提高生态位模型转移能力来模拟入侵物种 的潜在分布

生态位模型利用物种分布点所关联的环境变量去推算物种的生态需求, 模拟物种的分布。在模拟入侵物种分布时, 经典生态位模型包括模型构建于物种本土分布地, 然后将其转移并投射至另一地理区域, 来模拟入侵物种的潜在分布。然而在模型运用时, 出现了模型的转移能力较低、模拟的结果与物种的实际分布不相符的情况, 由此得出了生态位漂移等不恰当的结论。提高生态位模型的转移能力, 可以准确地模拟入侵物种的潜在分布, 为入侵种的风险评估提供参考。作者以入侵种茶翅蝽(Halyomorpha halys)和互花米草(Spartina alterniflora)为例, 从模型的构建材料(即物种分布点和环境变量)入手, 全面阐述提高模型转移能力的策略。在构建模型之前, 需要充分了解入侵物种的生物学特性、种群平衡状态、本土地理分布范围及物种的生物历史地理等方面的知识。在模型构建环节上, 物种分布点不仅要充分覆盖物种的地理分布和生态空间的范围, 同时要降低物种采样点偏差; 环境变量的选择要充分考虑其对物种分布的限制作用、各环境变量之间的空间相关性, 以及不同地理种群间生态空间是否一致, 同时要降低环境变量的空间维度; 模型构建区域要真实地反映物种的地理分布范围, 并考虑种群的平衡状态。作者认为, 在生态位保守的前提下, 如果模型是构建在一个合理方案的基础上, 生态位模型的转移能力是可以保证的, 在以模型转移能力较低的现象来阐述生态位分化时需要引起注意。     

Cryptic niche conservatism among evolutionary lineages of an invasive lizard

Aim There is increasing evidence that the quality and breadth of ecological niches vary among individuals, populations, evolutionary lineages and therefore also across the range of a species. Sufficient knowledge about niche divergence among clades might thus be crucial for predicting the invasion potential of species. We tested for the first time whether evolutionary lineages of an invasive species vary in their climate niches and invasive potential. Furthermore, we tested whether lineage‐specific models show a better performance than combined models. Location Europe. Methods We used species distribution models (SDMs) based on climatic information at native and invasive ranges to test for intra‐specific niche divergence among mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) clades of the invasive wall lizard Podarcis muralis. Using DNA barcoding, we assigned 77 invasive populations in Central Europe to eight geographically distinct evolutionary lineages. Niche similarity among lineages was assessed and the predictive power of a combination of clade‐specific SDMs was compared with a combined SDM using the pooled records of all lineages. Results We recorded eight different invasive mtDNA clades in Central Europe. The analysed clades had rather similar realized niches in their native and invasive ranges, whereas inter‐clade niche differentiation was comparatively strong. However, we found only a weak correlation between geographic origin (i.e. mtDNA clade) and invasive occurrences. Clades with narrow realized niches still became successful invaders far outside their native range, most probably due to broader fundamental niches. The combined model using data for all invasive lineages achieved a much better prediction of the invasive potential. Conclusions Our results indicate that the observed niche differentiation among evolutionary lineages is mainly driven by niche realization and not by differences in the fundamental niches. Such cryptic niche conservatism might hamper the success of clade‐specific niche modelling. Cryptic niche conservatism may in general explain the invasion success of species in areas with apparently unsuitable climate.     

Evolution under changing climates: climatic niche stasis despite rapid evolution in a non-native plant

A topic of great current interest is the capacity of populations to adapt genetically to rapidly changing climates, for example by evolving the timing of life-history events, but this is challenging to address experimentally. I use a plant invasion as a model system to tackle this question by combining molecular markers, a common garden experiment and climatic niche modelling. This approach reveals that non-native Lactuca serriola originates primarily from Europe, a climatic subset of its native range, with low rates of admixture from Asia. It has rapidly refilled its climatic niche in the new range, associated with the evolution of flowering phenology to produce clines along climate gradients that mirror those across the native range. Consequently, some non-native plants have evolved development times and grow under climates more extreme than those found in Europe, but not among populations from the native range as a whole. This suggests that many plant populations can adapt rapidly to changed climatic conditions that are already within the climatic niche space occupied by the species elsewhere in its range, but that evolution to conditions outside of this range is more difficult. These findings can also help to explain the prevalence of niche conservatism among non-native species.     

