Seasonality of primary production explains the richness of pioneering benthic communities

Matteo Cecchetto (), Agnès Dettai, Cyril Gallut, Matthias Obst, Piotr Kuklinski, Piotr Balazy, Maciej Chelchowski, Magdalena Małachowicz, Anita Poćwierz-Kotus, Małgorzata Zbawicka, Henning Reiss, Marc P. Eléaume, Gentile Francesco Ficetola, Christina Pavloudi, Katrina Exter, Diego Fontaneto and Stefano Schiaparelli
Additional contact information
Matteo Cecchetto: University of Genoa
Agnès Dettai: UA
Cyril Gallut: UA Station Marine de Concarneau
Matthias Obst: University of Gothenburg
Piotr Kuklinski: Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences
Piotr Balazy: Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences
Maciej Chelchowski: Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences
Magdalena Małachowicz: Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences
Anita Poćwierz-Kotus: Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences
Małgorzata Zbawicka: Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences
Henning Reiss: Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture
Marc P. Eléaume: UA
Gentile Francesco Ficetola: Università degli Studi di Milano
Christina Pavloudi: European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC-ERIC)
Katrina Exter: Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), InnovOcean Campus
Diego Fontaneto: National Research Council of Italy—Water Research Institute (CNR-IRSA)
Stefano Schiaparelli: University of Genoa

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: Abstract A pattern of increasing species richness from the poles to the equator is frequently observed in many animal taxa. Ecological limits, determined by the abiotic conditions and biotic interactions within an environment, are one of the major factors influencing the geographical distribution of species diversity. Energy availability is often considered a crucial limiting factor, with temperature and productivity serving as empirical measures. However, these measures may not fully explain the observed species richness, particularly in marine ecosystems. Here, through a global comparative approach and standardised methodologies, such as Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures (ARMS) and DNA metabarcoding, we show that the seasonality of primary production explains sessile animal richness comparatively or better than surface temperature or primary productivity alone. A Hierarchical Generalised Additive Model (HGAM) is validated, after a model selection procedure, and the prediction error is compared, following a cross-validation approach, with HGAMs including environmental variables commonly used to explain animal richness. Moreover, the linear effect of production magnitude on species richness becomes apparent only when considered jointly with seasonality, and, by identifying world coastal areas characterized by extreme values of both, we postulate that this effect may result in a positive relationship in environments with lower seasonality.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-52673-z

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