Publication
Title
Global diversity patterns and cross-taxa convergence in freshwater system
Author
Abstract
Whereas global patterns and predictors of species diversity are well known for numerous terrestrial taxa, our understanding of freshwater diversity patterns and their predictors is much more limited. Here, we examine spatial concordance in global diversity patterns for five freshwater taxa (i.e. aquatic mammals, aquatic birds, fishes, crayfish and aquatic amphibians) and investigate the environmental factors driving these patterns at the river drainage basin grain. We find that species richness and endemism patterns are significantly correlated among taxa. We also show that cross-taxon congruence patterns are often induced by common responses of taxa to their contemporary and historical environments (i.e. convergent patterns). Apart from some taxa distinctiveness (i.e. fishes), the climate/productivity hypothesis is found to explain the greatest variance in species richness and endemism patterns, followed by factors related to the history/dispersion and area/environmental heterogeneity hypotheses. As aquatic amphibians display the highest levels of congruency with other taxa, this taxon appears to be a good surrogate candidate for developing global freshwater conservation planning at the river drainage basin grain.
Language
English
Source (journal)
The journal of animal ecology / British Ecological Society. - Oxford
Publication
Oxford : 2013
ISSN
0021-8790
DOI
10.1111/1365-2656.12018
Volume/pages
82 :2 (2013) , p. 365-376
ISI
000315122100009
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Project info
BIOFRESH: Biodiversity of Freshwater Ecosystems: Status, Trends, Pressures, and Conservation Priorities
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 28.11.2012
Last edited 02.10.2024
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