Co-Occurrence Patterns Do Not Predict Mutualistic Interactions Between Plant and Butterfly Species.

ABSTRACT: Biotic interactions are crucial for determining the structure and dynamics of communities; however, direct measurement of these interactions can be challenging in terms of time and resources, especially when numerous species are involved. Inferring species interactions from species co-occurrence patterns is increasingly being used; however, recent studies have highlighted some limitations. To our knowledge, no attempt has been made to test the accuracy of the existing methods for detecting mutualistic interactions in terrestrial ecosystems. In this study, we compiled two literature-based, long-term datasets of interactions between butterflies and herbaceous plant species in two regions of Germany and compared them with observational abundance and presence/absence data collected within a ye

SUBMITTER: Menares E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11525043 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature