Temperature preferences drive additive biotic homogenization of Orthoptera assemblages.

0558099 - BC 2023 RIV GB eng J - Journal Article
Thorn, Simon - König, S. - Fischer-Leipold, O. - Gombert, J. - Griese, J. - Thein, J.
Temperature preferences drive additive biotic homogenization of Orthoptera assemblages.
Biology Letters. Roč. 18, č. 5 (2022), č. článku 20220055. ISSN 1744-9561. E-ISSN 1744-957X
Institutional support: RVO:60077344
Keywords : additive homogenization * timeseries * insect decline
OECD category: Entomology
Impact factor: 3.3, year: 2022
Method of publishing: Limited access
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2022.0055

The degradation of natural habitats is causing ongoing homogenization of biological communities and declines in terrestrial insect biodiversity, particularly in agricultural landscapes. Orthoptera are focal species of nature conservation and experienced significant diversity losses over the past decades. However, the causes underlying these changes are not yet fully understood. We analysed changes in Orthoptera assemblages surveyed in 1988, 2004 and 2019 on 198 plots distributed across four major grassland types in Central Europe. We demonstrated compositional differences in Orthoptera assemblages found in wet, dry and mesic grasslands, as well as ruderal habitats decreased, indicating biotic homogenization. However, mean α-diversity of Orthoptera assemblages increased over the study period. We detected increasing numbers of species with preferences for higher temperatures in mesic and wet grasslands. By analysing the temperature, moisture and vegetation preferences of Orthoptera, we found that additive homogenization was driven by a loss of species adapted to extremely dry and nitrogen-poor habitats and a parallel spread of species preferring warmer macroclimates.
Permanent Link: https://hdl.handle.net/11104/0338993