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Diversity of response and effect traits provides complementary information about avian community dynamics linked to ecological function
Author(s) -
Hordley Lisbeth A.,
Gillings Simon,
Petchey Owen L.,
Tobias Joseph A.,
Oliver Thomas H.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
functional ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.272
H-Index - 154
eISSN - 1365-2435
pISSN - 0269-8463
DOI - 10.1111/1365-2435.13865
Subject(s) - biology , trait , ecology , abundance (ecology) , functional diversity , metacommunity , ecosystem , biological dispersal , functional ecology , functional response , ecological stability , diversity (politics) , predation , predator , population , demography , sociology , computer science , anthropology , programming language
Functional diversity metrics based on species traits are widely used to investigate ecosystem functioning. In theory, such metrics have different implications depending on whether they are calculated from traits mediating responses to environmental change (response traits) or those regulating function (effect traits), yet trait choice in diversity metrics is rarely scrutinized. Here, we compile effect and response traits for British bird species supplying two key ecological services—seed dispersal and insect predation—to assess the relationship between functional diversity and both mean and stability of community abundance over time. As predicted, functional diversity correlates with stability in community abundance of seed dispersers when calculated using response traits. However, we found a negative relationship between functional diversity and mean community abundance of seed dispersers when calculated using effect traits. Subsequently, when combining all traits together, we found inconsistent results with functional diversity correlating with reduced stability in insectivores, but greater stability in seed dispersers. Our findings suggest that trait choice should be considered more carefully when applying such metrics in ecosystem management. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.