The Role of Environmental and Spatial Processes in Structuring Lake Communities From Bacteria to Fish

Abstract

We assessed the relative roles of local environmental conditions and dispersal on community structure in a landscape of lakes for the major trophic groups. We use taxonomic presence-absence and abundance data for bacteria, phytoplankton, zooplankton, and fish from 18 lakes in southern Quebec, Canada. The question of interest was whether communities composed of organisms with more limited dispersal abilities, because of size and life history (zooplankton and fish) would show a different effect of lake distribution than communities composed of good dispersers (bacteria and phytoplankton). We examine the variation in structure attributable to local environmental (i.e., lake chemical and physical variables) vs. dispersal predictors (i.e., overland and watercourse distances between lakes) using variation partitioning techniques. Overall, we show that less motile species (crustacean zooplankton and fish) are better predicted by spatial factors than by local environmental ones. Furthermore, we show that for zooplankton abundances, both overland and watercourse dispersal pathways are equally strong, though they may select for different components of the community, while for fish, only watercourses are relevant dispersal pathways. These results suggest that crustacean zooplankton and fish are more constrained by dispersal and therefore more likely to operate as a metacommunity than are bacteria and phytoplankton within this studied landscape.

Are dominant plant species more susceptible to leaf‐mining insects? A case study at Saihanwula Nature Reserve, China

“…(3) Presence–absence data can remove much of the noise induced by sampling biases or errors, whereas large sampling errors can lead to unreliable abundance data (Hirst & Jackson, 2007; Jackson & Harvey, 1997). (4) In some cases, only presence–absence data can be recorded, for example, when organisms grow clonally, are too abundant to count, or are difficult for nonexperts to identify taxonomically (Beisner, Peres‐Neto, Lindström, Barnett, & Longhi, 2006; Colwell, Chang, & Chang, 2004). (5) Presence–absence data are more appropriate than are abundance data for clarifying the effects of host characteristics on parasite similarity (Locke, Mclaughlin, & Marcogliese, 2013; Poulin, 2010; Poulin & Krasnov, 2010; Seifertová, Vyskočilová, Morand, & Šimková, 2008).…”

Contribution of environmental and spatial processes to rocky intertidal metacommunity structure

“…Therefore, to fully understand the determinants of community structure, we should explicitly consider the ecological characteristics of organisms (Kearney, 2006, McGill et al, 2006. Comparing the relative contributions among taxonomic groups with different ecological characteristics could provide the first step revealing the generality and variability of mechanisms that determine community structure (Beisner et al, 2006, Cottenie, 2005. Cottenie (2005) conducted a meta-analysis by collecting 158 published datasets with information on community structure, environmental, and spatial variables to examine the relative role of environmental and spatial factors in determining community structure among different types of organisms.…”

“…However, such a comparison using datasets collected from different systems cannot distinguish between the influence of ecological characteristics of communities and biotic and abiotic features of habitats on the relative role of environmental and spatial factors in determining community structure. Both the characteristics of organisms and the structure of landscapes may vary depending on each studied group (Beisner et al, 2006). Therefore, to control for differences in landscape structure and to separate the relative roles of environmental and spatial processes, we need to focus on taxonomic groups with different ecological characteristics within the same ecosystem (Beisner et al, 2006).…”

“…Both the characteristics of organisms and the structure of landscapes may vary depending on each studied group (Beisner et al, 2006). Therefore, to control for differences in landscape structure and to separate the relative roles of environmental and spatial processes, we need to focus on taxonomic groups with different ecological characteristics within the same ecosystem (Beisner et al, 2006).…”

Aplicação da modelagem ecológica com foco na dinâmica do fitoplâncton para avaliação da qualidade da água do Lago Paranoá - DF

“…Por serem facilmente dispersos na coluna d'água, dado seu pequeno tamanho e elevada abundância, assume-se que as condições locais (estrutura física do sistema, disponibilidade de recursos, processos de escoamento hidráulico, sedimentação e herbivoria) determinarão quais espécies do fitoplâncton ocorrerão em um dado momento e lugar (Beisner et al, 2006). A dependência de luz para o crescimento e a dinâmica de circulação da coluna d'água produz um padrão sazonal para o fitoplâncton com variação da predominância de certas espécies de acordo com o aumento ou diminuição da intensidade de radiação solar e período de estratificação nos lagos.…”