The Shape of Species Abundance Distributions Across Spatial Scales

Species abundance distributions (SADs) describe community structure and are a key component of biodiversity theory and research. Although different distributions have been proposed to represent SADs at different scales, a systematic empirical assessment of how SAD shape varies across wide scale gradients is lacking. Here, we examined 11 empirical large-scale datasets for a wide range of taxa and used maximum likelihood methods to compare the fit of the logseries, lognormal, and multimodal (i.e., with multiple modes of abundance) models to SADs across a scale gradient spanning several orders of magnitude. Overall, there was a higher prevalence of multimodality for larger spatial extents, whereas the logseries was exclusively selected as best fit for smaller areas. For many communities the shape of the SAD at the largest spatial extent (either lognormal or multimodal) was conserved across the scale gradient, despite steep declines in area and taxonomic diversity sampled. Additionally, SAD shape was affected by species richness, but we did not detect a systematic effect of the total number of individuals. Our results reveal clear departures from the predictions of two major macroecological theories of biodiversity for SAD shape. Specifically, neither the Neutral Theory of Biodiversity (NTB) nor the Maximum Entropy Theory of Ecology (METE) are able to accommodate the variability in SAD shape we encountered. This is highlighted by the inadequacy of the logseries distribution at larger scales, contrary to predictions of the NTB, and by departures from METE expectation across scales. Importantly, neither theory accounts for multiple modes in SADs. We suggest our results are underpinned by both inter- and intraspecific spatial aggregation patterns, highlighting the importance of spatial distributions as determinants of biodiversity patterns. Critical developments for macroecological biodiversity theories remain in incorporating the effect of spatial scale, ecological heterogeneity and spatial aggregation patterns in determining SAD shape.Peer reviewe

Recent increases in assemblage rarity are linked to increasing local immigration

F.A.M.J.'s PhD was financed by the School of Biology, University of St Andrews. M.D. and A.E.M. acknowledge funding by the Leverhulme Trust. A.E.M. acknowledges funding from the European Research Council (ERC AdG BioTIME 250189 and ERC PoC BioCHANGE 727440).As pressures on biodiversity increase, a better understanding of how assemblages are responding is needed. Because rare species, defined here as those that have locally low abundances, make up a high proportion of assemblage species lists, understanding how the number of rare species within assemblages is changing will help elucidate patterns of recent biodiversity change. Here, we show that the number of rare species within assemblages is increasing, on average, across systems. This increase could arise in two ways: species already present in the assemblage decreasing in abundance but with no increase in extinctions, or additional species entering the assemblage in low numbers associated with an increase in immigration. The positive relationship between change in rarity and change in species richness provides evidence for the second explanation, i.e. higher net immigration than extinction among the rare species. These measurable changes in the structure of assemblages in the recent past underline the need to use multiple biodiversity metrics to understand biodiversity change.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Urbanismo moderno en Brasil: el análisis del plan de la ciudad de Ourinhos

El tema central de la presente propuesta es el urbanismo moderno en Brasil. Precisamente se adopta como objeto de estudio el análisis del ‘Plan de la Ciudad de Ourinhos’ (Plano da Cidade de Ourinhos) desarrollado en la década de 1950 por el ingeniero Antônio Bezerra Baltar a través de la SAGMACS (Sociedade para Análise Gráfica e Mecanográfica Aplicadas aos Complexos Sociais) creada por el padre francés Louis- Joseph Lebret en Brasil en 1947. Al identificar la metodología proyectual empleada por el ingeniero, intentamos dibujar lo que ocurre de hecho entre lo planeado y lo ejecutado, asociado a las corrientes de pensamiento en Brasil y Europa, y sobre todo, al pensamiento relativo al diseño moderno de ciudad.The main theme of this essay is the modern urbanism in Brazil. The focus is the analysis of Ourinhos’s urban Plan (Plano da Cidade de Ourinhos - 1954-55), developed in the 1950s under the coordination of engineer Antonio Bezerra Baltar through the Society for Graphic and Mecanographic Analysis Applied to Social Complexes – Sagmacs, created by a French Dominican Louis-Joseph Lebret in Brazil in 1947 By identifying projectual methodology applied by the engineer, we try to analyze what occurred between planned and executed, linking the proposed project with ideological currents in Brazil and abroad, especially about the modern city

Measuring temporal turnover in ecological communities

Range migrations in response to climate change, invasive species and the emergence of novel ecosystems highlight the importance of temporal turnover in community composition as a fundamental part of global change in the Anthropocene. Temporal turnover is usually quantified using a variety of metrics initially developed to capture spatial change. However, temporal turnover is the consequence of unidirectional community dynamics resulting from processes such as population growth, colonisation and local extinction. Here, we develop a framework based on community dynamics and propose a new temporal turnover measure. A simulation study and an analysis of an estuarine fish community both clearly demonstrate that our proposed turnover measure offers additional insights relative to spatial context-based metrics. Our approach reveals whether community turnover is due to shifts in community composition or in community abundance and identifies the species and/or environmental factors that are responsible for any change