洲际入侵植物生态位稳定性研究进展

人类活动引起的大规模洲际物种交换与生物入侵, 改变了当地生态系统结构与功能, 使生物多样性受到日益严重的威胁。本文通过综合分析主要国家和地区入侵植物的地理起源, 发现洲际入侵主要包括东亚—北美、东亚—南美、欧洲—南非、欧洲—北美、欧洲—东亚、北美—大洋洲等, 这些洲际入侵造成的后果往往比陆内入侵更为严重。利用物种分布模型(SDMs)预测入侵物种潜在分布范围是有效管理和提早预防生物入侵的重要依据, 但这些模型的一个关键假定是: 入侵物种的生态位在空间和时间上是保守的、稳定的。然而, 对于远离原产地种群并能快速适应新生境的洲际入侵植物来说, 生态位可能发生显著的变化。入侵种能否在入侵地保持原有的生态位, 取决于制约其生态分布的限制因素和生态过程在不同地区间是否发生变化。本文中作者总结了洲际入侵与陆内入侵的生态与进化过程的异同点, 认为这些限制物种原产地分布的因素如扩散限制、种间互作、适应性进化、生态可塑性和种群遗传特性等均可能导致入侵物种生态位的改变。建议下一步的研究应该重视: (1)对生态位属性进行多尺度的研究, 包括时间、空间、环境或系统发育等几个方面; (2)对比生态位稳定与发生偏移的物种特性, 确定什么样的入侵物种更容易改变原有的生态位; (3)进行生态位时间动态格局研究, 探讨生态位变化的倾向、历史速率和偏移程度, 以便判定生态位变化趋势。这些研究结果将会进一步提高物种分布模型的预测能力, 有助于更为准确地揭示气候变化和物种入侵对生物多样性的影响。     

Understanding niche shifts: using current and historical data to model the invasive redlegged earth mite,Halotydeus destructor

Aim Niche conservatism is key to understanding species responses to environmental stress such as climate change or arriving in new geographical space such as biological invasion. Halotydeus destructor is an important agricultural pest in Australia and has been the focus of extensive surveys that suggest this species has undergone a niche shift to expand its invasive range inland to hotter and drier environments. We employ modern correlative modelling methods to examine niche conservatism in H. destructor and highlight ecological differences between historical and current distributions. Location Australia and South Africa. Methods We compile comprehensive distribution data sets for H. destructor, representing the native range in South Africa, its invasive range in Australia in the 1960s (40 yr post‐introduction) and its current range in Australia. Using MAXENT, we build correlative models and reciprocally project them between South Africa and Australia and investigate range expansion with models constructed for historical and current data sets. We use several recently developed model exploration tools to examine the climate similarity between native and invasive ranges and subsequently examine climatic variables that limit distributions. Results The invasive niche of H. destructor in Australia transgresses the native niche in South Africa, and the species has expanded in Australia beyond what is predicted from the native distribution. Our models support the notion that H. destructor has undergone a more recent range shift into hotter and drier inland areas of Australia since establishing a stable distribution in the 1960s. Main conclusions Our use of historical and current data highlights that invasion is an ongoing dynamic process and demonstrates that once a species has reached an established range, it may still expand at a later stage. We also show that model exploration tools help understand factors influencing the range of invasive species. The models generate hypotheses about adaptive shifts in H. destructor.     

Combined modelling of distribution and niche in invasion biology: a case study of two invasive Tetramorium ant species

Spatial modelling of species distributions has become an important tool in the study of biological invasions. Here, we examine the utility of combining distribution and ecological niche modelling for retrieving information on invasion processes, based on species occurrence data from native and introduced ranges. Specifically, we discuss questions, concerning (1) the global potential to spread to other ranges, (2) the potential to spread within established invasions, (3) the detectability of niche differences across ranges, and (4) the ability to infer invasion history through data from the introduced range. We apply this approach to two congeneric pavement ants, Tetramorium sp.E (formerly T. caespitum (Linnaeus 1758)) and T. tsushimae Emery 1925, both introduced to North America. We identify (1) the potential of both species to inhabit ranges worldwide, and (2) the potential of T. sp.E and T. tsushimae, to spread to 23 additional US states and to five provinces of Canada, and to 24 additional US states and to one province of Canada, respectively. We confirm that (3) niche modelling can be an effective tool to detect niche shifts, identifying an increased width of T. sp.E and a decreased width of T. tsushimae following introduction, with potential changes in niche position for both species. We make feasible that (4) combined modelling could become an auxiliary tool to reconstruct invasion history, hypothesizing admixture following multiple introductions in North America for T. sp.E, and a single introduction to North America from central Japan, for T. tsushimae. Combined modelling represents a rapid means to formulate testable explanatory hypotheses on invasion patterns and helps approach a standard in predictive invasion research.     

