| Abstract | We are starting to appreciate that microscopic animals are not as widespread as previously thought, but we still ignore to what extent and through which mechanisms the environment selects for specific communities or traits in microscopic animals. We here analyse the functional diversity of marine mite communities living in a seagrass meadow across two habitats: the leaves and the matte. The strictly benthic lifestyle and the conserved morphology of mites allow for unambiguous characterisation of their functional traits, while the discrete nature of the two habitats alleviates the uncertainty in their ecological characterisation. Our results show that habitat filters the distribution of certain traits favouring a higher diversity, dispersion, and evenness of functional traits in the matte than in the leaves. We further observed temporal variations in the functional diversity of communities, following the changes in biomass and structure of seagrass leaves. However, despite the stark differences between the two habitats, the filtering effect is partial and affects mostly relative species abundances. Our study emphasises the need of moving from a taxonomical towards a functional view of ecological studies of microscopic organisms. This integrative approach is key to achieve a mechanistic understanding of their habitat and distribution patterns. |
| Text | 453764 2021 10.1007/s10750 021 04586 x acari meiofauna Habitat differences filter functional diversity of low dispersive microscopic animals Acari, Halacaridae Alejandro Martinez, Guillermo Garcia Gomez, Álvaro Garcia Herrero, Nuria Sanchez, Fernando Pardos, Andres Izquierdo Muñoz, Diego Fontaneto Stefano Mammola Molecular Ecology Group, Water Research Institute, National Research Council of Italy IRSA CNR , Largo Tonolli 50, 28922, Verbania, Italy Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, C/Jose Antonio Novais 2, 28040, Madrid, Spain Department of Earth, Oceans and Ecological Sciences, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 3BX, UK Marine Biology Laboratory in Santa Pola CIMAR , Marine Research Center of Santa Pola, University of Alicante, Aptdo. 99, 03080, Alicante, Spain Laboratory for Integrative Biodiversity Research LIBRe , Finnish Museum of Natural History LUOMUS , University of Helsinki, Pohjoinen Rautatiekatu 13, 00100, Helsinki, Finland We are starting to appreciate that microscopic animals are not as widespread as previously thought, but we still ignore to what extent and through which mechanisms the environment selects for specific communities or traits in microscopic animals. We here analyse the functional diversity of marine mite communities living in a seagrass meadow across two habitats the leaves and the matte. The strictly benthic lifestyle and the conserved morphology of mites allow for unambiguous characterisation of their functional traits, while the discrete nature of the two habitats alleviates the uncertainty in their ecological characterisation. Our results show that habitat filters the distribution of certain traits favouring a higher diversity, dispersion, and evenness of functional traits in the matte than in the leaves. We further observed temporal variations in the functional diversity of communities, following the changes in biomass and structure of seagrass leaves. However, despite the stark differences between the two habitats, the filtering effect is partial and affects mostly relative species abundances. Our study emphasises the need of moving from a taxonomical towards a functional view of ecological studies of microscopic organisms. This integrative approach is key to achieve a mechanistic understanding of their habitat and distribution patterns. Published version https //link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10750 021 04586 x mar 2021_Hydr_Martinez et al EV.pdf Articolo in rivista Kluwer Academic Publishers 0018 8158 Hydrobiologia The Hague. Print Hydrobiologia The Hague. Print Hydrobiologia The Hague. Print Hydrobiologia. The Hague. Print Hydrobiologia Dordrecht The Hague. Print Hydrobiologia Boston The Hague. Print Hydrobiologia London The Hague. Print diego.fontaneto FONTANETO DIEGO stefano.mammola MAMMOLA STEFANO alejandro.martinezgarcia MARTINEZ GARCIA ALEJANDRO |