Ter, fazer, ser e postar : relação da extensão do self de Belk com um novo padrão de culto ao corpo por meio da atividade física no Instagram

Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso (graduação)—Universidade de Brasília, Faculdade de Educação Física, 2019.A Era Digital trouxe consigo diversas mudanças que impactaram em amplas áreas de conhecimento. As redes sociais passaram a fazer parte do cotidiano, de forma que as pessoas estabelecem uma conexão e estendem sua personalidade aos avatares nas postagens. Com base na revisão de literatura proposta por Belk (1988 e 2013) sobre as posses e extensões do self e as mudanças emergentes do mundo digital, o presente estudo qualitativo tem como objetivo explorar se o aplicativo Instagram influencia na prática de uma atividade física e no consumo de produtos de um mercado específico associados a ela. A partir dos estados básico da existência: ter, fazer e ser, com um novo estado, postar, foi constatado que a rede social tem uma influência motivacional relevante para o comportamento do consumo do mercado fitness e também nas percepções da construção do self. O culto ao corpo é reforçada diariamente a cada postagem nas redes sociais, determinado por um padrão coletivo, ele influencia tanto online quanto offline os aspectos trabalhados ao longo da pesquisa e está presente em como as pessoas se identificam, como identificam o outro e como querem ser identificadas.The Digital Era brought with it several changes that impacted broad areas of knowledge. Social media become part of daily life, so that people establish a connection and extend their personality to the avatars in postings. Based on the literature review proposed by Belk (1988 and 2013) on the properties and extensions of self and the emerging changes of the digital world, the present qualitative study aims to explore if the Instagram app influences the practice of a physical activity and the consumption of products from a specific market associated with it. From the basic states of existence: having, doing and being, with a new state, posting, it was verified that the social media has a relevant motivational influence for the consumption behavior of the fitness market and also in the perceptions of the construction of self. The body worship is reinforced daily to each posting in social media, determined by a collective standard, it influences both online and offline the aspects worked through the research and is present in how people identify themselves, how they identify others and how they want be identified

Desenvolvimento regional e análise de redes sociais : um estudo do Arranjo Produtivo Local (APL) caprinovinocultura em Pernambuco-Brasil

Os fluxos de recursos em um arranjo econômico dependem do ambiente social em que as organizações estão inseridas. A caprinovinocultura é economia secundária na maioria dos municípios pernambucanos. Entretanto, se reconhecia a existência de um Arranjo Produtivo Local (APL) caprinovino no Estado. Tal arranjo, composto por oito cidades, foi a base para este trabalho que é parte de um diagnóstico realizado no ano de 2011 sobre a governança do APL. Foram aplicados questionários as organizações envolvidas com a atividade econômica no sentido de analisar a estruturação socioinstitucional em termos de fluxos e influência. Observou-se que a união de criadores em torno de associações pode estar na base de uma governança local mais eficiente, permitindo maior acesso a crédito e a mercado. Esse ambiente favorável se observa em algumas das cidades aqui analisadas. Em outros municípios, a dificuldade de articulação entre as esferas públicas já é fator suficiente para que o APL não se desenvolva adequadamente. Logo, não há fator determinante para o sucesso de um APL; vários aspectos concorrem, desde a capacidade de organização dos criadores, a disponibilidade de financiamento, ou mesmo a ação governamental; certo é que esses fatores, geralmente articulados, são fundamentais para o sucesso do Arranjo.Los flujos en un arreglo productivo dependen del entorno social en el que las organizaciones están insertadas.La creación de caprinos y ovinos es una economía secundaria en la mayoría de los municipios de Pernambuco. Sin embargo, se reconoce la existencia de un Arreglo Productivo Local (APL) de creación de caprinos y ovinos en Pernambuco. Ese arreglo productivo, compuesto por ocho ciudades fue la base para este trabajo. Se aplicaron cuestionarios a las organizaciones relacionadas con la actividad económica con el fin de analizar la estructura socioinstitucional en términos de flujos e influencia. Se observó que la unión de creadores en torno a las asociaciones puede ser la base para una gobernanza local más eficiente. Este contexto favorable se observa en algunas ciudades, en otros municipios, la dificultad de articulación es entre las esferas públicas, es factor suficiente para que el APL no se desarrolle adecuadamente. No se puede poner un factor decisivo para el éxito de un APL, varios aspectos se pueden enumerar, como la capacidad organizativa de los agricultores, la disponibilidad de financiamiento o la acción gubernamental, lo cierto es que estos factores articulados, son fundamentales para el éxito de la creación de caprinos y ovinos en arreglo local.Knowledge flows in an economic arrangement depend on the social environment in which organizations are embedded. The caprinovinocultura is a secondary economy in most municipalities of Pernambuco. However, it is recognized the existence of a Local Productive Arrangement (APL) caprinovino in the state. This arrangement, composed of eight cities, was the basis for this work which is part of a survey conducted in 2011 on the governance of the network of APL. It was researched organizations involved in economic activity in order to analyze the socioinstitutional structure in terms of flows and influence. Was observed that the union of creators around associations can be the basis for local governance more efficient, allowing greater access to credit and markets. Thisenvironment is seen in some cities analyzed, as in the case of Sertânia and Serra Talhada. In other towns, difficulty of articulation between Public Sphere, particularly the Technical Assistance and the Departments of Agriculture and Livestock factor is sufficient for the APL does not develop properly. Unable to finally put a decisive factor for the success of a APL, several aspects can be listed, since the organizational capacity of goat breeder, availability of funding for the activity,or even government action. It is true that these factors, articulated, are fundamental to the success ofcaprinovinocultura in local arrangements

