Multiple stable states and relationship between thresholds in processes and states

Petraitis, Peter S.; Hoffman, Catharine E.

doi:10.3354/meps08691

Cited by 51 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 59 publications

(98 reference statements)

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“…Ecologists have tended to emphasize phase shifts in time, especially for cases in which environmental changes, perhaps accrued over time, have caused abrupt and dramatic changes in species composition. An important example is the transition from corals to macroalgae observed on some coral reefs (Hughes 1994, Petraitis & Hoffman 2010. The essential feature characterizing a phase shift is that the shift in the community assemblage is caused by a persistent change or trend in the environment, because under each specified set of environmental conditions, there is only a single attractor, or equilibrial community.…”

Section: Phase Shiftsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Petraitis & Latham (1999) described hypothetical scenarios in which a pulse of recruitment or mortality might move the system between basins of attraction in the absence of environmental variability. Lewontin (1969) and May (1977) (May 1977) or threshold curve (Petraitis & Hoffman 2010). The environments over which multiple stable equilibria exist determine hysteresis in the system.…”

Section: Alternative Stable Statesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Phase shifts and stable states on coral reefs

Dudgeon¹,

Aronson²,

Bruno³

et al. 2010

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

223

207

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Recent transitions from coral to macroalgal dominance on some tropical reefs have engendered debate about their causes and effects. A widely accepted view is that reef environments support stable, alternative coral or non-coral assemblages, despite the lack of evidence to support this hypothesis. Confusion in the literature stems from (1) misunderstanding theory; and (2) conflating a switch between alternative stable states with a shift in the phase portrait of a single equilibrial system caused by a persistent change, or trend, in the environment. In the present paper we outline the conceptual derivation of the hypothesis of alternative stable states, distinguish it from the phase-shift hypothesis, and discuss the evidence required to support each one. For cases in which firm conclusions can be drawn, data from fossil and modern reefs overwhelmingly support the phase-shift hypothesis rather than the hypothesis of alternative stable states. On tropical reefs, a given environment evidently supports at most a single stable community. Corals dominate environments that are disturbed primarily by natural events and have small anthropogenic impacts. In such environments, macroalgae dominate a stage during some successional trajectories to the stable, coral-dominated community. In anthropogenically perturbed environments, the resilience of the coral-dominated community is lost, precipitating phase shifts to communities dominated by macroalgae or other noncoral taxa. The implication for reef management and restoration is both substantial and optimistic. To the extent that the environments of degraded reefs are restored, either passively or actively, the communities should return to coral dominance. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 413: 201-216, 2010 often characterized by dominant populations of an ecological community responding smoothly and continuously along an environmental gradient until a threshold is reached, shifting the community to a new dominant or suite of dominants (Done 1992). In any given environment, there is at most one stable state. 'Alternative stable states,' in contrast, means that >1 configuration of the biological community, i.e. more than one state, can occur in the same place and under the same environmental conditions at different times. If any such configuration can persist under a wide range of environmental conditions, then it will appear to be ecologically locked, i.e. it will resist conversion to a different state.Confusion in the coral reef literature about phase shifts and alternative stable states is not surprising, because scientists have been confusing and redefining stable states since the idea was formally introduced by Lewontin (1969). With very few exceptions (e.g. Fong et al. 2006), studies of coral reefs either fail to recognize the intellectual precedent established by the early works that shaped the theory or do not persuasively justify their redefinition of key concepts. Rigorous and fixed definitions of stable states, phase shifts, and related concepts are essential if they a...

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Section: Phase Shiftsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Alternative Stable Statesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phase shifts and stable states on coral reefs

Dudgeon¹,

Aronson²,

Bruno³

et al. 2010

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

223

207

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…It is worth emphasizing that, at either patch or ecosystem scale, such patterns in space and state shifts in time can exist in an environment otherwise characterized by smooth spatial gradients and smooth temporal change in background environmental conditions. Crossing thresholds in environmental conditions is not required [104]. Also, multiple states apparent at one scale are not necessarily dependent upon or transferrable to other scales [156].…”

Section: Significance Of Multiple Stable States In Observation and Mamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As depicted, the conditions for the two states are not mutually exclusive: Within a range of values of the environmental parameter both states are possible. These are termed "alternative stable states" or "multiple stable states" (the two terms have been used interchangeably in the literature, e.g., see [101,104]). …”

Section: Theory Of Multiple Stable Ecosystem Statesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple Stable States and Catastrophic Shifts in Coastal Wetlands: Progress, Challenges, and Opportunities in Validating Theory Using Remote Sensing and Other Methods

et al. 2015

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Multiple stable states are established in coastal tidal wetlands (marshes, mangroves, deltas, seagrasses) by ecological, hydrological, and geomorphological feedbacks. Catastrophic shifts between states can be induced by gradual environmental change or by disturbance events. These feedbacks and outcomes are key to the sustainability and resilience of vegetated coastlines, especially as modulated by human activity, sea level rise, and climate change. Whereas multiple stable state theory has been invoked to model salt marsh responses to sediment supply and sea level change, there has been comparatively little empirical verification of the theory for salt marshes or other coastal wetlands. Especially lacking is long-term evidence documenting if or how stable states are established and maintained at ecosystem scales. Laboratory and field-plot studies are informative, but of necessarily limited spatial and temporal scope. For the purposes of long-term, coastal-scale monitoring, remote sensing is the best viable option. This review summarizes the above topics and highlights the emerging promise and challenges of using remote sensing-based analyses to validate coastal OPEN ACCESS Remote Sens. 2015, 7 10185 wetland dynamic state theories. This significant opportunity is further framed by a proposed list of scientific advances needed to more thoroughly develop the field.

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“…Wilson and Agnew 1992). However, this hypothesis is not universally accepted (e.g., Petraitis and Hoffman 2010).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Turf wars: experimental tests for alternative stable states in a two‐phase coastal ecosystem

Brownstein

Lee

Pritchard

et al. 2014

Ecology

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Abstract. Alternative stable states have long been thought to exist in natural communities, but direct evidence for their presence and for the environmental switches that cause them has been scarce. Using a combination of greenhouse and field experiments, we investigated the environmental drivers associated with two distinctive herbaceous communities in coastal ecosystems in New Zealand.In a mosaic unrelated to micro-topography, a community dominated largely by native turf species (notably Leptinella dioica, Samolus repens, and Selliera radicans) alternates with vegetation comprising exotic (i.e., nonnative) pasture species (notably Agrostis stolonifera, Holcus lanatus, Lolium perenne, and Trifolium repens). The species of these two communities differ in functional characters related to leaf longevity and growth rate, and occupy soils of differing nitrogen levels.Both spatial and environmental factors influenced the species composition locally. Reciprocal transplants of soil, with and without associated vegetation, showed that a native turf community developed when sward or soil from either community was bounded by turf, and a pasture community developed when sward or soil from either community was surrounded by pasture. In artificial mixed communities in the greenhouse, turf was able to invade the pasture community where the vegetation was clipped to simulate grazing, and also where Trifolium was removed and/or salt spray was applied. The pasture community invaded the turf where Trifolium was present or nitrogen was added. These results were supported by trends in experimentally manipulated field plots, where the amount of turf cover increased when nitrogen was kept low and when salt spray was applied, whereas pasture cover increased in the absence of salt spray.Thus, persistence of the native turf community is dependent on grazing, both directly and via its effect on keeping nitrogen levels low by excluding the exotic, nitrogen-fixing Trifolium, and by exposing the vegetation to salt spray. If any of these factors change, there could be a state change to pasture dominance that might be resistant to reversion to turf. Managing such coastal herbaceous communities therefore requires an understanding of the environmental and species characteristics that maintain alternative states.

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Multiple stable states and relationship between thresholds in processes and states

Cited by 51 publications

References 59 publications

Phase shifts and stable states on coral reefs

Phase shifts and stable states on coral reefs

Multiple Stable States and Catastrophic Shifts in Coastal Wetlands: Progress, Challenges, and Opportunities in Validating Theory Using Remote Sensing and Other Methods

Turf wars: experimental tests for alternative stable states in a two‐phase coastal ecosystem

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