Phylogenetic diversity promotes ecosystem stability
Open accessAbstract
Ecosystem stability in variable environments depends on the diversity of form and function of the constituent species. Species phenotypes and ecologies are the product of evolution, and the evolutionary history represented by co‐occurring species has been shown to be an important predictor of ecosystem function. If phylogenetic distance is a surrogate for ecological differences, then greater evolutionary diversity should buffer ecosystems against environmental variation and result in greater ecosystem stability. We calculated both abundance‐weighted and unweighted phylogenetic measures of plant community diversity for a long‐term biodiversity–ecosystem function experiment at Cedar Creek, Minnesota, USA. We calculated a detrended measure of stability in aboveground biomass production in experimental plots and showed that phylogenetic relatedness explained variation in stability. Our results indicate that communities where species are evenly and distantly related to one another are more stable compared to communities where phylogenetic relationships are more clumped. This result could be explained by a phylogenetic sampling effect, where some lineages show greater stability in productivity compared to other lineages, and greater evolutionary distances reduce the chance of sampling only unstable groups. However, we failed to find evidence for similar stabilities among closely related species. Alternatively, we found evidence that plot biomass variance declined with increasing phylogenetic distances, and greater evolutionary distances may represent species that are ecologically different (phylogenetic complementarity). Accounting for evolutionary relationships can reveal how diversity in form and function may affect stability.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In human-associated microbiota and macroecological contexts, higher phylogenetic diversity is associated with greater ecosystem resilience and productivity.
“In both a human-associated microbiota43-45 and macroecological46,47 context, higher phylogenetic diversity is associated with greater ecosystem resilience and productivity.”
From Sequencing ancient calcified dental plaque shows changes in oral microbiota with dietary shifts of the Neolithic and Industrial revolutions (2013) · cites this paper as [46]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing
R Core Team (2000) · doi:10.32614/r.manuals · Cited by 355,706 · see citing works
MUSCLE: multiple sequence alignment with high accuracy and high throughput
Edgar, R. C. (2004) · Nucleic Acids Research · doi:10.1093/nar/gkh340 · Cited by 44,662 · see citing works
A Simple, Fast, and Accurate Algorithm to Estimate Large Phylogenies by Maximum Likelihood
Guindon, S., & Gascuel, O. (2003) · Systematic Biology · doi:10.1080/10635150390235520 · Cited by 16,698 · see citing works
Phylogenies and the Comparative Method
Felsenstein, J. (1985) · The American Naturalist · doi:10.1086/284325 · Cited by 9,793 · see citing works
EFFECTS OF BIODIVERSITY ON ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONING: A CONSENSUS OF CURRENT KNOWLEDGE
Hooper, D. U., Chapin, F. S., Ewel, J. J., Hector, A., Inchausti, P., Lavorel, S., Lawton, J. H., Lodge, D. M., Loreau, M., Naeem, S., et al. (2005) · Ecological Monographs · doi:10.1890/04-0922 · Cited by 8,046 · see citing works
Picante: R tools for integrating phylogenies and ecology
Kembel, S., Cowan, P. D., Helmus, M., Cornwell, W. K., Morlon, H., Ackerly, D., Blomberg, S., & Webb, C. O. (2010) · Bioinform. · doi:10.1093/bioinformatics/btq166 · Cited by 6,363 · see citing works
Conservation evaluation and phylogenetic diversity
Faith, D. (1992) · Biological Conservation · doi:10.1016/0006-3207(92)91201-3 · Cited by 5,495 · see citing works
The comparative method in evolutionary biology
(1992) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.29-5104 · Cited by 4,926 · see citing works
TESTING FOR PHYLOGENETIC SIGNAL IN COMPARATIVE DATA: BEHAVIORAL TRAITS ARE MORE LABILE
Blomberg, S. P., Garland, T., & Ives, A. R. (2003) · Evolution · doi:10.1111/j.0014-3820.2003.tb00285.x · Cited by 4,678 · see citing works
Phylogenies and Community Ecology
Webb, C. O., Ackerly, D. D., McPeek, M. A., & Donoghue, M. J. (2002) · Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics · doi:10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.33.010802.150448 · Cited by 4,559 · see citing works
The Comparative Method in Evolutionary Biology
Harvey, P. H., & Pagel, M. D. (1991) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780198546412.001.0001 · Cited by 4,337 · see citing works
Model selection in ecology and evolution
Johnson, J. B., & Omland, K. S. (2004) · Trends in Ecology & Evolution · doi:10.1016/j.tree.2003.10.013 · Cited by 3,838 · see citing works
Biodiversity and ecosystem productivity in a fluctuating environment: The insurance hypothesis
Yachi, S., & Loreau, M. (1999) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.96.4.1463 · Cited by 3,211 · see citing works
The Influence of Functional Diversity and Composition on Ecosystem Processes
Tilman, D. G., Knops, J. M. H., Wedin, D. A., Reich, P. B., Ritchie, M. E., & Siemann, E. (1997) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.277.5330.1300 · Cited by 3,205 · see citing works
Self-citationWill a Large Complex System be Stable?
MAY, R. M. (1972) · Nature · doi:10.1038/238413a0 · Cited by 2,869 · see citing works
Approximate likelihood-ratio test for branches: A fast, accurate, and powerful alternative
Anisimova, M., & Gascuel, O. (2006) · Systematic Biology · doi:10.1080/10635150600755453 · Cited by 2,693 · see citing works
Quantifying the evidence for biodiversity effects on ecosystem functioning and services
Balvanera, P., Pfisterer, A. B., Buchmann, N., He, J., Nakashizuka, T., Raffaelli, D., & Schmid, B. (2006) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2006.00963.x · Cited by 2,650 · see citing works
Diversity and Productivity in a Long-Term Grassland Experiment
Tilman, D., Reich, P. B., Knops, J., Wedin, D., Mielke, T., & Lehman, C. (2001) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1060391 · Cited by 2,373 · see citing works
Self-citationThe merging of community ecology and phylogenetic biology
Cavender‐Bares, J., Kozak, K. H., Fine, P. V. A., & Kembel, S. W. (2009) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2009.01314.x · Cited by 2,321 · see citing works
Biodiversity and ecosystem stability in a decade-long grassland experiment
Tilman, D. G., Reich, P. B., & Knops, J. M. H. (2006) · Nature · doi:10.1038/nature04742 · Cited by 2,310 · see citing works
Self-citationBiodiversity and stability in grasslands
Tilman, D. G., & Downing, J. (1994) · Nature · doi:10.1038/367363a0 · Cited by 2,298 · see citing works
Self-citationNiche conservatism as an emerging principle in ecology and conservation biology
Wiens, J. J., Ackerly, D. D., Allen, A. P., Anacker, B. L., Buckley, L. B., Cornell, H. V., Damschen, E. I., Davies, T. J., Grytnes, J., Harrison, S. P., et al. (2010) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01515.x · Cited by 1,882 · see citing works
Effects of biodiversity on the functioning of trophic groups and ecosystems
Cardinale, B. J., Srivastava, D. S., Emmett Duffy, J., Wright, J. P., Downing, A. L., Sankaran, M., & Jouseau, C. (2006) · Nature · doi:10.1038/nature05202 · Cited by 1,871 · see citing works
Desikan, R., Last, K., Harrett‐Williams, R., Tagliavia, C., Harter, K., Hooley, R., Hancock, J. T., & Neill, S. J. (2006) · The Plant Journal · doi:10.1111/j.1365-313x.2006.02842.x · Cited by 1,713 · see citing works
Biodiversity: Population Versus Ecosystem Stability
Tilman, D. G. (1996) · Ecology · doi:10.2307/2265614 · Cited by 1,633 · see citing works
Self-citationCardinale, B. J., Wright, J. P., Cadotte, M. W., Carroll, I. T., Hector, A., Srivastava, D. S., Loreau, M., & Weis, J. J. (2007) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.0709069104 · Cited by 1,537 · see citing works
Self-citationBiodiversity and Stability in Grasslands
Tilman, D. G., & Downing, J. (1996) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4612-4018-1_1 · Cited by 1,495 · see citing works
Self-citationRefining the stress‐gradient hypothesis for competition and facilitation in plant communities
Maestre, F. T., Callaway, R. M., Valladares, F., & Lortie, C. J. (2009) · Journal of Ecology · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2745.2008.01476.x · Cited by 1,493 · see citing works
Mammals on the EDGE: Conservation Priorities Based on Threat and Phylogeny
Isaac, N. J. B., Turvey, S. T., Collen, B., Waterman, C., & Baillie, J. E. M. (2007) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0000296 · Cited by 1,109 · see citing works
CONSEQUENCES OF DOMINANCE: A REVIEW OF EVENNESS EFFECTS ON LOCAL AND REGIONAL ECOSYSTEM PROCESSES
Hillebrand, H., Bennett, D. M., & Cadotte, M. W. (2008) · Ecology · doi:10.1890/07-1053.1 · Cited by 1,040 · see citing works
Self-citationInfluence of Phylogeny on Fungal Community Assembly and Ecosystem Functioning
Maherali, H., & Klironomos, J. N. (2007) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1143082 · Cited by 1,036 · see citing works
Benson, D. A. (2004) · Nucleic Acids Research · doi:10.1093/nar/gki063 · Cited by 1,020 · see citing works
Biodiversity, Stability, and Productivity in Competitive Communities
Lehman, C. L., & Tilman, D. (2000) · The American Naturalist · doi:10.1086/303402 · Cited by 913 · see citing works
