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Greater topoclimatic control of above‐ versus below‐ground communities


Abstract

Assessing the degree to which climate explains the spatial distributions of different taxonomic and functional groups is essential for anticipating the effects of climate change on ecosystems. Most effort so far has focused on above‐ground organisms, which offer only a partial view on the response of biodiversity to environmental gradients. Here including both above‐ and below‐ground organisms, we quantified the degree of topoclimatic control on the occurrence patterns of >1,500 taxa and phylotypes along a c. 3,000 m elevation gradient, by fitting species distribution models. Higher model performances for animals and plants than for soil microbes (fungi, bacteria and protists) suggest that the direct influence of topoclimate is stronger on above‐ground species than on below‐ground microorganisms. Accordingly, direct climate change effects are predicted to be stronger for above‐ground than for below‐ground taxa, whereas factors expressing local soil microclimate and geochemistry are likely more important to explain and forecast the occurrence patterns of soil microbiota. Detailed mapping and future scenarios of soil microclimate and microhabitats, together with comparative studies of interacting and ecologically dependent above‐ and below‐ground biota, are thus needed to understand and realistically forecast the future distribution of ecosystems.

Abstract

Assessing the degree to which climate explains the spatial distributions of different taxonomic and functional groups is essential for anticipating the effects of climate change on ecosystems. Most effort so far has focused on above‐ground organisms, which offer only a partial view on the response of biodiversity to environmental gradients. Here including both above‐ and below‐ground organisms, we quantified the degree of topoclimatic control on the occurrence patterns of >1,500 taxa and phylotypes along a c. 3,000 m elevation gradient, by fitting species distribution models. Higher model performances for animals and plants than for soil microbes (fungi, bacteria and protists) suggest that the direct influence of topoclimate is stronger on above‐ground species than on below‐ground microorganisms. Accordingly, direct climate change effects are predicted to be stronger for above‐ground than for below‐ground taxa, whereas factors expressing local soil microclimate and geochemistry are likely more important to explain and forecast the occurrence patterns of soil microbiota. Detailed mapping and future scenarios of soil microclimate and microhabitats, together with comparative studies of interacting and ecologically dependent above‐ and below‐ground biota, are thus needed to understand and realistically forecast the future distribution of ecosystems.

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Additional indexing

Item Type:Journal Article, refereed, original work
Communities & Collections:07 Faculty of Science > Institute of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies
Dewey Decimal Classification:570 Life sciences; biology
590 Animals (Zoology)
Scopus Subject Areas:Physical Sciences > Global and Planetary Change
Physical Sciences > Environmental Chemistry
Physical Sciences > Ecology
Physical Sciences > General Environmental Science
Uncontrolled Keywords:ecology, distribution, climate, community
Language:English
Date:1 December 2020
Deposited On:23 Nov 2020 16:14
Last Modified:25 Sep 2023 01:37
Publisher:Wiley-Blackwell Publishing, Inc.
ISSN:1354-1013
OA Status:Closed
Publisher DOI:https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15330
Project Information:
  • : FunderSNSF
  • : Grant IDP2NEP3_178543
  • : Project TitleFrom environmental metabarcoding/metatranscriptomic to a single-cell transcriptomics: evaluation of human impact on the microeukaryotic diversity of the Tietê River, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
  • : FunderSNSF
  • : Grant ID315230_184908
  • : Project TitleComparative biogeography and spatial modelling of soil microbial communities in the Swiss Alps (SOMETALP)
  • : FunderSNSF
  • : Grant ID31003A_163254
  • : Project TitleMacroecology of hyalospheniid testate amoebae (Amoebozoa; Arcellinida) from regional to global scales