A regional-scale assessment of using metabolic scaling theory to predict ecosystem properties.

ABSTRACT: Metabolic scaling theory (MST) is one of ecology's most high-profile general models and can be used to link size distributions and productivity in forest systems. Much of MST's foundation is based on size distributions following a power law function with a scaling exponent of -2, a property assumed to be consistent in steady-state ecosystems. We tested the theory's generality by comparing actual size distributions with those predicted using MST parameters assumed to be general. We then used environmental variables and functional traits to explain deviation from theoretical expectations. Finally, we compared values of relative productivity predicted using MST with a remote-sensed measure of productivity. We found that fire-prone heath communities deviated from MST-predicted size distributio

SUBMITTER: McCarthy JK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6892045 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature