Plants with higher dispersal capabilities follow 'abundant-centre' distributions but such patterns remain rare in animals.

ABSTRACT: The 'abundant-centre' hypothesis posits that a species' abundance is highest at its range centre and declines towards its range edge. Recently, the hypothesis has been much debated, with supporting empirical evidence remaining limited. Here, we test the hypothesis on 3660 species using 5,703,589 abundance observations. We summarise species-level patterns and test the effects of dispersal-related species traits and phylogeny on abundance-distance relationships. Support for the hypothesis is dependent on taxonomic group, with abundant-centre patterns being more pronounced for plants but non-significant when summarised across all animals. Dispersal capability does not explain abundance-distance relationships in animals but likely explains abundance patterns in non-woody plants. Phylogeny impr

SUBMITTER: Panter CT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12405579 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature