Species-genetic Diversity Correlation Research Articles

Global patterns and drivers of genetic diversity among marine habitat‐forming species

AbstractAimIntraspecific genetic diversity is one of the pillars of biodiversity, supporting the resilience and evolutionary potential of populations. Yet, our knowledge regarding the patterns of genetic diversity at macroecological scales, so‐called macrogenetic patterns, remains scarce, particularly in marine species. Marine habitat‐forming (MHF) species are key species in some of the most diverse but also most impacted marine ecosystems, such as coral reefs and marine forests. We characterize the patterns and drivers of genetic diversity in MHF species and provide a macrogenetic baseline, which can be used for conservation planning and for future genetic monitoring programmes.LocationGlobal.Time periodContemporary.Major taxa studiedBryozoans, hexacorals, hydrozoans, octocorals, seagrasses, seaweeds, sponges.MethodsWe analysed a database including genetic diversity estimates based on microsatellites in more than 9,000 georeferenced populations from 140 species, which belong to seven animal and plant taxa. Focusing on expected heterozygosity, we used generalized additive models to test the effect of latitude, taxon, and conservation status. We tested the correlation between the species richness and the genetic diversity.ResultsWe reveal a significant but complex biogeographic pattern characterized by a bimodal latitudinal trend influenced by taxonomy. We also report a positive species genetic diversity correlation at the scale of the ecoregions. The difference in genetic diversity between protected and unprotected areas was not significant.Main conclusionsThe contrasting results between MHF animals and plants suggest that the latitudinal genetic diversity patterns observed in MHF species are idiosyncratic, as reported in terrestrial species. Our results support the existence of shared drivers between genetic and species diversities, which remain to be formally identified. Concerning, these macrogenetic patterns are not aligned from the existing network of marine protected areas. Providing the first macrogenetic baseline in MHF species, this study echoes the call regarding the need to consider genetic diversity in biodiversity assessments and management.

Species and genetic diversity relationships in benthic macroinvertebrate communities along a salinity gradient

BackgroundSpecies- and genetic diversity can change in parallel, resulting in a species-genetic diversity correlation (SGDC) and raising the question if the same drivers influence both biological levels of diversity. The SGDC can be either positive or negative, depending on whether the species diversity and the genetic diversity of the measured species respond in the same or opposite way to drivers. Using a traditional species diversity approach together with ultra-conserved elements and high throughput sequencing, we evaluated the SGDCs in benthic macrofauna communities in the Baltic Sea, a geologically young brackish water sea characterised by its steep salinity gradient and low species richness. Assessing SGDCs from six focal marine invertebrate species from different taxonomic groups and with differing life histories and ecological functions on both a spatial and temporal scale gives a more comprehensive insight into the community dynamics of this young ecosystem and the extrinsic factors that might drive the SGDCs.ResultsNo significant correlations between species diversity and genetic diversity were found for any of the focal species. However, both negative and positive trends of SGDCs for the individual focal species were observed. When examining the environmental drivers, no common trends between the species were found, even when restricting the analysis to specific taxonomic classes. Additionally, there were no common environmental factors driving the diversity relationships for species sharing the same SGDC trend (positive or negative). Local population dynamics, together with the invasion history of the individual species and their unique adaptation to the distinctive environment of the Baltic Sea, are expected to be of major influence on the outcome of the SGDCs.ConclusionsThe present results highlight the importance of assessing SGDCs using multiple species, not just a single indicator species. This emphasises a need to pay attention to the ecology and life history of the focal species. This study also provides insight into the large differences in both patterns and drivers of genetic diversity, which is important when including genetic biodiversity in conservation plans. We conclude that the effects of environmental and biological factors and processes that affects diversity patterns at both the community and genetic levels are likely species dependent, even in an environment such as the Baltic Sea with strong environmental gradients.

Disentangling direct from indirect effects of habitat disturbance on multiple components of biodiversity.