Conservatism of ecological niche characteristics in North American plant species over the Pleistocene-to-Recent transition

Aim  To provide a test of the conservatism of a species' niche over the last 20,000 years by tracking the distribution of eight pollen taxa relative to climate type as they migrated across eastern North America following the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM).
Location  North America.
Methods  We drew taxon occurrence data from the North American pollen records in the Global Pollen Database, representing eight pollen types – all taxa for which ≥5 distinct geographic occurrences were available in both the present day and at the LGM (21,000 years ago ± 3000 years). These data were incorporated into ecological niche models based on present-day and LGM climatological summaries available from the Palaeoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project to produce predicted potential geographic distributions for each species at present and at the LGM. The output for each time period was projected onto the 'other' time period, and tested using independent known occurrence information from that period.
Results  The result of our analyses was that all species tested showed general conservatism in ecological characteristics over the climate changes associated with the Pleistocene-to-Recent transition.
Main conclusions  This analysis constitutes a further demonstration of general and pervasive conservatism in ecological niche characteristics over moderate periods of time despite profound changes in climate and environmental conditions. As such, our results reinforce the application of ecological niche modelling techniques to the reconstruction of Pleistocene biodiversity distribution patterns, and to project the future potential distribution range of species in the face of global-scale climatic changes.     

Niche shift can impair the ability to predict invasion risk in the marine realm: an illustration using Mediterranean fish invaders

Climatic niche conservatism, the tendency of species‐climate associations to remain unchanged across space and time, is pivotal for forecasting the spread of invasive species and biodiversity changes. Indeed, it represents one of the key assumptions underlying species distribution models (SDMs), the main tool currently available for predicting range shifts of species. However, to date, no comprehensive assessment of niche conservatism is available for the marine realm. We use the invasion by Indo‐Pacific tropical fishes into the Mediterranean Sea, the world's most invaded marine basin, to examine the conservatism of the climatic niche. We show that tropical invaders may spread far beyond their native niches and that SDMs do not predict their new distributions better than null models. Our results suggest that SDMs may underestimate the potential spread of invasive species and call for prudence in employing these models in order to forecast species invasion and their response to environmental change.     

Evidence of niche shift and global invasion potential of the Tawny Crazy ant,Nylanderia fulva

Analysis of an invasive species' niche shift between native and introduced ranges, along with potential distribution maps, can provide valuable information about its invasive potential. The tawny crazy ant, Nylanderia fulva, is a rapidly emerging and economically important invasive species in the southern United States. It is originally from east‐central South America and has also invaded Colombia and the Caribbean Islands. Our objectives were to generate a global potential distribution map for N. fulva, identify important climatic drivers associated with its current distribution, and test whether N. fulva's realized climatic niche has shifted across its invasive range. We used MaxEnt niche model to map the potential distribution of N. fulva using its native and invaded range occurrences and climatic variables. We used principal component analysis methods for investigating potential shifts in the realized climatic niche of N. fulva during invasion. We found strong evidence for a shift in the realized climatic niche of N. fulva across its invasive range. Our models predicted potentially suitable habitat for N. fulva in the United States and other parts of the world. Our analyses suggest that the majority of observed occurrences of N. fulva in the United States represent stabilizing populations. Mean diurnal range in temperature, degree days at ≥10°C, and precipitation of driest quarter were the most important variables associated with N. fulva distribution. The climatic niche expansion demonstrated in our study may suggest significant plasticity in the ability of N. fulva to survive in areas with diverse temperature ranges shown by its tolerance for environmental conditions in the southern United States, Caribbean Islands, and Colombia. The risk maps produced in this study can be useful in preventing N. fulva's future spread, and in managing and monitoring currently infested areas.     

