Rapid structural network changes in bird communities
- Stanislas Rigal,
- Vincent Devictor,
- Vasilis Dakos
Vincent Devictor
ISEM, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, EPHE
Author ProfileVasilis Dakos
ISEM, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, EPHE
Author ProfileAbstract
As biodiversity is declining, the dynamics of species interactions is a
growing conservation concern. However, estimating and monitoring species
interactions across large spatial and temporal scales remain
challenging, and thus changes in species interactions and the subsequent
networks of interactions remain relatively unexplored. Here, we assess
changes in the network structure of common bird communities from France.
We estimate associated species pairs using spatial and temporal
information for 109 species monitored across 1,969 sites during 17
years. We validate the ecological significance of associated species
pairs by testing the relationship between the propensity to be
associated and species functional proximity or shared habitat
preference. We reconstruct association networks for these intra-guild
bird communities and track temporal changes in network layout in terms
of size, density of links, modularity and degree distribution. We show
that, beyond species change, birds' local association networks become
smaller with a similar relative number of associations that becomes
unevenly distributed. These structural changes vary among types of bird
communities and may impact community functioning and how communities can
cope with global change.25 Oct 2024Submitted to Oikos 26 Oct 2024Submission Checks Completed
26 Oct 2024Assigned to Editor
26 Oct 2024Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
03 Nov 2024Reviewer(s) Assigned