Food webs in relation to variation in the environment and species assemblage: a multivariate approach.

ABSTRACT: The abiotic environment has strong influences on the growth, survival, behavior, and ecology of aquatic organisms. Biotic interactions and species life histories interact with abiotic factors to structure the food web. One measure of food-web structure is food-chain length. Several hypotheses predict a linear relationship between one environmental variable (e.g., disturbance or ecosystem size) and food-chain length. However, many abiotic and biotic variables interact in diverse ways to structure a community, and may affect other measures of food web structure besides food-chain length. This study took a multivariate approach to test the influence of several important environmental variables on four food-web characteristics measured in nine ponds along a hydroperiod gradient over two years.

SUBMITTER: Schriever TA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4399920 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature