metanetwork: A R package dedicated to handling and representing trophic metanetworks

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Network Analysis
• Computational Biology

Background:

• Trophic networks illustrate species interactions within ecosystems.
• Environmental changes and human activities cause spatial and temporal variations in these networks.
• Collections of networks across sites or time form metanetworks, requiring specialized analytical tools.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce the R package 'metanetwork' for analyzing trophic metanetwork data.
• To provide tools for representing, exploring, and analyzing ecological interaction data.
• To facilitate the understanding of spatial and temporal dynamics in food webs.

Main Methods:

• Development of a novel layout algorithm for trophic networks based on trophic levels and graph diffusion kernel.
• Implementation of functions for handling, comparing (visually and quantitatively), and aggregating network data.
• Creation of static and dynamic visualization tools for large-scale networks.

Main Results:

• The package offers a new layout algorithm that highlights key trophic network features like trophic levels and energetic channels.
• Tools are provided for efficient data management and comparative analysis of multiple networks.
• Effective visualization methods are available for complex and large trophic metanetworks.

Conclusions:

• The 'metanetwork' R package simplifies the analysis of complex trophic metanetwork data.
• It provides advanced visualization and analytical tools crucial for ecological research.
• The package supports the study of ecological dynamics in response to environmental changes.