Large-scale ocean connectivity and planktonic body size

Ernesto Villarino (), James R. Watson, Bror Jönsson, Josep M. Gasol, Guillem Salazar, Silvia G. Acinas, Marta Estrada, Ramón Massana, Ramiro Logares, Caterina R. Giner, Massimo C. Pernice, M. Pilar Olivar, Leire Citores, Jon Corell, Naiara Rodríguez-Ezpeleta, José Luis Acuña, Axayacatl Molina-Ramírez, J. Ignacio González-Gordillo, Andrés Cózar, Elisa Martí, José A. Cuesta, Susana Agustí, Eugenio Fraile-Nuez, Carlos M. Duarte, Xabier Irigoien and Guillem Chust
Additional contact information
Ernesto Villarino: AZTI, Marine Research Division
James R. Watson: Oregon State University
Bror Jönsson: University of New Hampshire
Josep M. Gasol: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Guillem Salazar: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Silvia G. Acinas: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Marta Estrada: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Ramón Massana: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Ramiro Logares: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Caterina R. Giner: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Massimo C. Pernice: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
M. Pilar Olivar: Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC
Leire Citores: AZTI, Marine Research Division
Jon Corell: AZTI, Marine Research Division
Naiara Rodríguez-Ezpeleta: AZTI, Marine Research Division
José Luis Acuña: Universidad de Oviedo, Calle Catedrático Valentín Andrés Alvarez
Axayacatl Molina-Ramírez: Universidad de Oviedo, Calle Catedrático Valentín Andrés Alvarez
J. Ignacio González-Gordillo: Universidad de Cádiz, Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEI-MAR)
Andrés Cózar: Universidad de Cádiz, Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEI-MAR)
Elisa Martí: Universidad de Cádiz, Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEI-MAR)
José A. Cuesta: Instituto de Ciencias Marinas de Andalucía, CSIC, Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEI-MAR)
Susana Agustí: King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Red Sea Research Center
Eugenio Fraile-Nuez: Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centro Oceanográfico de Canarias
Carlos M. Duarte: King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Red Sea Research Center
Xabier Irigoien: AZTI, Marine Research Division
Guillem Chust: AZTI, Marine Research Division

Nature Communications, 2018, vol. 9, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Global patterns of planktonic diversity are mainly determined by the dispersal of propagules with ocean currents. However, the role that abundance and body size play in determining spatial patterns of diversity remains unclear. Here we analyse spatial community structure - β-diversity - for several planktonic and nektonic organisms from prokaryotes to small mesopelagic fishes collected during the Malaspina 2010 Expedition. β-diversity was compared to surface ocean transit times derived from a global circulation model, revealing a significant negative relationship that is stronger than environmental differences. Estimated dispersal scales for different groups show a negative correlation with body size, where less abundant large-bodied communities have significantly shorter dispersal scales and larger species spatial turnover rates than more abundant small-bodied plankton. Our results confirm that the dispersal scale of planktonic and micro-nektonic organisms is determined by local abundance, which scales with body size, ultimately setting global spatial patterns of diversity.

Date: 2018
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:9:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-017-02535-8

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-02535-8

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