Allometric growth in reef-building corals

Funding: ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies and the Australian Research Council for fellowship and research support; Scottish Funding Council (MASTS, grant reference HR09011) and the ERC project bioTIME.Predicting demographic rates is a critical part of forecasting the future of ecosystems under global change. Here, we test if growth rates can be predicted from morphological traits for a highly diverse group of colonial symbiotic organisms: scleractinian corals. We ask whether growth is isometric or allometric among corals, and whether most variation in coral growth rates occurs at the level of the species or morphological group. We estimate growth as change in planar area for 11 species, across five morphological groups and over 5 years. We show that coral growth rates are best predicted from colony size and morphology rather than species. Coral size follows a power scaling law with a constant exponent of 0.91. Despite being colonial organisms, corals have consistent allometric scaling in growth. This consistency simplifies the task of projecting community responses to disturbance and climate change.PostprintPeer reviewe

More is less : net gain in species richness, but biotic homogenization over 140 years

The research was funded by the ‘15. June Foundation’. MD was funded by a Leverhulme Fellowship.While biodiversity loss continues globally, assessments of regional and local change over time have been equivocal. Here, we assess changes in plant species richness and beta diversity over 140 years at the level of regions within a country. Using 19th-century flora censuses for 14 Danish regions as a baseline, we overcome previous criticisms concerning short time series and neglect of completely altered habitats. We find that species composition has changed dramatically and directionally across all regions. Substantial species losses were more than offset by large gains, resulting in a net increase in species richness in all regions. The occupancy of initially widespread species increased, while initially rare species lost terrain. These changes were accompanied by strong biotic homogenization; i.e. regions are more similar now than they were 140 years ago. Species declining in Denmark were found to be in similar decline all over Northern Europe.PostprintPeer reviewe

Rapid biotic homogenization of marine fish assemblages

The role human activities play in reshaping biodiversity is increasingly apparent in terrestrial ecosystems. However, the responses of entire marine assemblages are not well-understood, in part, because few monitoring programs incorporate both spatial and temporal replication. Here, we analyse an exceptionally comprehensive 29-year time series of North Atlantic groundfish assemblages monitored over 5° latitude to the west of Scotland. These fish assemblages show no systematic change in species richness through time, but steady change in species composition, leading to an increase in spatial homogenization: the species identity of colder northern localities increasingly resembles that of warmer southern localities. This biotic homogenization mirrors the spatial pattern of unevenly rising ocean temperatures over the same time period suggesting that climate change is primarily responsible for the spatial homogenization we observe. In this and other ecosystems, apparent constancy in species richness may mask major changes in species composition driven by anthropogenic change

Prevalence of multimodal species abundance distributions is linked to spatial and taxonomic breadth

We thank the University of St Andrews MHD Cluster and the Bioinformatics Unit (Wellcome Trust ISSF grant 105621/Z/14/Z). L.H.A. was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, Portugal (POPH/FSE SFRH/BD/90469/2012). A.E.M. acknowledges the ERC (BioTIME 250189). M.D. acknowledges funding from the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology Scotland (MASTS), funded by the Scottish Funding Council (grant reference HR09011) and contributing institutions.Aim. Species abundance distributions (SADs) are a synthetic measure of biodiversity and community structure. Although typically described by unimodal logseries or lognormal distributions, empirical SADs can also exhibit multiple modes. However, we do not know how prevalent multimodality is, nor do we have an understanding of the factors leading to this pattern. Here we quantify the prevalence of multimodality in SADs across a wide range of taxa, habitats and spatial extents. Location. Global. Methods. We used the second-order Akaike information criterion for small sample sizes (AICc) and likelihood ratio tests (LRTs) to test whether models with more than one mode accurately describe the empirical abundance frequency distributions of the underlying communities. We analysed 117 empirical datasets from intensely sampled communities, including taxa ranging from birds, plants, fish and invertebrates, from terrestrial, marine and freshwater habitats. Results. We find evidence for multimodality in 14.5% of the SADs when using AICc and LRT. This is a conservative estimate, as AICc alone estimates a prevalence of multimodality of 22%. We additionally show that the pattern is more common in data encompassing broader spatial scales and greater taxonomic breadth, suggesting that multimodality increases with ecological heterogeneity. Main conclusions. We suggest that higher levels of ecological heterogeneity, underpinned by larger spatial extent and higher taxonomic breadth, can yield multimodal SADs. Our analysis shows that multimodality occurs with a prevalence that warrants its systematic consideration when assessing SAD shape and emphasizes the need for macroecological theories to include multimodality in the range of SADs they predict.PostprintPeer reviewe