Self-citationKnops, J. M. H., Tilman, D. G., Haddad, N. M., Naeem, S., Mitchell, C. E., Haarstad, J., Ritchie, M. E., Howe, K. M., Reich, P. B., Siemann, E., et al. (1999) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1046/j.1461-0248.1999.00083.x · Cited by 878 · see citing works
Self-citationREGRESSION ANALYSIS OF NATURAL SELECTION: STATISTICAL INFERENCE AND BIOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION
Mitchell‐Olds, T., & Shaw, R. G. (1987) · Evolution · doi:10.1111/j.1558-5646.1987.tb02457.x · Cited by 869 · see citing works
Cadotte, M. W., Cavender-Bares, J. M., Tilman, D. G., & Oakley, T. H. (2009) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0005695 · Cited by 718 · see citing works
Self-citationBiodiversity-ecosystem function research: Is it relevant to conservation?
Srivastava, D. S., & Vellend, M. (2005) · Annual Review of Ecology Evolution and Systematics · doi:10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.36.102003.152636 · Cited by 712 · see citing works
Evolutionary history and the effect of biodiversity on plant productivity
Cadotte, M. W., Cardinale, B. J., & Oakley, T. H. (2008) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.0805962105 · Cited by 653 · see citing works
Self-citationHector, A., Hautier, Y., Saner, P., Wacker, L., Bagchi, R., Joshi, J., Scherer-Lorenzen, M., Spehn, E. M., Bazeley-White, E., Weilenmann, M., et al. (2010) · Ecology · doi:10.1890/09-1162.1 · Cited by 591 · see citing works
Biodiversity: productivity and the temporal stability of productivity: patterns and processes
Isbell, F. I., Polley, H. W., & Wilsey, B. J. (2009) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2009.01299.x · Cited by 538 · see citing works
Phylogenetic Measures of Biodiversity
Helmus, M. R., Bland, T. J., Williams, C. K., & Ives, A. R. (2007) · The American Naturalist · doi:10.1086/511334 · Cited by 504 · see citing works
EVOLUTIONARY CONSTRAINT AND ECOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES
Futuyma, D. J. (2010) · Evolution · doi:10.1111/j.1558-5646.2010.00960.x · Cited by 427 · see citing works
Cadotte, M. W., Davies, T. J., Regetz, J., Kembel, S. W., Cleland, E. E., & Oakley, T. H. (2009) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2009.01405.x · Cited by 417 · see citing works
Self-citationStability and Variability in Competitive Communities
Ives, A. R., Gross, K., & Klug, J. L. (1999) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.286.5439.542 · Cited by 385 · see citing works
Mechanisms contributing to stability in ecosystem function depend on the environmental context
Grman, E., Lau, J. A., Schoolmaster, D. R., & Gross, K. L. (2010) · Ecology Letters · doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01533.x · Cited by 330 · see citing works
Hardy, O. J., & Senterre, B. (2007) · Journal of Ecology · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2745.2007.01222.x · Cited by 282 · see citing works
Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: A complex adaptive systems approach
Norberg, J. (2004) · Limnology and Oceanography · doi:10.4319/lo.2004.49.4_part_2.1269 · Cited by 281 · see citing works
Functional regularity: a neglected aspect of functional diversity
Mouillot, D., Mason, W., Dumay, O., & Wilson, J. B. (2004) · Oecologia · doi:10.1007/s00442-004-1744-7 · Cited by 274 · see citing works
Niche and fitness differences relate the maintenance of diversity to ecosystem function
Carroll, I. T., Cardinale, B. J., & Nisbet, R. M. (2010) · Ecology · doi:10.1890/10-0302.1 · Cited by 262 · see citing works
Polley, H. W., Wilsey, B. J., & Derner, J. (2007) · Oikos · doi:10.1111/j.2007.0030-1299.16080.x · Cited by 195 · see citing works
Allen, B., Kon, M., & Bar‐Yam, Y. (2009) · The American Naturalist · doi:10.1086/600101 · Cited by 179 · see citing works
Evolutionarily distinctive species often capture more phylogenetic diversity than expected
Redding, D. W., Hartmann, K., Mimoto, A., et al. (2007) · Journal of Theoretical Biology · doi:10.1016/j.jtbi.2007.12.006 · Cited by 148 · see citing works
Phylogenetic signatures of facilitation and competition in successional communities
Verdú, M., Rey, P. J., Alcántara, J. M., et al. (2009) · Journal of Ecology · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2745.2009.01565.x · Cited by 121 · see citing works
