Connolly, Sean R. (2009) Macroecological theory and the analysis of species richness gradients. In: Witman, Jon D., and Roy, Kaustuv, (eds.) Marine Macroecology. University Of Chicago , Chicago, USA, pp. 279-309.

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Abstract

Explaining regional and global scale patterns of biodiversity has occupied naturalists since before the dawn of modern ecology (Hawkins 2001). This endeavor has accelerated recently, sparked in part by the emergence of macro ecology as a discipline (Ricklefs and Schluter 1993; Brown 1995); by substantial increases in the availability of tools for manipulating, analyzing, and graphically displaying data on species’ geographical distributions (e.g., Geographical Information Systems software); and by the increasingly urgent need to prioritize regions for conservation on a global scale (see Roberts et al. 2002; Hughes, Bellwood, and Connolly 2002; Worm et al. 2005 for marine examples). This recent work has confirmed that many very different taxa exhibit similar species richness gradients. In the marine realm, for instance, species richness frequently exhibits a hump- shaped pattern, with species richness decreasing with latitudinal and longitudinal distance from the Indo-Australian Archipelago (e.g., fig. 11.1; also see Stehli and Wells 1971; Crame 2000; Ellison 2002; Roberts et al. 2002), although many taxa also exhibit a secondary hotspot in the Caribbean (Stehli and Wells 1971; Duke Lo, and Sun 2002; Roberts et al. 2002). Bathymetric gradients oft en are also hump- shaped, peaking at intermediate depths (Piñeda and Caswell 1998; Rex et al. 2005; but see Gray 2001). Exceptions to these general rules have also been identified. For instance, marine counter examples to the latitudinal diversity gradient include macroalgae (Kerswell 2006), fish parasites (Rohde 1998), seals and seabirds (Proches 2001).

Item ID:	5227
Item Type:	Book Chapter (Research - B1)
ISBN:	978-0-226-90411-5
Keywords:	macroecology; theoretical ecology; statistical modelling; marine ecology
Date Deposited:	10 Sep 2009 01:31
FoR Codes:	06 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 0602 Ecology > 060205 Marine and Estuarine Ecology (incl Marine Ichthyology) @ 50% 06 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 0602 Ecology > 060299 Ecology not elsewhere classified @ 50%
SEO Codes:	97 EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE > 970106 Expanding Knowledge in the Biological Sciences @ 100%
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