Skip to main content
bioRxiv
  • Home
  • About
  • Submit
  • ALERTS / RSS
Advanced Search
New Results

Interaction modifications lead to greater robustness than pairwise non-trophic effects in food webs

View ORCID ProfileJ. Christopher D. Terry, View ORCID ProfileRebecca J. Morris, View ORCID ProfileMichael B. Bonsall
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/377473
J. Christopher D. Terry
1Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for J. Christopher D. Terry
Rebecca J. Morris
1Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
2Biological Sciences, Life Sciences Building 85, University of Southampton, Highfield Campus, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Rebecca J. Morris
Michael B. Bonsall
1Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
3St. Peter’s College, New Inn Hall Street, Oxford, OX1 2DL UK
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Michael B. Bonsall
  • Abstract
  • Full Text
  • Info/History
  • Metrics
  • Preview PDF
Loading

Abstract

  1. Considerable emphasis has been placed recently on the importance of incorporating non-trophic effects in to our understanding of ecological networks. Interaction modifications are well established as generating strong non-trophic impacts by modulating the strength of inter-specific interactions.

  2. For simplicity and comparison with direct interactions within a network context, the consequences of interaction modifications have often been described as direct pairwise interactions. The consequences of this assumption have not been examined in non-equilibrium settings where unexpected consequences of interaction modifications are most likely.

  3. To test the distinct dynamic nature of these ‘higher-order’ effects we directly compare, using dynamic simulations, the robustness to extinctions under perturbation of systems where interaction modifications are either explicitly modelled or represented by corresponding equivalent pairwise non-trophic interactions.

  4. Full, multi-species representations of interaction modifications resulted in a greater robustness to extinctions compared to equivalent pairwise effects. Explanations for this increased stability despite apparent greater dynamic complexity can be found in additional routes for dynamic feedbacks. Furthermore, interaction modifications changed the relative vulnerability of species to extinction from those trophically connected close to the perturbed species towards those receiving a large number of modifications.

  5. Future empirical and theoretical research into non-trophic effects should distinguish interaction modifications from direct pairwise effects in order to maximise information about the system dynamics. Interaction modifications have the potential to shift expectations of species vulnerability based exclusively on trophic networks.

Footnotes

  • james.terry{at}zoo.ox.ac.uk

Copyright 
The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
Back to top
PreviousNext
Posted November 06, 2018.
Download PDF
Email

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word about bioRxiv.

NOTE: Your email address is requested solely to identify you as the sender of this article.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Interaction modifications lead to greater robustness than pairwise non-trophic effects in food webs
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from bioRxiv
(Your Name) thought you would like to see this page from the bioRxiv website.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Share
Interaction modifications lead to greater robustness than pairwise non-trophic effects in food webs
J. Christopher D. Terry, Rebecca J. Morris, Michael B. Bonsall
bioRxiv 377473; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/377473
Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo Google logo LinkedIn logo Mendeley logo
Citation Tools
Interaction modifications lead to greater robustness than pairwise non-trophic effects in food webs
J. Christopher D. Terry, Rebecca J. Morris, Michael B. Bonsall
bioRxiv 377473; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/377473

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Subject Area

  • Ecology
Subject Areas
All Articles
  • Animal Behavior and Cognition (3477)
  • Biochemistry (7316)
  • Bioengineering (5294)
  • Bioinformatics (20189)
  • Biophysics (9972)
  • Cancer Biology (7698)
  • Cell Biology (11243)
  • Clinical Trials (138)
  • Developmental Biology (6416)
  • Ecology (9912)
  • Epidemiology (2065)
  • Evolutionary Biology (13271)
  • Genetics (9347)
  • Genomics (12544)
  • Immunology (7667)
  • Microbiology (18928)
  • Molecular Biology (7415)
  • Neuroscience (40870)
  • Paleontology (298)
  • Pathology (1226)
  • Pharmacology and Toxicology (2125)
  • Physiology (3138)
  • Plant Biology (6836)
  • Scientific Communication and Education (1268)
  • Synthetic Biology (1891)
  • Systems Biology (5295)
  • Zoology (1083)