TY  - JOUR
A1  - Bauer, Barbara
A1  - Vos, Matthijs
A1  - Klauschies, Toni
A1  - Gaedke, Ursula
T1  - Diversity, functional similarity, and top-down control drive synchronization and the reliability of ecosystem function
T2  - The American naturalist : a bi-monthly journal devoted to the advancement and correlation of the biological sciences
N2  - The concept that diversity promotes reliability of ecosystem function depends on the pattern that community-level biomass shows lower temporal variability than species-level biomasses. However, this pattern is not universal, as it relies on compensatory or independent species dynamics. When in contrast within--trophic level synchronization occurs, variability of community biomass will approach population-level variability. Current knowledge fails to integrate how species richness, functional distance between species, and the relative importance of predation and competition combine to drive synchronization at different trophic levels. Here we clarify these mechanisms. Intense competition promotes compensatory dynamics in prey, but predators may at the same time increasingly synchronize, under increasing species richness and functional similarity. In contrast, predators and prey both show perfect synchronization under strong top-down control, which is promoted by a combination of low functional distance and high net growth potential of predators. Under such conditions, community-level biomass variability peaks, with major negative consequences for reliability of ecosystem function.
KW  - biodiversity
KW  - ecosystem services
KW  - population dynamics
KW  - predator-prey system
KW  - species richness
KW  - synchrony
Y1  - 2014
UR  - https://publishup.uni-potsdam.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/38025
SN  - 0003-0147
SN  - 1537-5323
VL  - 183
IS  - 3
SP  - 394
EP  - 409
PB  - Univ. of Chicago Press
CY  - Chicago
ER  -