covariance influence ecosystem vulnerability.
To link extinction order and functional compensation to ecosystem responses to biodiversity change.

Main Methods:

Utilized in silico trait-based simulations.
Modeled ecosystem vulnerability using a response-effect trait framework.
Analyzed the interplay of extinction order, functional compensation, trait variance, and covariance.

Main Results:

Positive covariance between response and effect traits increased ecosystem vulnerability, an effect lessened by decreasing trait variance.
Contrary to expectations, functional diversity and trophic structure heightened ecosystem vulnerability in simulated communities.
Negative covariance between response and effect traits, coupled with high trait variance, promoted ecosystem resilience.

Conclusions:

Biodiversity loss impacts on ecosystem functions are conditional, influenced by trophic structure and trait variation.
The interplay of trait variation (within and among traits) and trophic structure can predict ecosystem functional gains or losses.
These factors provide a predictive framework for understanding ecosystem responses to ongoing biodiversity change.