O papel da variação intraespecífica de atributos funcionais na estruturação de comunidades ecológicas
Nenhuma Miniatura disponível
Data
2021-09-15
Autores
Título da Revista
ISSN da Revista
Título de Volume
Editor
Universidade Federal de Goiás
Resumo
Variations in characteristics such as size, behavior and physiology among individuals of the same species are the raw material for natural selection. These characteristics are defined as functional attributes, which can directly or indirectly affect the individual performance and fitness of the species. As interactions with the biotic and abiotic environment are based on individuals, this type of approach makes a major contribution to community ecology. A high intraspecific variation of an attribute may reflect on local adaptation, as a response to biotic interactions or environmental filtering. Here I explored aspects of intraspecific variation of functional attributes related to publication trends, abundance, geographic distribution of species, and establishment in contrasting environments based on information from individuals. In the first chapter, I studied the main trends in the scientific literature on intraspecific variation of functional attributes (intraspecific trait variation – ITV). I analyzed the number of publications, the main groups of organisms and attributes, and data collection methods. I found an upward trend in ITV publications. The main groups studied were vascular plants, insects, and fish. For the group of sessile organisms, the specific leaf area was the most analyzed attribute and for the group of non-sessile organisms, the body size. Observational data were predominant in both groups. For this review, I indicated the importance of collaborative processes between scientists, with the consolidation of databases as well as sampling protocols that allowed comparing and aggregating data, allowing the continuation of this growing number of articles on ITV allowing more ecological responses about organisms, populations, communities, and ecosystems. In the second chapter, I investigated the role of three determinants of species abundance. Using the specific leaf area (SLA) and data from 29 communities in seven countries, I tested whether the mean SLA values, the niche overlap between individuals of different species and the SLA ITV explained the abundance of species in the communities. I found that the most abundant species had low SLA and individuals with low niche overlap, this can be associated with resource conservation strategies and with reduced interspecific competition. In the third chapter, I studied the relationship between ITV and the geographic distribution of species using data from 554 species of native trees from the American continent and the intraspecific variation of functional attributes related to dispersal, establishment, and persistence strategies of plant species in communities (SLA, height and mass of seeds). I found that species with high values of intraspecific variation in specific leaf area and seed mass, and smaller variations in height, had larger geographic distributions. This result suggests that the variability of attribute values and environmental filters are key factors in determining ITV. Finally, in the fourth chapter, I investigated how intraspecific attribute variations differ between contrasting environments with different resource availability and environmental conditions, comparing the SLA ITV of 14 pairs of cospecific and cogeneric species between contrasting environments (semi-deciduous seasonal forests and savannas) in Brazilian cerrado. I found that species from seasonal semideciduous forests have higher SLA ITV than cospecific and cogeneric species in savannah environments. However, for wood density I did not find biologically relevant ITV. These results suggest an association between selection pressures due to competitive processes and environmental filtering in the establishment of cogeneric and cospecific species in these environments. With this study, I reaffirm the importance of using functional attributes at the scale of individuals to understand how communities are structured based on specific characteristics related to development strategies and species persistence in the environment.
Descrição
Citação
NOBRE, P. A. O papel da variação intraespecífica de atributos funcionais na estruturação de comunidades ecológicas. 2021. 116 f. Tese (Doutorado em Ecologia e Evolução) - Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, 2021.