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Dezerald, O., Céréghino, R., Corbara, B., Dejean, A., & Leroy, C. (2015). Functional trait responses of aquatic macroinvertebrates to simulated drought in a Neotropical bromeliad ecosystem. Freshwater Biology, 60(9), 1917–1929.
Abstract: The duration of the dry seasons in south-eastern Amazonia is expected to increase. Little is known of how freshwater assemblages respond to drought in the humid rainforests and of the extent to which they resist the absence of rainfall before the collapse of the system. We manipulated rainshelters over tank-forming bromeliads (i.e. the interlocking leaf axils of these plants form wells that collect rainwater) to simulate an exceptionally long dry period (49 days, compared with a 10-year mean ± SD annual maximum number of 17 ± 5.3 days without rainfall at the study site) and then a rewetting period. By sampling weekly over 3 months, we followed the dynamics of the representation of abundance-weighted traits in invertebrate assemblages in these treatment plants and in a control group. The functional structure of assemblages was drought resistant until the water volume in the bromeliad pools dropped by 90%, when there was a sudden shift in the functional trait structure due to the loss of most populations except the drought-resistant culicids. Traits related to life history, body size and preferred food showed significant responses to drought. There was a convergence in the functional traits of species surviving in dry plants, strengthening the idea that environmental filtering, rather than stochasticity, determines the functional trajectory of aquatic assemblages during drought. At the end of the dry period, samples of the detritus potentially containing drought-resistant eggs/cysts (and eventually live larvae) were taken from the dry plants and rewetted in the laboratory, allowing us to distinguish resistant species from those requiring recolonisation via subsequent oviposition by adults from elsewhere. Patches of water-filled bromeliads persisting in the area provided the most important pool of colonists, and communities returned to the pre-disturbance state within 1-2 weeks of rewetting. Our results suggest that the functional trait structure of invertebrate assemblages in bromeliads could remain stable under scenarios of precipitation change that would triple the duration of current dry periods at a local scale. Future experiments should evaluate how environmental factors might alter the tipping point between resistance to drought and a collapse in ecosystem processes. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Keywords: Food webs; Precipitations; Rainforests; Resistance/resilience; Tipping point
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Baraloto, C., Paine, C. E. T., Patino, S., Bonal, D., Herault, B., & Chave, J. (2010). Functional trait variation and sampling strategies in species-rich plant communities. Funct. Ecol., 24(1), 208–216.
Abstract: P> Despite considerable interest in the application of plant functional traits to questions of community assembly and ecosystem structure and function, there is no consensus on the appropriateness of sampling designs to obtain plot-level estimates in diverse plant communities. We measured 10 plant functional traits describing leaf and stem morphology and ecophysiology for all trees in nine 1-ha plots in terra firme lowland tropical rain forests of French Guiana (N = 4709). We calculated, by simulation, the mean and variance in trait values for each plot and each trait expected under seven sampling methods and a range of sampling intensities. Simulated sampling methods included a variety of spatial designs, as well as the application of existing data base values to all individuals of a given species. For each trait in each plot, we defined a performance index for each sampling design as the proportion of resampling events that resulted in observed means within 5% of the true plot mean, and observed variance within 20% of the true plot variance. The relative performance of sampling designs was consistent for estimations of means and variances. Data base use had consistently poor performance for most traits across all plots, whereas sampling one individual per species per plot resulted in relatively high performance. We found few differences among different spatial sampling strategies; however, for a given strategy, increased intensity of sampling resulted in markedly improved accuracy in estimates of trait mean and variance. We also calculated the financial cost of each sampling design based on data from our 'every individual per plot' strategy and estimated the sampling and botanical effort required. The relative performance of designs was strongly positively correlated with relative financial cost, suggesting that sampling investment returns are relatively constant. Our results suggest that trait sampling for many objectives in species-rich plant communities may require the considerable effort of sampling at least one individual of each species in each plot, and that investment in complete sampling, though great, may be worthwhile for at least some traits.
Keywords: French Guiana; functional diversity; plant traits; specific leaf area; wood density; sampling design; tropical forest
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Dézerald, O., Srivastava, D. S., Céréghino, R., Carrias, J. - F., Corbara, B., Farjalla, V. F., et al. (2018). Functional traits and environmental conditions predict community isotopic niches and energy pathways across spatial scales. Functional Ecology, 32(10), 2423–2434.
Abstract: Despite ongoing research in food web ecology and functional biogeography, the links between food web structure, functional traits and environmental conditions across spatial scales remain poorly understood. Trophic niches, defined as the amount of energy and elemental space occupied by species and food webs, may help bridge this divide. Here, we ask how the functional traits of species, the environmental conditions of habitats and the spatial scale of analysis jointly determine the characteristics of trophic niches. We used isotopic niches as a proxy of trophic niches, and conducted analyses at spatial scales ranging from local food webs and metacommunities to geographically distant sites. We sampled aquatic macroinvertebrates from 104 tank bromeliads distributed across five sites from Central to South America and compiled the macroinvertebrates’ functional traits and stable isotope values (δ15N and δ13C). We assessed how isotopic niches within each bromeliad were influenced by the functional trait composition of their associated invertebrates and environmental conditions (i.e., habitat size, canopy cover [CC] and detrital concentration [DC]). We then evaluated whether the diet of dominant predators and, consequently, energy pathways within food webs reflected functional and environmental changes among bromeliads across sites. At last, we determined the extent to which the isotopic niches of macroinvertebrates within each bromeliad contributed to the metacommunity isotopic niches within each site and compared these metacommunity-level niches over biogeographic scales. At the bromeliad level, isotopic niches increased with the functional richness of species in the food web and the DC in the bromeliad. The diet of top predators tracked shifts in prey biomass along gradients of CC and DC. Bromeliads that grew under heterogeneous CC displayed less trophic redundancy and therefore combined to form larger metacommunity isotopic niches. At last, the size of metacommunity niches depended on within-site heterogeneity in CC. Our results suggest that the trophic niches occupied by food webs can predictably scale from local food webs to metacommunities to biogeographic regions. This scaling process is determined by both the functional traits of species and heterogeneity in environmental conditions. A plain language summary is available for this article. © 2018 The Authors. Functional Ecology © 2018 British Ecological Society
Keywords: energy pathways; environmental heterogeneity; food webs; functional biogeography; functional diversity; isotopic niche; metacommunity; trophic structure
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Laurans, M., Martin, O., Nicolini, E., & Vincent, G. (2012). Functional traits and their plasticity predict tropical trees regeneration niche even among species with intermediate light requirements. J. Ecol., 100(6), 1440–1452.
Abstract: Niche differentiation is a key issue in the current debate on community assembly mechanisms. In highly diverse moist tropical forests, tree species sensitivity to canopy openness is thought to be a major axis in niche differentiation. In the past, the syndrome of traits driving the demographic trade-off involved in the niche-based theory of coexistence has always been established among species situated at the two extremities of the shade-tolerance gradient, even though most tropical tree species have intermediate light requirements. In addition, trait plasticity has seldom been linked to tropical tree species distribution along environmental gradients. This article examines covariations between leaf traits, whole-plant traits and niche parameters among 14 tree species with intermediate light requirements in French Guiana and across a range of canopy openness. Each functional trait measured under field conditions was characterized by a median value and a degree of plasticity expressed under contrasting light regimes. Niche differentiation was characterized in terms of spatial light gradient. We first examined covariations between functional traits then explored to what degree the median value and plasticity in functional traits could predict light niche characteristics at the sapling stage and the ontogenetic change in light availability estimated by adult stature. Leaf mass per area (LMA) was positively correlated with leaf life span (LLS); species with higher LMA and higher LLS displayed lower diameter growth rates (GRs) and lower responsiveness to canopy gap at both whole-plant and population levels. This proved that the relationships previously established over a broader range of species held true within the narrow range of the light requirements covered. Height GR plasticity accounted for 49% of the variation in light niche optimum. LMA plasticity, unlike LLS plasticity, was significantly correlated with light niche breadth and adult stature. Synthesis. This study demonstrates the relevance of considering the phenotypic plasticity in functional traits in community ecology, particularly for quantifying breadth of species distribution over environmental gradients. Our findings did not support Hubbell's hypothesis of functional equivalence and suggest that even a rather subtle variation in forest canopy disturbance promotes the coexistence of tropical tree species. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Ecology © 2012 British Ecological Society.