Human habitat disturbance affects both species diversity and intraspecific genetic diversity, leading to correlations between these two components of biodiversity (termed species-genetic diversity correlation, SGDC). However, whether SGDC predictions extend to host-associated communities, such as the intestinal parasite and gut microbial diversity, remains largely unexplored. Additionally, the role of dominant generalist species is often neglected despite their importance in shaping the environment experienced by other members of the ecological community, and their role as source, reservoir and vector of zoonotic diseases. New analytical approaches (e.g. structural equation modelling, SEM) can be used to assess SGDC relationships and distinguish among direct and indirect effects of habitat characteristics and disturbance on the various components of biodiversity. With six concrete and biologically sound models in mind, we collected habitat characteristics of 22 study sites from four distinct landscapes located in central Panama. Each landscape differed in the degree of human disturbance and fragmentation measured by several quantitative variables, such as canopy cover, canopy height and understorey density. In terms of biodiversity, we estimated on the one hand, (a) small mammal species diversity, and, on the other hand, (b) genome-wide diversity, (c) intestinal parasite diversity and (d) gut microbial heterogeneity of the most dominant generalist species (Tome's spiny rat, Proechimys semispinosus). We used SEMs to assess the links between habitat characteristics and biological diversity measures. The best supported SEM suggested that habitat characteristics directly and positively affect the richness of small mammals, the genetic diversity of P. semispinosus and its gut microbial heterogeneity. Habitat characteristics did not, however, directly impact intestinal parasite diversity. We also detected indirect, positive effects of habitat characteristics on both host-associated assemblages via small mammal richness. For microbes, this is likely linked to cross species transmission, particularly in shared and/or anthropogenically altered habitats, whereas host diversity mitigates parasite infections. The SEM revealed an additional indirect but negative effect on intestinal parasite diversity via host genetic diversity. Our study showcases that habitat alterations not only affect species diversity and host genetic diversity in parallel, but also species diversity of host-associated assemblages. The impacts from human disturbance are therefore expected to ripple through entire ecosystems with far reaching effects felt even by generalist species.

Contrasting relationships between genetic diversity and species diversity in conserved and disturbed submerged macrophyte communities of Honghu Lake, a typical freshwater lake of Yangtze River Basin

Submerged macrophytes, as the primary producer in lakes, possess fundamental function for the construction of the lake ecosystem. Here, species-genetic diversity correlation (SGDC) was evaluated between the species diversity (SD) of submerged macrophyte communities and the genetic diversity (GD) of dominant submerged macrophyte Myriophyllum spicatum in the conserved and disturbed water areas of the Honghu Lake, China. For communities, higher level of SD was unexpectedly found in the disturbed area, despite the fact that higher biomass was exhibited in the conserved area. For M. spicatum , the two areas showed similar level of GD. Neither the conserved area ( r = 0.092, P = 0.755) nor the disturbed area ( r = 0.377, P = 0.253) showed significant SGDC. This was attributed to the convenient exchanges of species and genes within the Honghu Lake. Additionally, the response for SD of submerged macrophyte communities to disturbance was more rapid than that for GD of M. spicatum , which also led to no SGDC in the disturbed area. Based on the results, a conservation strategy for conserving the two levels of biodiversity (both SD and GD) separately is recommended. The conserved area should be enlarged and serve as stable supplies of species and genes for the disturbed area; reasonable collection should be carried out in the disturbed area; seedlings can be replanted to the lake for GD maintaining. Additionally, government supervision should be strengthened, with controlling pollutant discharge and monitoring aquatic plant diversity regularly.

A Meta-Analysis Indicates Positive Correlation between Genetic Diversity and Species Diversity.

Simple SummaryUnderstanding species and genetic correlations (SGDCs) is essential to establish community composition. In this study, 295 observations from 39 studies explored the SGDCs and the underlying drivers through conducting a global meta-analysis. A positive correlation was found, suggesting that parallel processes (environmental heterogeneity, area, and connectivity etc.) have effects on two diversities. As current biodiversity hotspots have mainly been identified based on high species diversity and high endemism of taxon, the understanding of SGDC will substantially help us to determine whether and how genetic diversity can be used in identifying biodiversity hotspots, as well as in developing conservation practices and policies for biodiversity.Species diversity (SD) and genetic diversity (GD) are the two basic levels of biodiversity. In general, according to the consensus view, the parallel effects of environmental heterogeneity, area, and connectivity on two levels, can drive a positive correlation between GD and SD. Conversely, a negative correlation or no correlation would be expected if these effects are not parallel. Our understanding of the relationships between SD and GD among different ecosystems, sampling methods, species, and under climate change remains incomplete. In the present study, we conducted a hierarchical meta-analysis based on 295 observations from 39 studies and found a positive correlation between genetic diversity and species diversity (95% confidence interval, 7.6–22.64%). However, significant relationships were not found in some ecosystems when we conducted species–genetic diversity correlation analysis based on a single ecosystem. Moreover, the magnitudes of the correlations generally decreased with the number of sampling units and the annual average the temperature of sampling units. Our results highlight the positive correlation between GD and SD, thereby indicating that protecting SD involves protecting GD in conservation practice. Furthermore, our results also suggest that global increases in temperature during the 21st century will have significant impacts on global biodiversity.

