Document Type
Article
Department/Program
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Publication Date
10-2015
Journal
Ecology
Volume
96
Issue
11
First Page
2973
Last Page
2983
Abstract
The use of functional traits to explain how biodiversity affects ecosystem functioning has attracted intense interest, yet few studies have a priori altered functional diversity, especially in multitrophic communities. Here, we manipulated multivariate functional diversity of estuarine grazers and predators within multiple levels of species richness to test how species richness and functional diversity predicted ecosystem functioning in a multitrophic food web. Community functional diversity was a better predictor than species richness for the majority of ecosystem properties, based on generalized linear mixed-effects models. Combining inferences from eight traits into a single multivariate index increased prediction accuracy of these models relative to any individual trait. Structural equation modeling revealed that functional diversity of both grazers and predators was important in driving final biomass within trophic levels, with stronger effects observed for predators. We also show that different species drove different ecosystem responses, with evidence for both sampling effects and complementarity. Our study extends experimental investigations of functional trait diversity to a multilevel food web, and demonstrates that functional diversity can be more accurate and effective than species richness in predicting community biomass in a food web context.
DOI
10.1890/14-1977.1
Keywords
biodiversity; Chesapeake Bay; consumers; ecosystem functioning; estuaries
Publication Statement
Copyright by the Ecological Society of America
Recommended Citation
Lefcheck, JS and Duffy, JE, Multitrophic functional diversity predicts ecosystem functioning in experimental assemblages of estuarine consumers (2015). Ecology, 96(11), 2973-2983.
10.1890/14-1977.1
