Abstract
The importance of keystone species is often defined based on a single type of interaction (e.g., keystone predator). However, it remains unclear whether this functional importance extends across interaction types. We conducted a global meta-analysis of interaction networks to examine whether species functional importance in one niche dimension is mirrored in other niche dimensions, and whether this is associated with interaction outcome (mutualistic/antagonistic) or intimacy (temporary/permanent). We show that the importance of keystone species is positively correlated across multiple dimensions of species’ ecological niche, independently from species’ abundance, interaction outcome or intimacy. This suggests that keystonness multidimensionality is a widespread phenomenon and can be used to identify keystone species across several interaction types, playing a central role in determining ecosystem resilience and defining conservation strategies.
One sentence summary Importance of keystone species is positively associated across ecological niche dimensions regardless of species’ abundance.
Competing Interest Statement
The authors have declared no competing interest.