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Consumer diversity across kingdoms supports multiple functions in a coastal ecosystem.

ABSTRACT: The global biodiversity crisis impairs the valuable benefits ecosystems provide humans. These nature-generated benefits are defined by a multitude of different ecosystem functions that operate simultaneously. Although several studies have simulated species loss in communities and tracked the response of single functions such as productivity or nutrient cycling, these studies have involved relatively similar taxa, and seldom are strikingly different functions examined. With the exception of highly managed ecosystems such as agricultural fields, rarely are we interested in only one function being performed well. Instead, we rely on ecosystems to deliver several different functions at the same time. Here, we experimentally investigated the extinction impacts of dominant consumers in a salt marsh. These consumers are remarkably phylogenetically diverse, spanning two kingdoms (i.e., Animalia and Fungi). Our field studies reveal that a diverse consumer assemblage significantly enhances simultaneous functioning of disparate ecosystem processes (i.e., productivity, decomposition, and infiltration). Extreme functional and phylogenetic differences among consumers underlie this relationship. Each marsh consumer affected at least one different ecosystem function, and each individual function was affected by no more than two consumers. The implications of these findings are profound: If we want ecosystems to perform many different functions well, it is not just number of species that matter. Rather, the presence of species representing markedly different ecologies and biology is also essential to maximizing multiple functions. Moreover, this work emphasizes the need to incorporate both microcomponents and macrocomponents of food webs to accurately predict biodiversity declines on integrated-ecosystem functioning.

SUBMITTER: Hensel MJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3870749 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Consumer diversity across kingdoms supports multiple functions in a coastal ecosystem.

Hensel Marc J S MJ Silliman Brian R BR

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20131202 51

The global biodiversity crisis impairs the valuable benefits ecosystems provide humans. These nature-generated benefits are defined by a multitude of different ecosystem functions that operate simultaneously. Although several studies have simulated species loss in communities and tracked the response of single functions such as productivity or nutrient cycling, these studies have involved relatively similar taxa, and seldom are strikingly different functions examined. With the exception of highl ...[more]

PMID: 24297926

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Project description:The global decline of marine foundation species (kelp forests, mangroves, salt marshes, and seagrasses) has contributed to the degradation of the coastal zone and threatens the loss of critical ecosystem services and functions. Restoration of marine foundation species has had variable success, especially for seagrasses, where a majority of restoration efforts have failed. While most seagrass restorations track structural attributes over time, rarely do restorations assess the suite of ecological functions that may be affected by restoration. Here we report on the results of two small-scale experimental seagrass restoration efforts in a central California estuary where we transplanted 117 0.25-m2 plots (2,340 shoots) of the seagrass species Zostera marina. We quantified restoration success relative to persistent reference beds, and in comparison to unrestored, unvegetated areas. Within three years, our restored plots expanded ~8,500%, from a total initial area of 29 to 2,513 m2 . The restored beds rapidly began to resemble the reference beds in (1) seagrass structural attributes (canopy height, shoot density, biomass), (2) ecological functions (macrofaunal species richness and abundance, epifaunal species richness, nursery function), and (3) biogeochemical functions (modulation of water quality). We also developed a multifunctionality index to assess cumulative functional performance, which revealed restored plots are intermediate between reference and unvegetated habitats, illustrating how rapidly multiple functions recovered over a short time period. Our comprehensive study is one of few published studies to quantify how seagrass restoration can enhance both biological and biogeochemical functions. Our study serves as a model for quantifying ecosystem services associated with the restoration of a foundation species and demonstrates the potential for rapid functional recovery that can be achieved through targeted restoration of fast-growing foundation species under suitable conditions.

Project description:BackgroundEstuaries are highly productive ecosystems that can export organic matter to coastal seas (the 'outwelling hypothesis'). However the role of this food resource subsidy on coastal ecosystem functioning has not been examined.Methodology/principal findingsWe investigated the influence of estuarine primary production as a resource subsidy and the influence of estuaries on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in coastal mollusk-dominated sediment communities. Stable isotope values (?(13)C, ?(15)N) demonstrated that estuarine primary production was exported to the adjacent coast and contributed to secondary production up to 4 km from the estuary mouth. Further, isotope signatures of suspension feeding bivalves on the adjacent coast (Dosinia subrosea) closely mirrored the isotope values of the dominant bivalves inside the estuaries (Austrovenus stutchburyi), indicating utilization of similar organic matter sources. However, the food subsidies varied between estuaries; with estuarine suspended particulate organic matter (SPOM) dominant at Tairua estuary, while seagrass and fringing vegetation detritus was proportionately more important at Whangapoua estuary, with lesser contributions of estuarine SPOM. Distance from the estuary mouth and the size and density of large bivalves (Dosinia spp.) had a significant influence on the composition of biological traits in the coastal macrobenthic communities, signaling the potential influence of these spatial subsidies on ecosystem functioning.Conclusions/significanceOur study demonstrated that the locations where ecosystem services like productivity are generated are not necessarily where the services are utilized. Further, we identified indirect positive effects of the nutrient subsidies on biodiversity (the estuarine subsidies influenced the bivalves, which in turn affected the diversity and functional trait composition of the coastal sediment macrofaunal communities). These findings highlight the importance of integrative ecosystem-based management that maintains the connectivity of estuarine and coastal ecosystems.

Dataset Information

Consumer diversity across kingdoms supports multiple functions in a coastal ecosystem.

Publications

Consumer diversity across kingdoms supports multiple functions in a coastal ecosystem.

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