Keywords: Canopy disturbance; Determinants of plant community diversity and structure; Growth rate; Irradiance; Leaf life span; Leaf mass per area; Niche differentiation; Phenotypic plasticity; Shade tolerance; Tropical moist forest
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Flores, O., Herault, B., Delcamp, M., Garnier, É., & Gourlet-Fleury, S. (2014). Functional traits help predict post-disturbance demography of tropical trees. PLoS ONE, 9(9), e105022.
Abstract: How tropical tree species respond to disturbance is a central issue of forest ecology, conservation and resource management. We define a hierarchical model to investigate how functional traits measured in control plots relate to the population change rate and to demographic rates for recruitment and mortality after disturbance by logging operations. Population change and demographic rates were quantified on a 12-year period after disturbance and related to seven functional traits measured in control plots. The model was calibrated using a Bayesian Network approach on 53 species surveyed in permanent forest plots (37.5 ha) at Paracou in French Guiana. The network analysis allowed us to highlight both direct and indirect relationships among predictive variables. Overall, 89% of interspecific variability in the population change rate after disturbance were explained by the two demographic rates, the recruitment rate being the most explicative variable. Three direct drivers explained 45% of the variability in recruitment rates, including leaf phosphorus concentration, with a positive effect, and seed size and wood density with negative effects. Mortality rates were explained by interspecific variability in maximum diameter only (25%). Wood density, leaf nitrogen concentration, maximum diameter and seed size were not explained by variables in the analysis and thus appear as independent drivers of post-disturbance demography. Relationships between functional traits and demographic parameters were consistent with results found in undisturbed forests. Functional traits measured in control conditions can thus help predict the fate of tropical tree species after disturbance. Indirect relationships also suggest how different processes interact to mediate species demographic response.
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Paine, C. E. T., Baraloto, C., Chave, J., & Herault, B. (2011). Functional traits of individual trees reveal ecological constraints on community assembly in tropical rain forests. Oikos, 120(5), 720–727.
Abstract: Niche differentiation and ecological filtering are primary ecological processes that shape community assembly, but their relative importance remains poorly understood. Analyses of the distributions of functional traits can provide insight into the community structure generated by these processes. We predicted the trait distributions expected under the ecological processes of niche differentiation and environmental filtering, then tested these predictions with a dataset of 4672 trees located in nine 1-ha plots of tropical rain forest in French Guiana. Five traits related to leaf function (foliar N concentration, chlorophyll content, toughness, tissue density and specific leaf area), and three traits related to stem function (trunk sapwood density, branch sapwood density, and trunk bark thickness), as well as laminar surface area, were measured on every individual tree. There was far more evidence for environmental filtering than for niche differentiation in these forests. Furthermore, we contrasted results from species-mean and individual-level trait values. Analyses that took within-species trait variation into account were far more sensitive indicators of niche differentiation and ecological filtering. Species-mean analyses, by contrast, may underestimate the effects of ecological processes on community assembly. Environmental filtering appeared somewhat more intense on leaf traits than on stem traits, whereas niche differentiation affected neither strongly. By accounting for within-species trait variation, we were able to more properly consider the ecological interactions among individual trees and between individual trees and their environment. In so doing, our results suggest that the ecological processes of niche differentiation and environmental filtering may be more pervasive than previously believed.
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Herault, B., Bachelot, B., Poorter, L., Rossi, V., Bongers, F., Chave, J., et al. (2011). Functional traits shape ontogenetic growth trajectories of rain forest tree species. J. Ecol., 99(6), 1431–1440.
Abstract: 1.Functional traits are posited to explain interspecific differences in performance, but these relationships are difficult to describe for long-lived organisms such as trees, which exhibit strong ontogenetic changes in demographic rates. Here, we use a size-dependent model of tree growth to test the extent to which of 17 functional traits related to leaf and stem economics, adult stature and seed size predict the ontogenetic trajectory of tree growth. 2.We used a Bayesian modelling framework to parameterize and contrast three size-dependent diameter growth models using 16years of census data from 5524 individuals of 50 rain forest tree species: a size-dependent model, a size-dependent model with species-specific parameters and a size-dependent model based on functional traits. 3.Most species showed clear hump-shaped ontogenetic growth trajectories and, across species, maximum growth rate varied nearly tenfold, from 0.58 to 5.51mmyear-1. Most species attained their maximum growth at 60% of their maximum size, whereas the magnitude of ontogenetic changes in growth rate varied widely among species. 4.The Trait-Model provided the best compromise between explained variance and model parsimony and needed considerably fewer parameters than the model with species terms. 5.Stem economics and adult stature largely explained interspecific differences in growth strategy. Maximum absolute diameter growth rates increased with increasing adult stature and leaf δ13C and decreased with increasing wood density. Species with light wood had the greatest potential to modulate their growth, resulting in hump-shaped ontogenetic growth curves. Seed size and leaf economics, generally thought to be of paramount importance for plant performance, had no significant relationships with the growth parameters. 6.Synthesis. Our modelling approach offers a promising way to link demographic parameters to their functional determinants and hence to predict growth trajectories in species-rich communities with little parameter inflation, bridging the gap between functional ecology and population demography. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Ecology © 2011 British Ecological Society.
