Vergnon Rémi, Dulvy N. K., Freckleton R. P. (2009). Niches versus neutrality : uncovering the drivers of diversity in a species-rich community. Ecology Letters, 12 (10), p. 1079-1090. ISSN 1461-023X.
Titre du document
Niches versus neutrality : uncovering the drivers of diversity in a species-rich community
Ecology Letters, 2009,
12 (10), p. 1079-1090 ISSN 1461-023X
Ecological models suggest that high diversity can be generated by purely niche-based, purely neutral or by a mixture of niche-based and neutral ecological processes. Here, we compare the degree to which four contrasting hypotheses for coexistence, ranging from niche-based to neutral, explain species richness along a body mass niche axis. We derive predictions from these hypotheses and confront them with species body-mass patterns in a highly sampled marine phytoplankton community. We find that these patterns are consistent only with a mechanism that combines niche and neutral processes, such as the emergent neutrality mechanism. In this work, we provide the first empirical evidence that a niche-neutral model can explain niche space occupancy pattern in a natural species-rich community. We suggest this class of model may be a useful hypothesis for the generation and maintenance of species diversity in other size-structured communities.
Plan de classement
Sciences du milieu [021]
;
Etudes, transformation, conservation du milieu naturel [082]
