Taxonomic identity best explains variation in body nutrient stoichiometry in a diverse marine animal community.

ABSTRACT: Animal-mediated nutrient dynamics are critical processes in ecosystems. Previous research has found animal-mediated nutrient supply (excretion) to be highly predictable based on allometric scaling, but similar efforts to find universal predictive relationships for an organism's body nutrient content have been inconclusive. We use a large dataset from a diverse tropical marine community to test three frameworks for predicting body nutrient content. We show that body nutrient content does not follow allometric scaling laws and that it is not well explained by trophic status. Instead, we find strong support for taxonomic identity (particularly at the family level) as a predictor of body nutrient content, indicating that evolutionary history plays a crucial role in determining an organism's co

SUBMITTER: Allgeier JE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7426267 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature