The search result changed since you submitted your search request. Documents might be displayed in a different sort order.
  • search hit 10 of 177
Back to Result List

Beyond the competition-colonization trade-off - linking multiple trait response to disturbance characteristics

  • Disturbances' role in shaping communities is well documented but highly disputed. We suggest replacing the overused two-trait trade-off approach with a functional group scheme, constructed from combinations of four key traits that represent four classes of species' responses to disturbances. Using model results and field observations from sites affected by two highly different disturbances, we demonstrated that popular dichotomous trade-offs are not sufficient to explain community dynamics, even if some emerge under certain conditions. Without disturbances, competition was only sufficient to predict species survival but not relative success, which required some escape mechanism (e.g., long-term dormancy). With highly predictable and large-scale disturbances, successful species showed a combination of high individual tolerance to disturbance and, more surprisingly, high competitive ability. When disturbances were less predictable, high individual tolerance and long-term seed dormancy were favored, due to higher environmentalDisturbances' role in shaping communities is well documented but highly disputed. We suggest replacing the overused two-trait trade-off approach with a functional group scheme, constructed from combinations of four key traits that represent four classes of species' responses to disturbances. Using model results and field observations from sites affected by two highly different disturbances, we demonstrated that popular dichotomous trade-offs are not sufficient to explain community dynamics, even if some emerge under certain conditions. Without disturbances, competition was only sufficient to predict species survival but not relative success, which required some escape mechanism (e.g., long-term dormancy). With highly predictable and large-scale disturbances, successful species showed a combination of high individual tolerance to disturbance and, more surprisingly, high competitive ability. When disturbances were less predictable, high individual tolerance and long-term seed dormancy were favored, due to higher environmental uncertainty. Our study demonstrates that theories relying on a small number of predefined trade-offs among traits (e.g., competition-colonization trade-off) may lead to unrealistic results. We suggest that the understanding of disturbance-community relationships can be significantly improved by employing sets of relevant trait assemblies instead of the currently common approach in which trade-offs are assumed in advance.show moreshow less

Export metadata

Additional Services

Search Google Scholar Statistics
Metadaten
Author details:Merav Seifan, Tal Seifan, Katja Schiffers, Florian JeltschORCiDGND, Katja Tielboerger
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1086/668844
ISSN:0003-0147
Title of parent work (English):The American naturalist : a bi-monthly journal devoted to the advancement and correlation of the biological sciences
Publisher:Univ. of Chicago Press
Place of publishing:Chicago
Publication type:Article
Language:English
Year of first publication:2013
Publication year:2013
Release date:2017/03/26
Tag:competition resistance trade-off; functional types; intermediate disturbance hypothesis; plant communities; species assemblies
Volume:181
Issue:2
Number of pages:10
First page:151
Last Page:160
Funding institution:Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) [TI 338/4-3, JE 207/3-2]; MINERVA Foundation
Organizational units:Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Biochemie und Biologie
Peer review:Referiert
Accept ✔
This website uses technically necessary session cookies. By continuing to use the website, you agree to this. You can find our privacy policy here.