The geography and ecology of plant speciation: range overlap and niche divergence in sister species

A goal of evolutionary biology is to understand the roles of geography and ecology in speciation. The recent shared ancestry of sister species can leave a major imprint on their geographical and ecological attributes, possibly revealing processes involved in speciation. We examined how ecological similarity, range overlap and range asymmetry are related to time since divergence of 71 sister species pairs in the California Floristic Province (CFP). We found that plants exhibit strikingly different age-range correlation patterns from those found for animals; the latter broadly support allopatric speciation as the primary mode of speciation. By contrast, plant sisters in the CFP were sympatric in 80% of cases and range sizes of sisters differed by a mean of 10-fold. Range overlap and range asymmetry were greatest in younger sisters. These results suggest that speciation mechanisms broadly grouped under ‘budding’ speciation, in which a larger ranged progenitor gives rise to a smaller ranged derivative species, are probably common. The ecological and reproductive similarity of sisters was significantly greater than that of sister–non-sister congeners for every trait assessed. However, shifts in at least one trait were present in 93% of the sister pairs; habitat and soil shifts were especially common. Ecological divergence did not increase with range overlap contrary to expectations under character displacement in sympatry. Our results suggest that vicariant speciation is more ubiquitous in animals than plants, perhaps owing to the sensitivity of plants to fine-scale environmental heterogeneity. Despite high levels of range overlap, ecological shifts in the process of budding speciation may result in low rates of fine-scale spatial co-occurrence. These results have implications for ecological studies of trait evolution and community assembly; despite high levels of sympatry, sister taxa and potentially other close relatives, may be missing from local communities.     

Evidence of climatic niche shift during biological invasion

Niche-based models calibrated in the native range by relating species observations to climatic variables are commonly used to predict the potential spatial extent of species' invasion. This climate matching approach relies on the assumption that invasive species conserve their climatic niche in the invaded ranges. We test this assumption by analysing the climatic niche spaces of Spotted Knapweed in western North America and Europe. We show with robust cross-continental data that a shift of the observed climatic niche occurred between native and non-native ranges, providing the first empirical evidence that an invasive species can occupy climatically distinct niche spaces following its introduction into a new area. The models fail to predict the current invaded distribution, but correctly predict areas of introduction. Climate matching is thus a useful approach to identify areas at risk of introduction and establishment of newly or not-yet-introduced neophytes, but may not predict the full extent of invasions.     

Invasion of Old World Phragmites australis in the New World: precipitation and temperature patterns combined with human influences redesign the invasive niche

After its introduction into North America, Euro‐Asian Phragmites australis became an aggressive invasive wetland grass along the Atlantic coast of North America. Its distribution range has since expanded to the middle, south and southwest of North America, where invasive P. australis has replaced millions of hectares of native plants in inland and tidal wetlands. Another P. australis invasion from the Mediterranean region is simultaneously occurring in the Gulf region of the United States and some countries in South America. Here, we analysed the occurrence records of the two Old World invasive lineages of P. australis (Haplotype M and Med) in both their native and introduced ranges using environmental niche models (ENMs) to assess (i) whether a niche shift accompanied the invasions in the New World; (ii) the role of biologically relevant climatic variables and human influence in the process of invasion; and (iii) the current potential distribution of these two lineages. We detected local niche shifts along the East Coast of North America and the Gulf Coast of the United States for Haplotype M and around the Mississippi Delta and Florida of the United States for Med. The new niche of the introduced Haplotype M accounts for temperature fluctuations and increased precipitation. The introduced Med lineage has enlarged its original subtropical niche to the tropics‐subtropics, invading regions with a high annual mean temperature (> ca. 10 °C) and high precipitation in the driest period. Human influence is an important factor for both niches. We suggest that an increase in precipitation in the 20th century, global warming and human‐made habitats have shaped the invasive niches of the two lineages in the New World. However, as the invasions are ongoing and human and natural disturbances occur concomitantly, the future distribution ranges of the two lineages may diverge from the potential distribution ranges detected in this study.     

