Extreme rainfall events alter the trophic structure in bromeliad tanks across the Neotropics

Author(s):Show less -

Romero, Gustavo Q. ^[1] ; Marino, Nicholas A. C. ^{[2, 3]} ; MacDonald, A. Andrew M. ^{[4, 5]} ; Cereghino, Regis ^[6] ; Trzcinski, M. Kurtis ^[7] ; Mercado, Dimaris Acosta ^[8] ; Leroy, Celine ^{[9, 10]} ; Corbara, Bruno ^[11] ; Farjalla, Vinicius F. ^[2] ; Barberis, Ignacio M. ^[12] ; Dezerald, Olivier ^[13] ; Hammill, Edd ^{[14, 15]} ; Atwood, Trisha B. ^{[14, 15]} ; Piccoli, Gustavo C. O. ^[16] ; Ospina Bautista, Fabiola ^{[17, 18]} ; Carrias, Jean-Francois ^[11] ; Leal, Juliana S. ^[3] ; Montero, Guillermo ^[12] ; Antiqueira, Pablo A. P. ^[1] ; Freire, Rodrigo ^[12] ; Realpe, Emilio ^[17] ; Amundrud, Sarah L. ^{[19, 20]} ; de Omena, Paula M. ^[21] ; Campos, Alice B. A. ^[3] ; Kratina, Pavel ^[22] ; O'Gorman, Eoin J. ^[23] ; Srivastava, Diane S. ^{[19, 20]}

Affiliation:Show less -

^[1] Univ Campinas UNICAMP, Inst Biol, Dept Anim Biol, Lab Multitroph Interact & Biodivers, BR-13083862 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Fed Rio de Janeiro, Inst Biol, Dept Ecol, Ctr Ciencias Saud, POB 68020, Rio De Janeiro, RJ - Brazil

^[3] Univ Fed Rio de Janeiro UFRJ, Programa Posgrad Ecol, CP 68020, Rio De Janeiro, RJ - Brazil

^[4] Univ Montreal, Montreal, PQ - Canada

^[5] Ctr Synth & Anal Biodivers CESAB FRB, Aix En Provence - France

^[6] Univ Toulouse, CNRS, Lab Ecol Fonct & Environm, Toulouse - France

^[7] Univ British Columbia, Dept Forest & Conservat Sci, Vancouver, BC - Canada

^[8] Univ Puerto Rico Mayaguez Campus, Dept Biol, Mayaguez, PR 00681 - USA

^[9] Univ Montpellier, CNRS, AMAP, CIRAD, INRAE, IRD, Montpellier - France

^[10] Univ Antilles, Univ Guyane, CNRS, UMR ECOFOG, CIRAD, INRAE, AgroParisTech, F-97379 Kourou - France

^[11] Univ Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, LMGE Lab Microorganismes Genome & Environm, F-63000 Clermont Ferrand - France

^[12] Univ Nacl Rosario, Inst Invest Ciencias Agr Rosario, Fac Ciencias Agr, IICAR CONICET UNR, S2125ZAA, Zavalla - Argentina

^[13] Agrocampus Ouest, ESE, Ecol & Ecosyst Hlth, INRAE, F-35042 Rennes - France

^[14] Utah State Univ, Ecol Ctr, Logan, UT 84322 - USA

^[15] Utah State Univ, Dept Watershed Sci, Logan, UT 84322 - USA

^[16] Univ Sa Paulo State UNESP IBILCE, Dept Zool & Bot, BR-15054000 Sao Jose Do Rio Preto, SP - Brazil

^[17] Univ Andes, Dept Ciencias Biol, Bogota 111711 - Colombia

^[18] Univ Caldas, Dept Ciencias Biol, Manizales 170004 - Colombia

^[19] Univ British Columbia, Dept Zool, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4 - Canada

^[20] Univ British Columbia, Biodivers Res Ctr, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4 - Canada

^[21] Univ Fed Para, Inst Biol Sci, Belem, PA - Brazil

^[22] Queen Mary Univ London, Sch Biol & Chem Sci, London - England

^[23] Univ Essex, Sch Life Sci, Colchester, Essex - England

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: NATURE COMMUNICATIONS; v. 11, n. 1 JUN 25 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 5

Abstract

Changes in global and regional precipitation regimes are among the most pervasive components of climate change. Intensification of rainfall cycles, ranging from frequent downpours to severe droughts, could cause widespread, but largely unknown, alterations to trophic structure and ecosystem function. We conducted multi-site coordinated experiments to show how variation in the quantity and evenness of rainfall modulates trophic structure in 210 natural freshwater microcosms (tank bromeliads) across Central and South America (18 degrees N to 29 degrees S). The biomass of smaller organisms (detritivores) was higher under more stable hydrological conditions. Conversely, the biomass of predators was highest when rainfall was uneven, resulting in top-heavy biomass pyramids. These results illustrate how extremes of precipitation, resulting in localized droughts or flooding, can erode the base of freshwater food webs, with negative implications for the stability of trophic dynamics. The amount and frequency of rainfall structures aquatic food webs. Here the authors show that in tropical tank bromeliads, lower trophic levels are more abundant in stable rainfall conditions, while biomass pyramids are inverted in conditions with periodic droughts. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 16/01209-9 - Effects of climate change on the structure of food webs in latitudinal gradients
• Grantee: Gustavo Quevedo Romero
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• FAPESP's process: 14/04603-4 - Global warming effects on the trophic structure and ecosystem functioning in tank-bromeliads
• Grantee: Pablo Augusto Poleto Antiqueira
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 17/26243-8 - Extreme rainfall events and their effects on the community structure and ecosystem functioning
• Grantee: Pablo Augusto Poleto Antiqueira
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 12/51143-3 - Global changes and the functioning of ecosystems in phytotelmata
• Grantee: Gustavo Quevedo Romero
• Support Opportunities: Research Program on Global Climate Change - Regular Grants
• FAPESP's process: 17/09052-4 - Influence of latitude and aquatic subsidies on niche breadth and structure of terrestrial communities
• Grantee: Gustavo Quevedo Romero
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants