Niche partitioning between close relatives suggests trade‐offs between adaptation to local environments and competition

Ecology and Evolution

Megan L. Peterson²  Kevin J. Rice¹ 

[1] Department of Plant Sciences and The Center for Population Biology, University of California, Davis, CA;Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA

关键词: Competition;    facilitation;    habitat partitioning;    Mimulus;    niche conservatism;    niche evolution;    spatial storage effect;    species coexistence;    species range limits;    Stress Gradient Hypothesis;   

DOI  :  10.1002/ece3.462

来源: Wiley

【 摘 要 】

Abstract

Niche partitioning among close relatives may reflect trade-offs underlying species divergence and coexistence (e.g., between stress tolerance and competitive ability). We quantified the effects of habitat and congeneric species interactions on fitness for two closely related herbaceous plant species, Mimulus guttatus and Mimulus laciniatus, in three common habitat types within their sympatric range. Drought stress strongly reduced survival of M. guttatus in fast-drying seeps occupied by M. laciniatus, suggesting that divergent habitat adaptation maintains this niche boundary. However, neither seedling performance nor congeneric competition explained the absence of M. laciniatus from shady streams where M. guttatus thrives. M. laciniatus may be excluded from this habitat by competition with other species in the community or mature M. guttatus. Species performance and competitive ability were similar in sympatric meadows where plant community stature and the growing season length are intermediate between seeps and streams. Stochastic effects (e.g., dispersal among habitats or temporal variation) may contribute to coexistence in this habitat. Habitat adaptation, species interactions, and stochastic mechanisms influence sympatric distributions for these recently diverged species.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2013 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.