Pliocene–Pleistocene ecological niche evolution shapes the phylogeography of a Mediterranean plant group

Estimating species ability to adapt to environmental changes is crucial to understand their past and future response to climate change. The Mediterranean Basin has experienced remarkable climatic changes since the Miocene, which have greatly influenced the evolution of the Mediterranean flora. Here, we examine the evolutionary history and biogeographic patterns of two sedge sister species (Carex, Cyperaceae) restricted to the western Mediterranean Basin, but with Pliocene fossil record in central Europe. In particular, we estimated the evolution of climatic niches through time and its influence in lineage differentiation. We carried out a dated phylogenetic–phylogeographic study based on seven DNA regions (nDNA and ptDNA) and fingerprinting data (AFLPs), and modelled ecological niches and species distributions for the Pliocene, Pleistocene and present. Phylogenetic and divergence time analyses revealed that both species form a monophyletic lineage originated in the late Pliocene–early Pleistocene. We detected clear genetic differentiation between both species with distinct genetic clusters in disjunct areas, indicating the predominant role of geographic barriers limiting gene flow. We found a remarkable shift in the climatic requirements between Pliocene and extant populations, although the niche seems to have been relatively conserved since the Pleistocene split of both species. This study highlights how an integrative approach combining different data sources and analyses, including fossils, allows solid and robust inferences about the evolutionary history of a plant group since the Pliocene.     

应用生态位模型研究外来入侵物种生态位漂移

由于基础生态位和实际生态位的改变,外来入侵物种在入侵地成功定殖、扩散后常会发生生态位漂移,而物种生态位漂移往往很难直接证明。生态位模型在假设入侵物种的生态位需求保守的前提下,以物种在其原产地的生态位需求为基础,预测其在入侵地的潜在分布,通过比较预测分布与实际分布的差异可以从一定程度上得到外来入侵物种的生态位是否发生漂移的间接证据。以我国入侵杂草胜红蓟在原产地的生态位需求为基础,应用生态位模型预测其在其他地区的潜在分布。研究结果表明,生态位模型可以很好地预测胜红蓟在亚太平洋地区和非洲地区的分布,但在我国,其预测分布与实际分布存在较大差别。胜红蓟在我国预测分布主要为云南、海南、台湾部分地区,而胜红蓟入侵我国后现已广泛分布于长江以南地区,其实际分布比预测分布广泛得多,由此推测胜红蓟在入侵我国后其生态位已经产生了漂移。     

沙区生态系统恢复演变过程中固沙植物种间生态位关系变化的研究

以演变时间为生态位维 ,通过分析物种的生态位体积和生态位重叠 ,研究了荒漠生态系统恢复演变过程中固沙植物种间生态位关系的变化 ,同时也探讨了物种更替的生态学机制。这一研究对于实现沙区固沙植物群落的持续发展具有重要的指导意义     

Phylogenetic niche conservatism and the evolutionary basis of ecological speciation

Phylogenetic niche conservatism (PNC) typically refers to the tendency of closely related species to be more similar to each other in terms of niche than they are to more distant relatives. This has been implicated as a potential driving force in speciation and other species‐richness patterns, such as latitudinal gradients. However, PNC has not been very well defined in most previous studies. Is it a pattern or a process? What are the underlying endogenous (e.g. genetic) and exogenous (e.g. ecological) factors that cause niches to be conserved? What degree of similarity is necessary to qualify as PNC? Is it possible for the evolutionary processes causing niches to be conserved to also result in niche divergence in different habitats? Here, we revisit these questions, codifying a theoretical and operational definition of PNC as a mechanistic evolutionary process resulting from several factors. We frame this both from a macroevolutionary and population‐genetic perspective. We discuss how different axes of physical (e.g. geographic) and environmental (e.g. climatic) heterogeneity interact with the fundamental process of PNC to produce different outcomes of ecological speciation. We also review tests for PNC, and suggest ways that these could be improved or better utilized in future studies. Ultimately, PNC as a process has a well‐defined mechanistic basis in organisms, and future studies investigating ecological speciation would be well served to consider this, and frame hypothesis testing in terms of the processes and expected patterns described herein. The process of PNC may lead to patterns where niches are conserved (more similar than expected), constrained (divergent within a limited subset of available niches), or divergent (less similar than expected), based on degree of phylogenetic relatedness between species.