Dispersal syndromes can impact ecosystem functioning in spatially structured freshwater populations.

ABSTRACT: Dispersal can strongly influence ecological and evolutionary dynamics. Besides the direct contribution of dispersal to population dynamics, dispersers often differ in their phenotypic attributes from non-dispersers, which leads to dispersal syndromes. The consequences of such dispersal syndromes have been widely explored at the population and community level; however, to date, ecosystem-level effects remain unclear. Here, we examine whether dispersing and resident individuals of two different aquatic keystone invertebrate species have different contributions to detrital processing, a key function in freshwater ecosystems. Using experimental two-patch systems, we found no difference in leaf consumption rates with dispersal status of the common native species Gammarus fossarum. In Dikerogamm

SUBMITTER: Little CJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6451385 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature