A Framework for Community Ecology

Description

This book addresses an important problem in ecology: how are communities assembled from species pools? This pressing question underlies a broad array of practical problems in ecology and environmental science, including restoration of damaged landscapes, management of protected areas, and protection of threatened species. This book presents a simple logical structure for ecological assembly and addresses key areas including species pools, traits, environmental filters, and functional groups. It demonstrates the use of two predictive models (CATS and Traitspace) and consists of many wide-ranging examples including plants in deserts, wetlands, and forests, and communities of fish, amphibians, birds, mammals, and fungi. Global in scope, this volume ranges from the arid lands of North Africa, to forests in the Himalayas, to Amazonian floodplains. There is a strong focus on applications, particularly the twin challenges of conserving biodiversity and understanding community responses to climate change. Cover Half-title page Title page Copyright page Contents Preface 1 A General Framework for Community Ecology Communities A Grounding in Reality Composition and Causal Factors Can Both Be Mapped The Language of Samples and Sample Units More General Principles: Assembly and Response The Study of Pattern Is Not the Study of Community Assembly Foundations of Community Ecology Laid by Raunkiaer A General Framework The Basic Elements of Community Ecology Summary Key Points of the Chapter 2 Filters The Power of Filters Drought Acts as a Filter Cold Acts as a Filter Hypoxia Acts as a Filter Salinity Acts as a Filter Herbivores Act as Filters Wildfires Act as Filters Predators as Filters in Frog Communities Predation as a Filter How Many Filters Do We Need? More on Experiments and Filters Conclusion: The Ubiquity and Power of Filters Key Points of the Chapter 3 Species Pools The List of Parts Types of Pools Some Theory about Pools and Communities Rates of Arrival and Departure in the Community Some Empirical Relationships Observed in Real Communities Experimental Manipulation of Immigration and Establishment from Pools Invasive Species and the Potential Species Pool Approaches to Measuring Pools More on Older Lists and Their Utility in Documenting Species Pools Looking Ahead Key Points of the Chapter 4 Traits Naming Species A Biological Paradox: Two Systems for One Reality Functional Classifications: Some Historical Context Morphological Traits in Birds: Bills Are Fundamental Plant Functional Traits The Fundamental Global Trait: Leaf Economics Getting the Water to the Leaves: Traits for Water Conduction Traits and Trait Matrices Traits, Environments and Applications Key Points of the Chapter 5 Trait–Environment Interactions The Power of Filters Overview: Quantifying Trait–Environment Relationships Static Abundance-Based Approaches More on the Fourth Corner Problem An Example from a Wetland Dynamic Fitness-Based Approaches Conclusion Key Points of the Chapter 6 Functional Groups Furniture Assembly Functional Classification for Ecological Prediction Functional Groups in Plants Functional Groups in Birds Functional Groups in Insects Functional Types of Fish Functional Types of Mammals Functional Types of Fungi Some Methodological Issues On the Reality of Functional Groups The Underlying Causes of Functional Groups Functional Groups, Trait Matrices and Ecological Assembly Key Points of the Chapter 7 Predictive Models of Community Assembly Prediction in Community Ecology Community Assembly by Trait Selection How Many Traits Are Enough? The Traitspace Model of Environmental Filtering Applying the Traitspace Model to Conifer Forests in Southwestern North America Applying Both CATS and Traitspace to a Kettlehole Wetland Relaxing the Assumption of a Single Optimal Trait Value Using Traitspace Some Concluding Remarks on Two Models for Community Assembly Key Points of the Chapter 8 Prospects and Possibilities Logical Structure for Community Ecology Species, Functional Groups and Community Assembly The Canonical Model for Commonness and Rarity: Lessons for Community Assembly Response Rules and Inertia in Community Assembly (Time Dependence) The Role of Causal Factors in Ecological Communities and Restoration Key Points of the Chapter References Index