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Multiple facets of biodiversity drive the diversity-stability relationship
Dylan Craven1,2,3,4, Nico Eisenhauer5,6, William D Pearse7
1German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany. dylan.craven@aya.yale.edu.
Nature Ecology & Evolution
|August 29, 2018
Summary
Biodiversity, including species richness and phylogenetic diversity, stabilizes grassland ecosystems by increasing species asynchrony. Slow-growing plant communities also enhance stability, revealing a complex relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem stability.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Ecosystem Science
- Biodiversity Research
Background:
- Biodiversity is known to stabilize grassland ecosystem functioning.
- The specific roles of different biodiversity facets (species richness, phylogenetic diversity, functional traits) in this relationship are not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how species richness, phylogenetic diversity, and functional traits influence the diversity-stability relationship in grasslands.
- To determine the relative importance of these biodiversity facets in stabilizing ecosystem functioning.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from 39 grassland biodiversity experiments.
- Employed structural equation modeling to analyze the drivers of the diversity-stability relationship.
Main Results:
- High species richness and phylogenetic diversity stabilize biomass production through increased species performance asynchrony.
- Low phylogenetic diversity showed a weak, direct positive effect on ecosystem stability.
- Communities with slow-functional traits enhanced stability by increasing mean biomass production relative to its variation.
Conclusions:
- The diversity-stability relationship in grasslands is driven by multiple factors, including species richness, phylogenetic diversity, and functional traits.
- Species asynchrony is a key mechanism linking biodiversity to stability.
- Plant economics spectrum traits, particularly slow-growing species, contribute to ecosystem stability.
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