Species–genetic diversity correlation in phyllostomid bats of the Bodoquena plateau, Brazil

Recent theories suggest that processes shaping species diversity are the same shaping genetic diversity, leading to a correlation between the two levels of diversity. Using Neotropical bat assemblages, and considering the genetic diversity of two co-distributed Chiroptera species with distinct life-history traits, Artibeus planirostris and Carollia perspicillata, we evaluated the correlation between metrics of taxonomic (species richness, evenness, and community divergence) and genetic diversity (number of haplotypes, haplotype diversity, allelic richness, expected heterozygosity and genetic divergence) in these two species. Landscape variables potentially affecting those correlations (distance to the nearest conservation unit, forest area, forest border length and number of forest fragments) were also analysed. For A. planirostris, we found a negative correlation between evenness and expected heterozygosity and also between mean presence-absence assemblage divergence and mean genetic divergence based on microsatellites. Our results indicate that the genetic diversity in A. planirostris is not explained by the landscape variables considered. For C. perspicillata, we found a positive correlation between species richness and haplotype richness and between evenness and expected heterozygosity. Genetic differentiation based on microsatellites in C. perspicillata was positively related to geographic distance and landscape differentiation. Allelic richness and expected heterozygosity in C. perspicillata were negatively related to distance from the conservation unit and forest area, but significance changed according to the spatial scale. We conclude that species-genetic diversity correlations may vary according to the species under study. Thus, A. planirostris appears to be ecologically different to other species in assemblages, while C. perspicillata seems to be ecologically similar.

Deciphering the drivers of negative species-genetic diversity correlation in Alpine amphibians.

The evolutionary and ecological importance of neutral and adaptive genetic diversity is widely recognized. Nevertheless, genetic diversity is rarely assessed for conservation planning, which often implicitly assumes a positive correlation between species and genetic diversity. Multiple drivers can cause the co-variation between the genetic diversity of one species and the richness of the whole communities, and explicit tests are needed to identify the processes that can determine species-genetic diversity correlations (SGDCs). Here, we tested whether intrapopulation genetic diversity (at neutral loci) and species richness co-vary in the amphibian communities of a southern Alpine region (Trentino, Italy), using the common frog (Rana temporaria) as focal species for the study of genetic diversity. We also analysed ecological similarity, niche overlap and interspecific interactions between the species, to unravel the processes determining SGDC. The neutral genetic diversity of common frogs was negatively related to species richness. The negative SGDC was probably due to an opposite influence of environmental gradients on the two levels of biodiversity, since the focal species and the other amphibians differ in ecological preferences, particularly in terms of thermal optimum. Conversely, we did not find evidence for a role of interspecific interactions in the negative SGDC. Our findings stress that species richness cannot be used as a universal proxy for genetic diversity, and only combining SGDC with analyses on the determinants of biodiversity can allow to identify the processes determining the relationships between genetic and species diversity.

Seasonal variation in diversity of marine benthic invertebrates leads to a positive species-genetic diversity correlation (SGDC)

Seasonal variation in diversity of marine benthic invertebrates leads to a positive species-genetic diversity correlation (SGDC)

Pattern and drivers of species-genetic diversity correlation in natural forest tree communities across a biodiversity hotspot

Pattern and drivers of species-genetic diversity correlation in natural forest tree communities across a biodiversity hotspot

Comparative tests of the species-genetic diversity correlation at neutral and nonneutral loci in four species of stream insect.

A fundamental question linking population genetics and community ecology is how adaptive processes (e.g., natural selection) and neutral processes (e.g., drift-migration equilibrium) underpin the species-genetic diversity correlation (SGDC). Here, we combine genome scans and outlier loci detection with community analysis to separately test for neutral and nonneutral SGDCs in four species of stream insect. We sampled 60 localities in Japan and examined the relationships among population AFLP band richness (Br), taxon richness of the total community (S) and of the trophic guild (Str ), and 15 habitat parameters that could potentially drive adaptation and influence richness. Neutral Br was positively correlated with S only in the dominant species of these communities, suggesting Br may be constrained when intraspecific competition is pronounced. Nonneutral Br was correlated with Str in a species restricted to high elevations where habitat heterogeneity was highest. Community distance and genetic distance (β-SGDC) was correlated in two of the four species at both neutral and nonneutral loci. Distance-based redundancy analysis found geographic isolation and elevation to drive divergence of both communities and populations. This suggests that both neutral and adaptive divergence occurred through the shared influences of geographic isolation and local adaptation at the two levels of diversity.

