ORGANISMS AS ECOSYSTEM ENGINEERS
ORGANISMS AS ECOSYSTEM ENGINEERS
复制标题
DOI：
10.2307/3545850
复制
发表时间：
1994-04-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.4
通讯作者：
SHACHAK, M
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
JONES, CG;LAWTON, JH;SHACHAK, M
生态系统工程师是通过引起生物或非生物材料的物理状态变化来直接或间接调节资源对其他物种的可用性的生物。在这样做的过程中，它们改变、维持和创造栖息地。自生工程师（例如珊瑚或树木）通过自己的物理结构（即活组织和死组织）改变环境。同种异体工程师（例如啄木鸟，海狸）通过机械或其他手段将生物或非生物材料从一种物理状态转变为另一种物理状态来改变环境。以活组织或死组织的形式直接向其他物种提供资源不是工程学。当生物体调节自身以外的一种或多种资源的供应时，它们就像工程师一样。我们识别并定义了五种类型的工程并提供了示例。人类是卓越的同种异体工程师，也模仿自体工程师的行为，例如建造温室。我们探讨相关的概念，包括扩展表型和关键物种的概念。生态系统工程的一些（但不是全部）产品是扩展的表型。关键物种的许多（也许是大多数）影响不仅包括营养效应，还包括工程师和工程。工程师们的影响各不相同。最大的影响归因于人均影响大的物种，它们长期在大面积上以高密度生活，产生了持续数千年并调节许多资源流动的结构（例如，由穴居啮齿动物形成的米马土丘）。雀形目鸟类搭建的短暂的巢穴位于这一连续体的另一端。我们提供了一个试探性的研究议程，探索生物作为生态系统工程师的现象，并建议地球上所有的栖息地支持，并受到影响，生态系统工程师。
Ecosystem engineers are organisms that directly or indirectly modulate the availability of resources to other species, by causing physical state changes in biotic or abiotic materials. In so doing they modify, maintain and create habitats. Autogenic engineers (e.g. corals, or trees) change the environment via their own physical structures (i.e. their living and dead tissues). Allogenic engineers (e.g. woodpeckers, beavers) change the environment by transforming living or non-living materials from one physical state to another, via mechanical or other means. The direct provision of resources to other species, in the form of living or dead tissues is not engineering. Organisms act as engineers when they modulate the supply of a resource or resources other than themselves. We recognise and define five types of engineering and provide examples. Humans are allogenic engineers par excellence, and also mimic the behaviour of autogenic engineers, for example by constructing glasshouses. We explore related concepts including the notions of extended phenotypes and keystone species. Some (but not all) products of ecosystem engineering are extended phenotypes. Many (perhaps most) impacts of keystone species include not only trophic effects, but also engineers and engineering. Engineers differ in their impacts. The biggest effects are attributable to species with large per capita impacts, living at high densities, over large areas for a long time, giving rise to structures that persist for millennia and that modulate many resource flows (e.g. mima mounds created by fossorial rodents). The ephemeral nests constructed by small, passerine birds lie at the opposite end of this continuum. We provide a tentative research agenda for an exploration of the phenomenon of organisms as ecosystem engineers, and suggest that all habitats on earth support, and are influenced by, ecosystem engineers.