Biodiversity loss and fragmentation - matrix effects and ecosystem consequences using a hyperdiverse Malagasy amphibian assemblage as an example

碎片化是一个可能导致生物多样性丧失的过程，即在碎片中形成物种枯竭的群落。然而，物种损失的影响可能远远超出有关动物群体的群落特性（例如群落结构）的变化，但可能影响到各种生态系统特性以及生态系统的功能。因此，一个破碎的景观是一个适当的系统来研究一般的社区生态系统的依赖关系。营养相互作用和动物群落的营养结构在大多数这些过程中起着重要作用，它的研究可以提供直接的见解生态系统功能。本项目的目的是了解两栖动物多样性的格局在一个破碎的景观和当地的保护取决于多样性的功能成分，食物网的属性，形态特征和系统发育的距离。此外，还将分析基质的组成和结构（即碎片嵌入的非森林生境）是否是群落和食物网特性变化的重要驱动因素。这将通过测试一套假设有关的多样性格局变化的物种，功能，社区和生态系统的水平。拟议的项目将在马达加斯加东部Ranomafana地区的无尾两栖动物（青蛙）社区进行，这是一个山地雨林生态系统。这是一个非常合适的模型区域，具有独特的两栖动物多样性，其中无尾类系统学基本上已经解决，并且存在关于这些生物的大型分子，系统发育，分布和生物声学数据库，并将纳入本研究。各种已建立的实地方法将与最先进的实验室分析相结合。食物网结构将使用稳定同位素进行比较评估，这是一种成熟的技术，但迄今为止尚未以如此全面的方法应用于两栖动物群落。

Fragmentation is a process that may lead to the loss of biodiversity, i.e. to species-depleted communities in fragments. However, the effects of the loss of species may well go beyond the change in community properties of the animal groups in question (e.g. community structure) but may affect various ecosystem properties as well as ecosystem functioning. Hence, a fragmented landscape represents an appropriate system to study general community-ecosystem dependencies. Trophic interactions and the trophic structure of animal communities play important roles in most of these processes, and its study can provide direct insights into ecosystem functioning. The present project aims at understanding how patterns of amphibian diversity in a fragmented landscape and local extinctions depend on functional components of diversity, food web properties, morphological traits and phylogenetic distance. Furthermore, it will be analyzed if the composition and structure of the matrix (i.e. the non-forest habitat in which the fragments are embedded) are important drivers of changes in community and food web properties. This will be done by testing a set of hypotheses related to diversity pattern changes at the level of species, function, communities, and ecosystems. The proposed project will be conducted on anuran (frog) communities in the Ranomafana area of Eastern Madagascar, a montane rainforest ecosystem. This is a highly suitable model region with an unique amphibian diversity, where anuran systematics are largely settled and large molecular, phylogenetic, distributional and bioacoustic databases on these organisms exist and will be incorporated in this study. A variety of established field methods will be combined with state-of-the-art laboratory analyses. Food web structure will be comparatively assessed using stable isotopes, a wellestablished technique which, however, has so far not been applied to amphibiancommunities in such a comprehensive approach.