Butterfly abundance is determined by food availability and is mediated by species traits
Butterfly abundance is determined by food availability and is mediated by species traits
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DOI：
10.1111/1365-2664.12523
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发表时间：
2015-12-01
影响因子：
5.7
通讯作者：
Isaac, Nick J. B.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Curtis, Robin J.;Brereton, Tom M.;Isaac, Nick J. B.
了解物种和地点之间种群丰度的驱动因素对于有效的保护管理至关重要。目前，我们缺乏一个框架来预测哪些网站可能支持丰富的蝴蝶群落。我们解决这个问题，探索1111种群的蝴蝶在英国，跨越27个物种的54个网站之间的丰度的决定因素。我们的一般假设是，食物资源的可用性是物种内部和物种之间的人口丰度的强有力的预测因素，但这种关系随着物种的特征而系统地变化。我们发现蝴蝶的数量和食物资源的可用性之间存在很强的正相关性。我们的指数的寄主植物和花蜜都是显着的蝴蝶种群密度的预测，但宿主植物的关系是最强的，这解释了高达36%的网站间的差异丰富的一些物种。在物种之间，寄主植物-多度关系是由蝴蝶物种性状介导的。它是最强的那些物种与狭窄的饮食宽度，低流动性和栖息地专家。具有通才食性和栖息地关联的物种的Abarterum与我们的宿主植物指数无关。寄主植物丰度的关系是更明显的网站，主要是朝北的斜坡，这表明在调解资源可用性的小气候的作用。我们已经表明，简单的措施可以用来帮助理解模式丰富的大空间尺度。对于一些蝴蝶物种，人口承载能力的占用网站是可预测的，从有关植被组成的信息。这些结果表明，有针对性的管理，以增加主机厂的可用性将转化为更高的承载能力。在英国蝴蝶中，从这种干预中受益最大的物种最近在数量和分布上都出现了急剧下降。我们已经确定的宿主植物丰度的关系很可能是转移到其他系统的特点是强种间相互作用的营养级。这就提出了一种可能性，即专业物种的栖息地斑块的质量是可估计的快速评估的寄主植物resource.We表明，简单的措施可以用来帮助了解丰富的大空间尺度上的模式。对于一些蝴蝶物种，人口承载能力的占用网站是可预测的，从有关植被组成的信息。这些结果表明，有针对性的管理，以增加主机厂的可用性将转化为更高的承载能力。在英国蝴蝶中，从这种干预中受益最大的物种最近在数量和分布上都经历了急剧下降。我们已经确定的宿主植物丰度的关系很可能是转移到其他系统的特点是强种间相互作用的营养级。这就提出了一种可能性，即通过对寄主植物资源的快速评估，可以估计出专业物种的生境斑块质量。
Understanding the drivers of population abundance across species and sites is crucial for effective conservation management. At present, we lack a framework for predicting which sites are likely to support abundant butterfly communities. We address this problem by exploring the determinants of abundance among 1111 populations of butterflies in the UK, spanning 27 species on 54 sites. Our general hypothesis is that the availability of food resources is a strong predictor of population abundance both within and between species, but that the relationship varies systematically with species' traits. We found strong positive correlations between butterfly abundance and the availability of food resources. Our indices of host plant and nectar are both significant predictors of butterfly population density, but the relationship is strongest for host plants, which explain up to 36% of the inter-site variance in abundance for some species. Among species, the host plant-abundance relationship is mediated by butterfly species traits. It is strongest among those species with narrow diet breadths, low mobility and habitat specialists. Abundance for species with generalist diet and habitat associations is uncorrelated with our host plant index. The host plant-abundance relationship is more pronounced on sites with predominantly north-facing slopes, suggesting a role for microclimate in mediating resource availability.Synthesis and applications. We have shown that simple measures can be used to help understand patterns in abundance at large spatial scales. For some butterfly species, population carrying capacity on occupied sites is predictable from information about the vegetation composition. These results suggest that targeted management to increase host plant availability will translate into higher carrying capacity. Among UK butterflies, the species that would benefit most from such intervention have recently experienced steep declines in both abundance and distribution. The host plant-abundance relationship we have identified is likely to be transferrable to other systems characterized by strong interspecific interactions across trophic levels. This raises the possibility that the quality of habitat patches for specialist species is estimable from rapid assessment of the host plant resource.We have shown that simple measures can be used to help understand patterns in abundance at large spatial scales. For some butterfly species, population carrying capacity on occupied sites is predictable from information about the vegetation composition. These results suggest that targeted management to increase host plant availability will translate into higher carrying capacity. Among UK butterflies, the species that would benefit most from such intervention have recently experienced steep declines in both abundance and distribution. The host plant-abundance relationship we have identified is likely to be transferrable to other systems characterized by strong interspecific interactions across trophic levels. This raises the possibility that the quality of habitat patches for specialist species is estimable from rapid assessment of the host plant resource.