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Modeling the Size Spectrum for Macroinvertebrates and Fishes in Stream Ecosystems
Published on: July 30, 2019
Scale-sensitivity in the measurement and interpretation of environmental niches
1Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; Center for Biodiversity and Global Change, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
Abstract:
Species environmental niches are central to ecology, evolution, and global change research, but their characterization and interpretation depend on the spatial scale (specifically, the spatial grain) of their measurement. We find that the spatial grain of niche measurement is usually uninformed by ecological processes and varies by orders of magnitude. We illustrate the consequences of this variation for the volume, position, and shape of niche estimates, and discuss how it interacts with geographic range size, habitat specialization, and environmental heterogeneity. Spatial grain significantly affects the study of niche breadth, environmental suitability, niche evolution, niche tracking, and climate change effects. These and other fields will benefit from a more mechanism-informed choice of spatial grain and cross-grain evaluations that integrate different data sources.
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