Keywords: Bayesian modelling; Functional traits; Growth modelling; Leaf economics; Leaf-height-seed strategy; Plant development and life-history traits; Plant strategy; Stem economics; Tropical rain forest
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Perrot, T., Schwartz, M., Saiag, F., Salzet, G., Dumarçay, S., Favier, F., et al. (2018). Fungal Glutathione Transferases as Tools to Explore the Chemical Diversity of Amazonian Wood Extractives. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 6(10), 13078–13085.
Abstract: The natural durability of wood is linked to its chemical composition and in particular the presence of metabolites called extractives that often possess chemical reactivity. For dealing with these compounds, wood degraders have developed detoxification systems usually involving enzyme families. Among these enzymes, glutathione transferases (GSTs) are involved in the decrease of the reactivity of toxic compounds. In this study, the hypothesis that the detoxification systems of wood decaying fungi could be indicators of the chemical reactivity of wood extracts has been tested. This approach has been evaluated using 32 wood extracts coming from French Guiana species, testing their antimicrobial ability, antioxidative properties, and reactivity against six GSTs from the white rot Trametes versicolor. From the obtained data, a significant correlation between the antimicrobial and antioxidative properties of the tested wood extracts and GST interactions was established. In addition, the chemical analysis performed on one of the most reactive extracts (an acetonic extract of Bagassa guianensis) has demonstrated oxyresveratrol as a major constituent. We were able to cocrystallize one GST with this commercially interesting compound. Taken together, the presented data support the hypothesis that detoxifying enzymes could be used to identify the presence of molecules of industrial interest in wood extracts.
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Jaouen, G., Sagne, A., Buyck, B., Decock, C., Louisanna, E., Manzi, S., et al. (2019). Fungi of French Guiana gathered in a taxonomic, environmental and molecular dataset. Scientific data, 6(206).
Abstract: In Amazonia, the knowledge about Fungi remains patchy and biased towards accessible sites. This is particularly the case in French Guiana where the existing collections have been confined to few coastal localities. Here, we aimed at filling the gaps of knowledge in undersampled areas of this region, particularly focusing on the Basidiomycota. From 2011, we comprehensively collected fruiting-bodies with a stratified and reproducible sampling scheme in 126 plots. Sites of sampling reflected the main forest habitats of French Guiana in terms of soil fertility and topography. The dataset of 5219 specimens gathers 245 genera belonging to 75 families, 642 specimens are barcoded. The dataset is not a checklist as only 27% of the specimens are identified at the species level but 96% are identified at the genus level. We found an extraordinary diversity distributed across forest habitats. The dataset is an unprecedented and original collection of Basidiomycota for the region, making specimens available for taxonomists and ecologists. The database is publicly available in the GBIF repository ( https://doi.org/10.15468/ymvlrp ).
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Seipke, R. F., Barke, J., Ruiz-Gonzalez, M. X., Orivel, J., Yu, D. W., & Hutchings, M. I. (2012). Fungus-growing Allomerus ants are associated with antibiotic-producing actinobacteria. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek Int. J. Gen. Mol. Microbiol., 101(2), 443–447.
Abstract: Fungus-growing attine ants use natural-product antibiotics produced by mutualist actinobacteria as 'weedkillers' in their fungal gardens. Here we report for the first time that fungus-growing Allomerus ants, which lie outside the tribe Attini, are associated with antifungal-producing actinobacteria, which offer them protection against non-cultivar fungi isolated from their ant-plants. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
Keywords: Allomerus ants; Amycolatopsis; Ant-bacteria symbioses; Fungus-growing ants; Insect fungiculture; Streptomyces
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