Soil properties drive a negative correlation between species diversity and genetic diversity in a tropical seasonal rainforest.

A negative species-genetic diversity correlation (SGDC) could be predicted by the niche variation hypothesis, whereby an increase in species diversity within community reduces the genetic diversity of the co-occurring species because of the reduction in average niche breadth; alternatively, competition could reduce effective population size and therefore genetic diversity of the species within community. We tested these predictions within a 20 ha tropical forest dynamics plot (FDP) in the Xishuangbanna tropical seasonal rainforest. We established 15 plots within the FDP and investigated the soil properties, tree diversity, and genetic diversity of a common tree species Beilschmiedia roxburghiana within each plot. We observed a significant negative correlation between tree diversity and the genetic diversity of B. roxburghiana within the communities. Using structural equation modeling, we further determined that the inter-plot environmental characteristics (soil pH and phosphorus availability) directly affected tree diversity and that the tree diversity within the community determined the genetic diversity of B. roxburghiana. Increased soil pH and phosphorus availability might promote the coexistence of more tree species within community and reduce genetic diversity of B. roxburghiana for the reduced average niche breadth; alternatively, competition could reduce effective population size and therefore genetic diversity of B. roxburghiana within community.

Species–genetic diversity correlations in habitat fragmentation can be biased by small sample sizes

Predicted parallel impacts of habitat fragmentation on genes and species lie at the core of conservation biology, yet tests of this rule are rare. In a recent article in Ecology Letters, Struebig et al. (2011) report that declining genetic diversity accompanies declining species diversity in tropical forest fragments. However, this study estimates diversity in many populations through extrapolation from very small sample sizes. Using the data of this recent work, we show that results estimated from the smallest sample sizes drive the species-genetic diversity correlation (SGDC), owing to a false-positive association between habitat fragmentation and loss of genetic diversity. Small sample sizes are a persistent problem in habitat fragmentation studies, the results of which often do not fit simple theoretical models. It is essential, therefore, that data assessing the proposed SGDC are sufficient in order that conclusions be robust.

Correction

Previous article FreeCorrectionAnna Papadopoulou, Ioannis Anastasiou, Foteini Spagopoulou, Malda Stalimerou, Sofia Terzopoulou, Anastasios Legakis, and Alfried P. VoglerAnna Papadopoulou1. Department of Entomology, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom2. Division of Biology, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, United Kingdom Search for more articles by this author , Ioannis Anastasiou3. Department of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis, Athens, Greece Search for more articles by this author , Foteini Spagopoulou3. Department of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis, Athens, Greece Search for more articles by this author , Malda Stalimerou3. Department of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis, Athens, Greece Search for more articles by this author , Sofia Terzopoulou3. Department of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis, Athens, Greece Search for more articles by this author , Anastasios Legakis3. Department of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis, Athens, Greece Search for more articles by this author , and Alfried P. Vogler1. Department of Entomology, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom2. Division of Biology, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, United Kingdom Search for more articles by this author Original articleTesting the Species–Genetic Diversity Correlation in the Aegean Archipelago: Toward a Haplotype-Based Macroecology?PDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmailQR Code SectionsMoreAfter the publication of “Testing the species–genetic diversity correlation in the Aegean archipelago: toward a haplotype-based macroecology?” by Anna Papadopoulou et al. (American Naturalist 178:241–255), the authors discovered a typographical error, which does not affect any results or conclusions of the article.In table A2 in the online appendix, four rows need to be corrected. The correct rows follow:Table A2. Taxonomic species and morphospecies collected from each of the 15 central Aegean islands AndrosAno KoufonisiAntiparosDonoussaHerakleiaIkariaKosMilosMykonosNaxosParosPatmosSerifosSifnosTínosTurkeyM. GreeceGraecopachys quadricollis (Brülle 1832)XX XX X XX XXX XPachyscelis villosa (Drapiez 1820)X XX XXXXX Raiboscelis azureus (Brullé 1832)X X XX X XX X Raiboscelis coelestinus (Wahl 1838) X X X X X View Table Image Previous article DetailsFiguresReferencesCited by The American Naturalist Volume 178, Number 4October 2011 Published for The American Society of Naturalists Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/662555 Views: 197Total views on this site Citations: 4Citations are reported from Crossref HistorySubmitted July 26, 2011Accepted July 26, 2011Published online September 13, 2011 © 2011 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved.PDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Andrés Baselga, Carola Gómez‐Rodríguez, Miguel B. Araújo, Adrián Castro‐Insua, Miguel Arenas, David Posada, Alfried P. Vogler Joint analysis of species and genetic variation to quantify the role of dispersal and environmental constraints in community turnover, Ecography 2022, no.55 (Mar 2022).https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.05808Andrea Freijeiro, Andres Baselga Spatial and environmental correlates of species richness and turnover patterns in European cryptocephaline and chrysomeline beetles, ZooKeys 597 (Jun 2016): 81–99.https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.597.6792Andrés Baselga, Carola Gómez-Rodríguez, Alfried P. Vogler Multi-hierarchical macroecology at species and genetic levels to discern neutral and non-neutral processes, Global Ecology and Biogeography 24, no.88 (May 2015): 873–882.https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12322Andrés Baselga, Tomochika Fujisawa, Alexandra Crampton-Platt, Johannes Bergsten, Peter G. Foster, Michael T. Monaghan, Alfried P. Vogler Whole-community DNA barcoding reveals a spatio-temporal continuum of biodiversity at species and genetic levels, Nature Communications 4, no.11 (May 2013).https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms2881Related articlesTesting the Species–Genetic Diversity Correlation in the Aegean Archipelago: Toward a Haplotype-Based Macroecology?17 Jul 2015The American Naturalist

