Assembly Graph as the Rosetta Stone of Ecological Assembly

Environmental Microbiology, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 27(1)

Published: Jan. 1, 2025

Ecological assembly-the process of ecological community formation through species introductions-has recently seen exciting theoretical advancements across dynamical, informational, and probabilistic approaches. However, these theories often remain inaccessible to non-theoreticians, they lack a unifying lens. Here, I introduce the assembly graph as an integrative tool connect emerging theories. The visually represents dynamics, where nodes symbolise combinations edges represent transitions driven by introductions. Through lens graphs, review how processes reduce uncertainty in random arrivals (informational approach), identify graphical properties that guarantee coexistence examine class dynamical models constrain topology graphs (dynamical quantify transition probabilities with incomplete information (probabilistic approach). To facilitate empirical testing, also methods decompose complex into smaller, measurable components, well computational tools for deriving graphs. In sum, this math-light progress aims catalyse research towards predictive understanding assembly.

Language: Английский

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A Continuum From Positive to Negative Interactions Drives Plant Species' Performance in a Diverse Community

Ecology Letters, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 28(1)

Published: Jan. 1, 2025

ABSTRACT With many species interacting in nature, determining which interactions describe community dynamics is nontrivial. By applying a computational modeling approach to an extensive field survey, we assessed the importance of from plants (both inter‐ and intra‐specific), pollinators insect herbivores on plant performance (i.e., viable seed production). We compared inclusion interaction effects as aggregate guild‐level terms versus specific taxonomic groups. found that continuum positive negative interactions, containing mostly few strong taxonomic‐specific effects, was sufficient performance. While with intraspecific varied weakly positive, heterospecific mainly promoted competition facilitated plants. The consistency these empirical findings over 3 years suggests including groups rather than all pairwise high‐order can be for accurately describing variation across natural communities.

Language: Английский

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The relict plant Tetraena mongolica plantations increase the nutrition and microbial diversity in desert soil

Frontiers in Plant Science, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 16

Published: March 20, 2025

Introduction Tetraena mongolica was established in the West Ordos Region of northwest China approximately 140 million years ago. It plays an irreplaceable role maintaining local ecosystem stability. Methods This study aimed to evaluate effects planting T. on soil nutrition and microbial communities by comparing root zone (Rz_soil) bare (B_soil) across three different plant communitie. Results The results showed that decreased pH Na + while increasing available potassium, organic matter, carbon, total nitrogen, potassium. significantly improved diversity indices (Sobs Ace), as well richness index (Chao), bacterial fungal communities. Meanwhile, relative abundances Rubrobacter norank_c_Actinobacteria declined Rz_soil compared with B_soil all In contrast, Fusarium Penicillium were higher, whereas those Monosporascus Darksidea lower than two co-occurrence networks networks. Discussion These provide a new perspective understand Mongolica desert ecosystems.

Language: Английский

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Competitor-induced plasticity modifies the interactions and predicted competitive outcomes between annual plants

bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory), Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: June 9, 2024

Abstract Species can modify their traits in response to changes the environment – a process known as phenotypic plasticity. Because species plastically respond competition, competitive effect of one individual on another involves not only reductions performance, but also morphology, behavior, phenology or physiology that affect interactions with other individuals. In this context, plasticity is often argued favor coexistence by increasing niche differentiation between species, though experimental support explicitly considers outcomes largely lacking. Here, we transiently subjected four annual plant early-season intraspecific interspecific competition induce plastic responses, and then examined these individuals competitors. By measuring without competitors, isolated impact coexistence. Growing nearby competitors early life impacted including height morphology. These responses tended amplify sensitivity particularly so for competition. This increase inter-relative caused decrease predicted likelihood pairwise combining recent theory new approach, provide pathway towards integrating into our quantitative understanding

Language: Английский

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