Species traits and interaction rules shape a species-rich seed-dispersal interaction network.

ABSTRACT: Species phenotypic traits affect the interaction patterns and the organization of seed-dispersal interaction networks. Understanding the relationship between species characteristics and network structure help us understand the assembly of natural communities and how communities function. Here, we examine how species traits may affect the rules leading to patterns of interaction among plants and fruit-eating vertebrates. We study a species-rich seed-dispersal system using a model selection approach to examine whether the rules underlying network structure are driven by constraints in fruit resource exploitation, by preferential consumption of fruits by the frugivores, or by a combination of both. We performed analyses for the whole system and for bird and mammal assemblages separately, and

SUBMITTER: Sebastian-Gonzalez E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5478084 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature