Seed predation increases from the Arctic to the Equator and from high to low elevations

Hargreaves, Anna L.; Suárez, Esteban; Mehltreter, Klaus; Myers‐Smith, Isla H.; Vanderplank, Sula E.; Slinn, Heather L.; Vargas-Rodriguez, Yalma L.; Haeussler, Sybille; David, Santiago; Muñoz, Jenny; Almazán-Núñez, R. Carlos; Loughnan, Deirdre; Benning, John W.; Moeller, David A.; Brodie, Jedediah F.; Thomas, Haydn J. D.; Morales, Paula Andrea Morales

doi:10.1126/sciadv.aau4403

Cited by 73 publications

(87 citation statements)

References 71 publications

(101 reference statements)

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“…A1H). We anticipated that predation risk would decline with elevation, as has been reported in many previous studies (de Mendoza and Catalan 2010; Roslin et al 2017;Moreira et al 2018;Hargreaves et al 2019). But survey data collected after the ex-periment was underway suggested that predator density was not strongly associated with elevation in our study area ( fig.…”

Section: Maladaptation On Steep Climate Gradients E69supporting

confidence: 51%

Gene Flow Limits Adaptation along Steep Environmental Gradients

Bachmann

Rensburg

Cortázar-Chinarro

et al. 2020

The American Naturalist

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When environmental variation is spatially continuous, dispersing individuals move among nearby sites with similar habitat conditions. But as an environmental gradient becomes steeper, gene flow may connect more divergent habitats, and this is predicted to reduce the slope of the adaptive cline that evolves. We compared quantitative genetic divergence of Rana temporaria frog populations along a 2,000-m elevational gradient in eastern Switzerland (new experimental results) with divergence along a 1,550-km latitudinal gradient in Fennoscandia (previously published results). Both studies found significant countergradient variation in larval development rate (i.e., animals from cold climates developed more rapidly). The cline was weaker with elevation than with latitude. Animals collected on both gradients were genotyped at 2,000 single-nucleotide polymorphism markers, revealing that dispersal distance was 30% farther on the latitudinal gradient but 3.9 times greater with respect to environmental conditions on the elevational gradient. A meta-analysis of 19 experimental studies of anuran populations spanning temperature gradients revealed that countergradient variation in larval development, while significant overall, was weaker when measured on steeper gradients. These findings support the prediction that adaptive population divergence is less pronounced, and maladaptation more pervasive, on steep environmental gradients. abstract: When environmental variation is spatially continuous, dispersing individuals move among nearby sites with similar habitat conditions. But as an environmental gradient becomes steeper, gene flow may connect more divergent habitats, and this is predicted to reduce the slope of the adaptive cline that evolves. We compared quantitative genetic divergence of Rana temporaria frog populations along a 2,000-m elevational gradient in eastern Switzerland (new experimental results) with divergence along a 1,550-km latitudinal gradient in Fennoscandia (previously published results). Both studies found significant countergradient variation in larval development rate (i.e., animals from cold climates developed more rapidly). The cline was weaker with elevation than with latitude. Animals collected on both gradients were genotyped at ∼2,000 singlenucleotide polymorphism markers, revealing that dispersal distance was 30% farther on the latitudinal gradient but 3.9 times greater with respect to environmental conditions on the elevational gradient. A meta-analysis of 19 experimental studies of anuran populations spanning temperature gradients revealed that countergradient variation in larval development, while significant overall, was weaker when measured on steeper gradients. These findings support the prediction that adaptive population divergence is less pronounced, and maladaptation more pervasive, on steep environmental gradients.

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Section: Maladaptation On Steep Climate Gradients E69supporting

confidence: 51%

Gene Flow Limits Adaptation along Steep Environmental Gradients

Bachmann

Rensburg

Cortázar-Chinarro

et al. 2020

The American Naturalist

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“…Many studies have evaluated this "biotic interactions" hypothesis (sensu Schemske 9 ) by attempting to quantify latitudinal variation in the strength of species interactions. However, most of these studies have been limited in scale and have yielded mixed results, such that the generality of the biotic interactions hypothesis remains difficult to evaluate and controversial [5][6][7][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21] .…”

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confidence: 99%

Pelagic fish predation is stronger at temperate latitudes than near the equator

et al. 2020

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Species interactions are widely thought to be strongest in the tropics, potentially contributing to the greater number of species at lower latitudes. Yet, empirical tests of this "biotic interactions" hypothesis remain limited and often provide mixed results. Here, we analyze 55 years of catch per unit effort data from pelagic longline fisheries to estimate the strength of predation exerted by large predatory fish in the world's oceans. We test two central tenets of the biotic interactions hypothesis: that predation is (1) strongest near the equator, and (2) positively correlated with species richness. Counter to these predictions, we find that predation is (1) strongest in or near the temperate zone and (2) negatively correlated with oceanic fish species richness. These patterns suggest that, at least for pelagic fish predation, common assumptions about the latitudinal distribution of species interactions do not apply, thereby challenging a leading explanation for the latitudinal gradient in species diversity.

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“…We recorded high levels of predation and seed removal, with levels of seed removal being higher than that recorded in a comparable tropical forest area (Hargreaves et al 2018). Similarly, levels of decomposition were high compared to litterbag experiments in forested and open landscapes (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

Resilience of ecological functions to drought in an oil palm agroecosystem

Eycott

Advento²,

Waters

et al. 2019

Environ. Res. Commun.

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Oil palm is a major habitat in the tropics. It is highly productive and contributes substantially to the economies of producing countries, but its expansion has caused widespread deforestation, with negative consequences for biodiversity. Such biodiversity losses may have substantial impacts on ecosystem functions within oil palm and resilience of functions to changing rainfall patterns, with impacts on yield. However, although the direct effects of water deficit on yield have been studied, little work has investigated ecosystem processes within plantations or the resilience of functions to changing rainfall. We conducted ecosystem function experiments within mature oil palm at the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in Tropical Agriculture (BEFTA) Programme site in Sumatra, Indonesia. We measured rates of leaf litter decomposition, seed removal, mealworm predation, and herbivory at multiple time points spanning the 2015-2016 El Niño -Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event that caused widespread drought within Southeast Asia. We found that mealworm predation, seed removal, and decomposition rates were high, whilst herbivory levels were low, indicating a healthy ecosystem with high levels of pest control and organic matter breakdown. Exclusion tests showed that the presence of invertebrates was associated with higher levels of seed removal and decomposition and the presence of vertebrates with higher predation. All functions were relatively robust to changes in rainfall. Yet, whilst seed removal and herbivory did not alter with rainfall, decomposition and predation showed more complex effects, with levels of both processes increasing with current rainfall levels when rainfall in preceding time periods was low. This suggests that both processes are resilient to change and able to recover following drought. Our results indicate that the ecosystem processes measured within oil palm plantations are healthy and resilient to changing rainfall patterns. This is hopeful and suggests that the crop may be fairly robust to future changes in precipitation.

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Seed predation increases from the Arctic to the Equator and from high to low elevations

Abstract: Alaska to Ecuador mega-experiment shows seeds are more likely to be munched toward the tropics and lowlands, as Darwin predicted.

Cited by 73 publications

References 71 publications

Gene Flow Limits Adaptation along Steep Environmental Gradients

Gene Flow Limits Adaptation along Steep Environmental Gradients

Pelagic fish predation is stronger at temperate latitudes than near the equator

Resilience of ecological functions to drought in an oil palm agroecosystem

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