Abstract
AbstractAimThe two additive components of β‐diversity, namely turnover and nestedness, reflect the two basic mechanisms underlying the overall change in species identities across the landscape, the replacement of species or their loss, respectively. Analogously, functional turnover and nestedness express the replacement or loss of functional traits associated with variations in community composition. However, the extent to which patterns of compositional and functional nestedness and turnover may overlap, or diverge, is still uncertain in marine environments. Here, patterns of turnover and nestedness were quantified in marine benthic assemblages in order to assess their relative contribution to spatial patterns of compositional and functional β‐diversity.LocationMediterranean Sea, NE Ionian Sea, Ionian Archipelago.MethodsIn this study, we investigated patterns of dissimilarity in species and functional trait composition in subtidal macrobenthic assemblages from Mediterranean islands in order to quantify compositional and functional β‐diversity among islands, determine the relative contributions of turnover and nestedness, and compare β‐diversity patterns occurring in shallow and deeper reefs.ResultsWe found a complex relationship between functional and compositional β‐diversity at varying depth. At 5 m, species and functional trait dissimilarity largely overlapped, with turnover being the dominant component in both cases. At 15 m, compositional β‐diversity was mostly due to turnover, with a negligible contribution of nestedness, whereas the opposite occurred for functional β‐diversity. Partitioning β‐diversity components revealed this discrepancy and the presence of functional hotspots, which would remain unnoticed analysing the overall compositional and functional β‐diversity.Main conclusionsOur findings may have profound implications for the optimization of conservation planning, stressing the need for assessing habitat‐dependent idiosyncrasies in components of functional and compositional β‐diversity for a more comprehensive picture of possible protection scenarios that, besides structure, may also allow preserving the functioning of marine communities.
Highlights
Since our study focused on subtidal sessile assemblages on bedrock, traits that did not apply to this condition were not considered
Patterns of -diversity vs geographic distance at the scale of sites
Summary
Pluriannual study of the reproduction of two Mediterranean Oscarella species Contrasting growth and survival of two cryptic sponge species sharing habitats in western Mediterranean. Growth and population dynamics model of the Mediterranean solitary coral Balanophyllia europaea (Scleractinia, Dendrophylliidae). Chemical bioactivity of Mediterranean benthic organisms against embryos and larvae of marine invertebrates. Effects of thermal stress on the growth of an intertidal population of Ellisolandia elongata (Rhodophyta) from N–W Mediterranean Sea. Evolution of Sexual Reproduction in Marine Invertebrates. Life cycle assessment of in situ mariculture in the Mediterranean Sea for the production of bioactive compounds from the sponge Sarcotragus spinosulus. Websites http://macoi.ci.uc.pt (Portuguese seaweeds website, University of Coimbra, Portugal) http://dryades.units.it (University of Trieste, Italy) https://www.marlin.ac.uk/biotic
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.