Details zur Publikation

Kategorie Textpublikation
Referenztyp Zeitschriften
DOI 10.1111/aje.12437
Volltext Shareable Link
Titel (primär) Converting forests to agriculture decreases body size of Carabid assemblages in Zambia
Autor Chungu, D.; Stadler, J.; Brandl, R.
Quelle African Journal of Ecology
Erscheinungsjahr 2018
Department BZF
Band/Volume 56
Heft 2
Seite von 216
Seite bis 224
Sprache englisch
Supplements https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/action/downloadSupplement?doi=10.1111%2Faje.12437&attachmentId=2213703107
Keywords abundance; body length; disturbances; ground beetles; size structure; Zambia
UFZ Querschnittsthemen RU1;
Abstract Body size affects both intraspecific and interspecific competition. Land-use affects such interactions within assemblages of species and should, therefore, also change the size structure of these assemblages. In particular one expects a decrease of mean body size with disturbances. We compared interspecific size structure of carabid assemblages between agricultural fields (frequent disturbances) and forests in Zambia using pitfall traps operated across 1 year. Mean body length across species co-occurring within sites in agricultural fields was significantly smaller than in natural forests. Furthermore, in both habitats, we found evidence for ecological clustering in respect to body size, although in forests, body size differences between adjacent-sized species tended to be overdispersed. We also found a positive relationship between log10-transformed body length and log10-transformed activity abundance in forests, suggesting competitive asymmetries between large and small species. Overall, these observations suggest that the size structure of carabid assemblages depends on disturbances as well as competitive interactions. Such interactions seem to be, however, of lower importance within agricultural fields.
dauerhafte UFZ-Verlinkung https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=19239
Chungu, D., Stadler, J., Brandl, R. (2018):
Converting forests to agriculture decreases body size of Carabid assemblages in Zambia
Afr. J. Ecol. 56 (2), 216 - 224 10.1111/aje.12437