Nijs, I., & Roy, J. (2000) · Oikos · doi:10.1034/j.1600-0706.2000.880107.x · Cited by 112 · see citing works
Proulx, R., Wirth, C., Voigt, W., Weigelt, A., Roscher, C., Attinger, S., Baade, J., Barnard, R. L., Buchmann, N., Buscot, F., et al. (2010) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0013382 · Cited by 112 · see citing works
Environmental patterns in the origins of higher taxa: The post-Paleozoic fossil record
Jablonski, D., & Bottjer, D. J. (1991) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.252.5014.1831 · Cited by 105 · see citing works
Stability of production and plant species diversity in managed grasslands: A retrospective study
Sanderson, M. A. (2010) · Basic and Applied Ecology · doi:10.1016/j.baae.2009.08.002 · Cited by 55 · see citing works
Connolly, J., Cadotte, M. W., Brophy, C., Dooley, Á., Finn, J. A., Kirwan, L., Roscher, C., & Weigelt, A. (2011) · Ecology · doi:10.1890/10-2270.1 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
Self-citationPartitioning the effects of species loss on community variability using multi‐level selection theory
Fox, J. W. (2010) · Oikos · doi:10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18501.x · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Cardinale, B. J., J. P. Wright, M. W. Cadotte, I. T. Carroll, A. Hector, D. S. Srivastava, M. Loreau, and J. J. Weis. 2007. Impacts of plant diversity on biomass production increase through time due to complimentary resource use: A meta- analysis of 45 experiments. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 104:18123-18128.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Increasing homogeneity in global food supplies and the implications for food security
Khoury, C. K., Bjorkman, A. D., Dempewolf, H., Ramirez-Villegas, J., Guarino, L., Jarvis, A., Rieseberg, L. H., & Struik, P. C. (2014) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.1313490111 · Cited by 1,114 · see citing works
The oral microbiome and the immunobiology of periodontal disease and caries
Costalonga, M., & Herzberg, M. C. (2014) · Immunology Letters · doi:10.1016/j.imlet.2014.08.017 · Cited by 645 · see citing works
Adler, C. J., Dobney, K., Weyrich, L. S., Kaidonis, J., Walker, A. W., Haak, W., Bradshaw, C. J. A., Townsend, G., Sołtysiak, A., Alt, K. W., et al. (2013) · Nature Genetics · doi:10.1038/ng.2536 · Cited by 621 · see citing works
de Graaff, M.-A., Hornslein, N., Throop, H. L., Kardol, P., & van Diepen, L. T. A. (2019) · Advances in Agronomy · doi:10.1016/bs.agron.2019.01.001 · Cited by 234 · see citing works
Barber, N. A., Jones, H. P., Duvall, M. R., Wysocki, W. P., Hansen, M. J., & Gibson, D. J. (2017) · Journal of Applied Ecology · doi:10.1111/1365-2664.12639 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Preserving local biodiversity through crop diversification
Strobl, E. (2022) · American Journal of Agricultural Economics · doi:10.1111/ajae.12265 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
- Authors
- Cadotte, M. W., Dinnage, R., & Tilman, D.
- Affiliations
- University of Toronto (CA)
- University of Minnesota (US)
- Corresponding author
- Cadotte, Marc W.
- Venue
- Ecology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2012-08
- Volume
- 93
- Issue
- sp8
- ISSN
- 0012-9658 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-9170
- OpenAlex
- W1999209507
- Cited by
- 515
- References
- 59
- Citations by year
- 2026: 27 · 2025: 51 · 2024: 41 · 2023: 37 · 2022: 41 · 2021: 38 · 2020: 51 · 2019: 46 · 2018: 35 · 2017: 36 · 2016: 28 · 2015: 33 · 2014: 28 · 2013: 19 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 25.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Ecology (publishedVersion)
- ANU Open Research (Australian National University) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (386151)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Nature and Landscape Conservation › Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Evolution and Genetic Dynamics
- Keywords
- phylogenetic diversity, ecosystem stability, plant community diversity, phylogenetic distance, aboveground biomass production, biodiversity-ecosystem functioning, evolutionary history
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
