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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

You don't belong here: explaining the excess of rare species in terms of habitat, space and time

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Author(s):
Sgarbi, Luciano F. [1] ; Melo, Adriano S. [2]
Total Authors: 2
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Fed Goias, Inst Ciencias Biol, Programa Posgrad Ecol & Evolucao, BR-74001970 Goiania, Go - Brazil
[2] Univ Fed Goias, Inst Ciencias Biol, Dept Ecol, Goiania, Go - Brazil
Total Affiliations: 2
Document type: Journal article
Source: OIKOS; v. 127, n. 4, p. 497-506, APR 2018.
Web of Science Citations: 8
Abstract

Ecological communities are composed of a few common and several rare species. Many studies have evaluated the shape of abundance distribution curves, but few studies have assessed the causes of rarity. Using a dataset of stream macroinvertebrates, we investigated whether the excess of rare species in three focal communities of stones in riffles were common 1) in other habitats at the same stream site and period of sampling (environment), 2) in other stream sites in the same habitat and period of sampling (space), and 3) in other years in the same stream site and habitat (time). We observed that around 28% of the rare species were common in other habitats (environment), stream sites (space) or years (time). Among the three factors, rarity was mostly explained by habitat type, whereas a significant portion of the rare species in riffles were common in pools, submerged roots of terrestrial plants or in partially submerged moss patches. This result suggests that the presence in non-optimum habitat is a strong determinant of the rarity observed in natural communities and most rare species are due to sampling artifacts or accidentally sampled transient species. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 02/12538-0 - Spatial components of the diversity of aquatic insects in streams of the Atlantic Rainforest in the State of São Paulo
Grantee:Adriano Sanches Melo
Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Young Investigators Grants