@article{KathBoitGuilletal.2018, author = {Kath, Nadja J. and Boit, Alice and Guill, Christian and Gaedke, Ursula}, title = {Accounting for activity respiration results in realistic trophic transfer efficiencies in allometric trophic network (ATN) models}, series = {Theoretical ecology}, volume = {11}, journal = {Theoretical ecology}, number = {4}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {Heidelberg}, issn = {1874-1738}, doi = {10.1007/s12080-018-0378-z}, pages = {453 -- 463}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Allometric trophic network (ATN) models offer high flexibility and scalability while minimizing the number of parameters and have been successfully applied to investigate complex food web dynamics and their influence on food web diversity and stability. However, the realism of ATN model energetics has never been assessed in detail, despite their critical influence on dynamic biomass and production patterns. Here, we compare the energetics of the currently established original ATN model, considering only biomass-dependent basal respiration, to an extended ATN model version, considering both basal and assimilation-dependent activity respiration. The latter is crucial in particular for unicellular and invertebrate organisms which dominate the metabolism of pelagic and soil food webs. Based on metabolic scaling laws, we show that the extended ATN version reflects the energy transfer through a chain of four trophic levels of unicellular and invertebrate organisms more realistically than the original ATN version. Depending on the strength of top-down control, the original ATN model yields trophic transfer efficiencies up to 71\% at either the third or the fourth trophic level, which considerably exceeds any realistic values. In contrast, the extended ATN version yields realistic trophic transfer efficiencies 30\% at all trophic levels, in accordance with both physiological considerations and empirical evidence from pelagic systems. Our results imply that accounting for activity respiration is essential for consistently implementing the metabolic theory of ecology in ATN models and for improving their quantitative predictions, which makes them more powerful tools for investigating the dynamics of complex natural communities.}, language = {en} } @article{EppKruseKathetal.2018, author = {Epp, Laura Saskia and Kruse, Stefan and Kath, Nadja J. and Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen Rosemarie and Tiedemann, Ralph and Pestryakova, Luidmila Agafyevna and Herzschuh, Ulrike}, title = {Temporal and spatial patterns of mitochondrial haplotype and species distributions in Siberian larches inferred from ancient environmental DNA and modeling}, series = {Scientific reports}, volume = {8}, journal = {Scientific reports}, publisher = {Nature Publ. Group}, address = {London}, issn = {2045-2322}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-018-35550-w}, pages = {9}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Changes in species' distributions are classically projected based on their climate envelopes. For Siberian forests, which have a tremendous significance for vegetation-climate feedbacks, this implies future shifts of each of the forest-forming larch (Larix) species to the north-east. However, in addition to abiotic factors, reliable projections must assess the role of historical biogeography and biotic interactions. Here, we use sedimentary ancient DNA and individual-based modelling to investigate the distribution of larch species and mitochondrial haplotypes through space and time across the treeline ecotone on the southern Taymyr peninsula, which at the same time presents a boundary area of two larch species. We find spatial and temporal patterns, which suggest that forest density is the most influential driver determining the precise distribution of species and mitochondrial haplotypes. This suggests a strong influence of competition on the species' range shifts. These findings imply possible climate change outcomes that are directly opposed to projections based purely on climate envelopes. Investigations of such fine-scale processes of biodiversity change through time are possible using paleoenvironmental DNA, which is available much more readily than visible fossils and can provide information at a level of resolution that is not reached in classical palaeoecology.}, language = {en} } @article{KruseGerdesKathetal.2019, author = {Kruse, Stefan and Gerdes, Alexander and Kath, Nadja J. and Epp, Laura Saskia and Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen Rosemarie and Pestryakova, Luidmila Agafyevna and Herzschuh, Ulrike}, title = {Dispersal distances and migration rates at the arctic treeline in Siberia - a genetic and simulation-based study}, series = {Biogeosciences}, volume = {16}, journal = {Biogeosciences}, number = {6}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {1726-4170}, doi = {10.5194/bg-16-1211-2019}, pages = {1211 -- 1224}, year = {2019}, abstract = {A strong temperature increase in the Arctic is expected to lead to latitudinal treeline shift. This tundra-taiga turnover would cause a positive vegetation-climate feedback due to albedo decrease. However, reliable estimates of tree migration rates are currently lacking due to the complex processes involved in forest establishment, which depend strongly on seed dispersal. We aim to fill this gap using LAVESI, an individual-based and spatially explicit Larix vegetation simulator. LAVESI was designed to simulate plots within homogeneous forests. Here, we improve the implementation of the seed dispersal function via field-based investigations. We inferred the effective seed dispersal distances of a typical open-forest stand on the southern Taymyr Peninsula (northern central Siberia) from genetic parentage analysis using eight nuclear microsatellite markers. The parentage analysis gives effective seed dispersal distances (median similar to 10 m) close to the seed parents. A comparison between simulated and observed effective seed dispersal distances reveals an overestimation of recruits close to the releasing tree and a shorter dispersal distance generally. We thus adapted our model and used the newly parameterised version to simulate south-to-north transects; a slow-moving treeline front was revealed. The colonisation of the tundra areas was assisted by occasional long-distance seed dispersal events beyond the treeline area. The treeline (similar to 1 tree ha(-1)) advanced by similar to 1.6 m yr(-1), whereas the forest line (similar to 100 trees ha(-1)) advanced by only similar to 0.6 m yr(-1). We conclude that the treeline in northern central Siberia currently lags behind the current strong warming and will continue to lag in the near future.}, language = {en} } @misc{EppKruseKathetal.2018, author = {Epp, Laura Saskia and Kruse, Stefan and Kath, Nadja J. and Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen Rosemarie and Tiedemann, Ralph and Pestryakova, Luidmila Agafyevna and Herzschuh, Ulrike}, title = {Temporal and spatial patterns of mitochondrial haplotype and species distributions in Siberian larches inferred from ancient environmental DNA and modeling}, series = {Postprints der Universit{\"a}t Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe}, journal = {Postprints der Universit{\"a}t Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe}, number = {1052}, issn = {1866-8372}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-46835}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-468352}, pages = {11}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Changes in species' distributions are classically projected based on their climate envelopes. For Siberian forests, which have a tremendous significance for vegetation-climate feedbacks, this implies future shifts of each of the forest-forming larch (Larix) species to the north-east. However, in addition to abiotic factors, reliable projections must assess the role of historical biogeography and biotic interactions. Here, we use sedimentary ancient DNA and individual-based modelling to investigate the distribution of larch species and mitochondrial haplotypes through space and time across the treeline ecotone on the southern Taymyr peninsula, which at the same time presents a boundary area of two larch species. We find spatial and temporal patterns, which suggest that forest density is the most influential driver determining the precise distribution of species and mitochondrial haplotypes. This suggests a strong influence of competition on the species' range shifts. These findings imply possible climate change outcomes that are directly opposed to projections based purely on climate envelopes. Investigations of such fine-scale processes of biodiversity change through time are possible using paleoenvironmental DNA, which is available much more readily than visible fossils and can provide information at a level of resolution that is not reached in classical palaeoecology.}, language = {en} }