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Evolutionarily stable communities: a framework for understanding the role of trait evolution in the maintenance of diversity
Author(s) -
Edwards Kyle F.,
Kremer Colin T.,
Miller Elizabeth T.,
Osmond Matthew M.,
Litchman Elena,
Klausmeier Christopher A.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
ecology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.852
H-Index - 265
eISSN - 1461-0248
pISSN - 1461-023X
DOI - 10.1111/ele.13142
Subject(s) - trait , ecology , diversification (marketing strategy) , biology , evolutionary ecology , context (archaeology) , competition (biology) , extinction (optical mineralogy) , coexistence theory , character displacement , community , diversity (politics) , evolutionary biology , ecosystem , habitat , computer science , sociology , paleontology , marketing , anthropology , sympatry , business , programming language , host (biology)
Biological diversity depends on the interplay between evolutionary diversification and ecological mechanisms allowing species to coexist. Current research increasingly integrates ecology and evolution over a range of timescales, but our common conceptual framework for understanding species coexistence requires better incorporation of evolutionary processes. Here, we focus on the idea of evolutionarily stable communities ( ESC s), which are theoretical endpoints of evolution in a community context. We use ESC s as a unifying framework to highlight some important but under‐appreciated theoretical results, and we review empirical research relevant to these theoretical predictions. We explain how, in addition to generating diversity, evolution can also limit diversity by reducing the effectiveness of coexistence mechanisms. The coevolving traits of competing species may either diverge or converge, depending on whether the number of species in the community is low (undersaturated) or high (oversaturated) relative to the ESC . Competition in oversaturated communities can lead to extinction or neutrally coexisting, ecologically equivalent species. It is critical to consider trait evolution when investigating fundamental ecological questions like the strength of different coexistence mechanisms, the feasibility of ecologically equivalent species, and the interpretation of different patterns of trait dispersion.