Abstract
One of the first successes of neutral ecology was to predict realistically-broad distributions of rare and abundant species. However, it has remained an outstanding theoretical challenge to describe how this distribution of abundances changes with spatial scale, and this gap has hampered attempts to use observed species abundances as a way to quantify what non-neutral processes are needed to fully explain observed patterns. To address this, we introduce a new formulation of spatial neutral biodiversity theory and derive analytical predictions for the way abundance distributions change with scale. For tropical forest data where neutrality has been extensively tested before now, we apply this approach and identify an incompatibility between neutral fits at regional and local scales. We use this approach derive a sharp quantification of what remains to be explained by non-neutral processes at the local scale, setting a quantitative target for more general models for the maintenance of biodiversity.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 10200 |
| Journal | Scientific reports |
| Volume | 8 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 1 2018 |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
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Cite this
Cross-scale neutral ecology and the maintenance of biodiversity. / O'Dwyer, James Patrick; Cornell, Stephen J.
In: Scientific reports, Vol. 8, No. 1, 10200, 01.12.2018.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Cross-scale neutral ecology and the maintenance of biodiversity
AU - O'Dwyer, James Patrick
AU - Cornell, Stephen J.
PY - 2018/12/1
Y1 - 2018/12/1
N2 - One of the first successes of neutral ecology was to predict realistically-broad distributions of rare and abundant species. However, it has remained an outstanding theoretical challenge to describe how this distribution of abundances changes with spatial scale, and this gap has hampered attempts to use observed species abundances as a way to quantify what non-neutral processes are needed to fully explain observed patterns. To address this, we introduce a new formulation of spatial neutral biodiversity theory and derive analytical predictions for the way abundance distributions change with scale. For tropical forest data where neutrality has been extensively tested before now, we apply this approach and identify an incompatibility between neutral fits at regional and local scales. We use this approach derive a sharp quantification of what remains to be explained by non-neutral processes at the local scale, setting a quantitative target for more general models for the maintenance of biodiversity.
AB - One of the first successes of neutral ecology was to predict realistically-broad distributions of rare and abundant species. However, it has remained an outstanding theoretical challenge to describe how this distribution of abundances changes with spatial scale, and this gap has hampered attempts to use observed species abundances as a way to quantify what non-neutral processes are needed to fully explain observed patterns. To address this, we introduce a new formulation of spatial neutral biodiversity theory and derive analytical predictions for the way abundance distributions change with scale. For tropical forest data where neutrality has been extensively tested before now, we apply this approach and identify an incompatibility between neutral fits at regional and local scales. We use this approach derive a sharp quantification of what remains to be explained by non-neutral processes at the local scale, setting a quantitative target for more general models for the maintenance of biodiversity.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85049687792&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85049687792&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/s41598-018-27712-7
DO - 10.1038/s41598-018-27712-7
M3 - Article
C2 - 29976959
AN - SCOPUS:85049687792
VL - 8
JO - Scientific Reports
JF - Scientific Reports
SN - 2045-2322
IS - 1
M1 - 10200
ER -