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Land-use intensification reduces functional redundancy and response diversity in plant communities |
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| Authors: | Etienne Laliberté Jessie A Wells Fabrice DeClerck Daniel J Metcalfe Carla P Catterall Cibele Queiroz Isabelle Aubin Stephen P Bonser Yi Ding Jennifer M Fraterrigo Sean McNamara John W Morgan Dalia Sánchez Merlos Peter A Vesk Margaret M Mayfield |
| Institution: | School of Forestry, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand; The University of Queensland, School of Biological Sciences, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia; Division of Science and Development, CATIE 7170, Turrialba 30501, Costa Rica; CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, Atherton, Queensland 4883, Australia; Griffith School of Environment, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland 4111, Australia; Department of Systems Ecology, Stockholm University, SE-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden; Great Lakes Forestry Centre, Canadian Forest Service, Sault-Ste-Marie, Ontario, Canada P6A 2E5; Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia; Institute of Forest Ecology, Environment and Protection, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China; Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; The University of Queensland, Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia; Department of Botany, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia; School of Botany, The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010, Australia |
| Abstract: | Ecosystem resilience depends on functional redundancy (the number of species contributing similarly to an ecosystem function) and response diversity (how functionally similar species respond differently to disturbance). Here, we explore how land-use change impacts these attributes in plant communities, using data from 18 land-use intensity gradients that represent five biomes and > 2800 species. We identify functional groups using multivariate analysis of plant traits which influence ecosystem processes. Functional redundancy is calculated as the species richness within each group, and response diversity as the multivariate within-group dispersion in response trait space, using traits that influence responses to disturbances. Meta-analysis across all datasets showed that land-use intensification significantly reduced both functional redundancy and response diversity, although specific relationships varied considerably among the different land-use gradients. These results indicate that intensified management of ecosystems for resource extraction can increase their vulnerability to future disturbances. Ecology Letters (2010) 13: 76–86 |
| Keywords: | Functional diversity land-use change redundancy resilience response diversity |