Testing the Species–Genetic Diversity Correlation in the Aegean Archipelago: Toward a Haplotype-Based Macroecology?

A positive correlation between species diversity and genetic diversity has been proposed, consistent with neutral predictions in macroecology. We assessed the species--genetic diversity correlation in tenebrionid beetle communities of the Aegean archipelago on 15 islands of different sizes, distances to mainland, and ages of isolation. Alpha and beta diversity of species and haplotypes were assessed using sequences of > 1,000 individuals (mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase 1 and nuclear muscular protein 20). We show that (i) there is a strong species-area and haplotype-area relationship; (ii) species richness in island communities is correlated with intraspecific genetic diversity in the constituent species except when island size or distance to mainland is factored out in partial correlations; (iii) community similarity declines exponentially at an increasing rate when calculated on the basis of species, nuclear, and mtDNA haplotypes; and (iv) distance decay of community similarity is slower in dispersive sand-dwelling lineages compared with less dispersive lineages that are not sand obligate. Taken together, these correlated patterns at the species and haplotype level are consistent with individual-based stochastic dispersal proposed by neutral theories of biodiversity. The results also demonstrate the utility of haplotype data for exploring macroecological patterns in poorly known biota and predicting large-scale biodiversity patterns based on genetic inventories of local samples.

Parallel declines in species and genetic diversity in tropical forest fragments

The potential for parallel impacts of habitat change on multiple biodiversity levels has important conservation implications. We report on the first empirical test of the 'species-genetic diversity correlation' across co-distributed taxa with contrasting ecological traits in the context of habitat fragmentation. In a rainforest landscape undergoing conversion to oil palm, we show that depauperate species richness in fragments is mirrored by concomitant declines in population genetic diversity in the taxon predicted to be most susceptible to fragmentation. This association, not seen in the other species, relates to fragment area rather than isolation. While highlighting the over-simplification of extrapolating across taxa, we show that fragmentation presents a double jeopardy for some species. For these, conserving genetic diversity at levels of pristine forest could require sites 15-fold larger than those needed to safeguard species numbers. Importantly, however, each fragment contributes to regional species richness, with larger ones tending to contain more species.

Parallel responses of species and genetic diversity to El Niño Southern Oscillation‐induced environmental destruction

Species diversity within communities and genetic diversity within species are two fundamental levels of biodiversity. Positive relationships between species richness and within-species genetic diversity have recently been documented across natural and semi-natural habitat islands, leading Vellend to suggest a novel macro-ecological pattern termed the species-genetic diversity correlation. We tested whether this prediction holds for areas affected by recent habitat disturbance using butterfly communities in east Kalimantan, Indonesia. Here, we show that both strong spatial and temporal correlations exist between species and allelic richness across rainforest habitats affected by El Niño Southern Oscillation-induced disturbance. Coupled with evidence that changes in species richness are a direct result of local extirpation and lower recruitment, these data suggest that forces governing variation at the two levels operate over parallel and short timescales, with implications for biodiversity recovery following disturbance. Remnant communities may be doubly affected, with reductions in species richness being associated with reductions in genetic diversity within remnant species.