Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

What is an Ecosystem?

What is an Ecosystem?

The Soil Ecosystem

The Soil Ecosystem

Plants obtain inorganic minerals and water from the soil, which acts as a natural medium for land plants. The composition and quality of soil depend not only on the chemical constituents but also on the presence of living organisms. In general, soils contain three major components:

Restorative Care

Restorative Care

Restorative care is provided once a patient has been discharged from a healthcare facility and requires additional services. The additional services include home care, rehabilitation programs, and extended care. Restorative care centers help the patient regain their previous level of functioning or acquire a new level of functioning due to the incapacitating effects of a disease or a disability. It aims to assist patients in enhancing their quality of life by encouraging independence,...

Increasing Function

Increasing Function

An increasing function exhibits a rise in output values as input values increase. This behavior is depicted graphically as a curve or line that slopes upward from left to right. Such a function satisfies the condition that if x1 < x2, then f(x1) < f(x2), indicating that the function values grow with increasing inputs. This concept is fundamental in understanding growth trends across various domains, such as population dynamics, financial investments, or resource consumption.The...

Diversity of Archaea I

Diversity of Archaea I

Archaea, a domain of single-celled microorganisms, are classified into five major phyla based on genetic and biochemical characteristics: Euryarchaeota, Crenarchaeota, Thaumarchaeota, Korarchaeota, and Nanoarchaeota. Among these, the phylum Euryarchaeota is notable for its remarkable diversity in morphology, metabolism, and ecological adaptations.Morphological and Metabolic DiversityMembers of Euryarchaeota exhibit a variety of cellular shapes, including rods and cocci. Their metabolic pathways...

Cell Diversity

Cell Diversity

The concept of a cell started with microscopic observations of dead cork tissue by Robert Hooke in 1665. Hooke coined the term "cell" based on the resemblance of the small subdivisions in the cork to the rooms that monks inhabited, called cells. About ten years later, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek became the first person to observe the living and moving cells under a microscope. In the century that followed, the theory that cells represented the basic unit of life developed.
Multicellular...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Predicting temporal stability and resilience from resistance and recovery.

Nature·2026

Same author

A model for regional-scale oak savanna management: The roles of fire, canopy, and soils for understory plant diversity.

Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America·2025

Same author

Correction: Genome size influences plant growth and biodiversity responses to nutrient fertilization in diverse grassland communities.

PLoS biology·2025

Same author

Regional Processes Mediate Ecological Selection and the Distribution of Plant Diversity Across Scales.

Ecology letters·2025

Same author

Relative effects of seed mix design, consumer pressure, and edge proximity on community structure in restored prairies.

Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America·2025

Same author

Genome size influences plant growth and biodiversity responses to nutrient fertilization in diverse grassland communities.

PLoS biology·2024

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 6, 2026

Culture of Neurospheres Derived from the Neurogenic Niches in Adult Prairie Voles

Culture of Neurospheres Derived from the Neurogenic Niches in Adult Prairie Voles

Published on: June 10, 2020

Ecosystem multifunctionality increases with beta diversity in restored prairies.

Emily Grman¹, Chad R Zirbel^2,3, Tyler Bassett^2,3,4

¹Department of Biology, Eastern Michigan University, 441 Mark Jefferson Science Complex, Ypsilanti, MI, 48197, USA. egrman@emich.edu.

|August 19, 2018

Summary

Beta diversity, the variation in plant communities across landscapes, enhances ecosystem multifunctionality. Focusing on this spatial variation, rather than just local species richness, is key for effective ecosystem restoration.

Keywords:

Biodiversity Biotic homogenization Functional beta diversity Selection effect Taxonomic beta diversity

More Related Videos

JenaTron - An Experimental Approach to Study the Effects of Plant History and Soil History on Grassland Ecosystem Functioning

JenaTron - An Experimental Approach to Study the Effects of Plant History and Soil History on Grassland Ecosystem Functioning

Published on: March 21, 2025

A CO2 Concentration Gradient Facility for Testing CO2 Enrichment and Soil Effects on Grassland Ecosystem Function

A CO2 Concentration Gradient Facility for Testing CO2 Enrichment and Soil Effects on Grassland Ecosystem Function

Published on: November 21, 2015

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Feb 6, 2026

Culture of Neurospheres Derived from the Neurogenic Niches in Adult Prairie Voles

Culture of Neurospheres Derived from the Neurogenic Niches in Adult Prairie Voles

Published on: June 10, 2020

JenaTron - An Experimental Approach to Study the Effects of Plant History and Soil History on Grassland Ecosystem Functioning

JenaTron - An Experimental Approach to Study the Effects of Plant History and Soil History on Grassland Ecosystem Functioning

Published on: March 21, 2025

A CO2 Concentration Gradient Facility for Testing CO2 Enrichment and Soil Effects on Grassland Ecosystem Function

A CO2 Concentration Gradient Facility for Testing CO2 Enrichment and Soil Effects on Grassland Ecosystem Function

Published on: November 21, 2015

Area of Science:

Ecology
Restoration Ecology
Biodiversity Research

Background:

Biodiversity loss impacts ecosystem functioning.
The role of beta diversity (spatial variation in community composition) in ecosystem functioning is less understood than alpha diversity (local species richness).

Purpose of the Study:

To test if beta diversity increases ecosystem multifunctionality via variation in plant species' functional traits.
To investigate the relative importance of beta diversity versus alpha diversity and dominant species abundance in restored prairies.

Main Methods:

Collected data on plant community composition, functional traits, and seven ecosystem functions across 29 restored prairies.
Analyzed the relationships between taxonomic and functional beta diversity, alpha diversity, dominant species abundance, and averaged ecosystem multifunctionality.

Main Results:

Averaged ecosystem multifunctionality increased with both taxonomic and functional beta diversity.
Neither taxonomic nor functional alpha richness was significantly associated with overall multifunctionality.
The abundance of the dominant species, big bluestem, had a minor role, indicating a limited selection effect.

Conclusions:

Beta diversity, representing a mosaic of functionally distinct plant communities, is crucial for fostering ecosystem multifunctionality in restored systems.
Restoration efforts should prioritize community heterogeneity and spatial variation (beta diversity) over solely increasing local species richness (alpha diversity).
Findings suggest that beta diversity and dominant species abundance may be more critical than alpha diversity for ecosystem multifunctionality in naturally structured systems.