Nutrient enrichment and temperature increase as potential enhancers of priority effects: consequences for the structure of aquatic communities and the flow of energy and matter between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems

• Grant number: 23/06228-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: November 01, 2023
• End date: October 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology - Theoretical Ecology
• Principal Investigator: Gustavo Quevedo Romero
• Grantee: Rodolfo Mei Pelinson
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 19/08474-8 - Freshwater ecosystems under climate change: impacts across multiple levels of organisation, AP.PFPMCG.TEM

Abstract

It is common for variations in the structure of ecological communities to occur even among communities subjected to similar environmental and connectivity conditions. One of the phenomena responsible for such variability is priority effects, which occur when the order in which species colonize a community influences its future structure. Priority effects happen because species that colonize an environment first have competitive or trophic advantages over those that arrive later. Competitive advantages can occur through resource monopolization or through changes in environmental conditions by early arriving species. Trophic advantages occur when early-arriving species prey upon late-arriving ones, or when early-arriving ones avoid predation by those arriving later. Priority effects can affect not only the structure of communities but also ecosystem functions. An example is the export of energy and matter from temporary aquatic environments to adjacent terrestrial environments. In this case, anthropogenic changes such as increased nutrient concentration in water and temperature can intensify the mechanisms generating priority effects. For example, increased nutrient availability tends to promote higher individual survival and growth, intensifying interactions such as competition and predation. Similarly, temperature increases tend to accelerate resource consumption and development rates, thereby enhancing interactions and the importance of priority effects. Therefore, the main objective of this research project is to understand the importance of anthropogenic alterations on priority effects in aquatic communities and their consequences for the export of energy and matter to terrestrial environments. We then propose to conduct two field experiments where we will manipulate the colonization order of different taxa in mesocosms, temperature increases, according to climate change scenarios projected by the IPCC, as well as nutrient concentrations. This project has the potential to shed light on the importance of priority effects on the structure of aquatic communities and generate cost-effective management recommendations that leverage ecological processes to maintain or even increase the productivity of agricultural ecosystems with minimal damage to biodiversity.