An experimental test on the effects of dispersal from different habitat sources on community structure.

ABSTRACT: Biological interactions, disturbances, and demographic stochasticity often drive population declines and local extinctions. Dispersal can counterbalance these drivers by rescuing small populations or facilitating recolonization. Using freshwater zooplankton in experimental mesocosms, we tested three hypotheses: (1) isolated sites would experience declines in species richness, with ecological drift causing communities to lose different species and become more dissimilar over time; (2) communities connected by dispersal from similar habitats would maintain their species richness and composition, as arriving species balance losses through rescue effects and recolonization, thereby halting community differentiation; and (3) dispersers originating from different sources may establish themselves

SUBMITTER: Villarreal GL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12623123 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature