Understanding the concepts of community phylogenetics
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Date
2013
Authors
Ndiribe, C.
Salamin, N.
Guisan, A.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Evolutionary Ecology Research
Abstract
Background: Community phylogenetics is an emerging field of research that has made
important contributions to understanding community assembly. The rapid development of this
field can be attributed to the merging of phylogenetics and community ecology research to
provide improved clarity on the processes that govern community structure and composition.
Question: What are the major challenges that impede the sound interpretation of the patterns
and processes of phylogenetic community assembly?
Methods: We use four scenarios to illustrate explicitly how the phylogenetic structure of
communities can exist in stable or transient phases, based on the different combinations
of phylogenetic relationships and phenotypic traits among co-occurring species. We discuss
these phases by implicating a two-way process in the assembly and disintegration of the given
ecological community.
Conclusions: This paper synthesizes the major concepts of community phylogenetics using
habitat filtering and competition processes to elucidate how the understanding of phylogenetic
community structure is currently hindered by the dynamics of community assembly and
disassembly.
Description
Keywords
community assembly, community phylogenetics, niche conservatism, trait evolution.
Citation
Ndiribe, C., Salamin, N. and Guisan, A., 2013. Understanding the concepts of community phylogenetics. Evolutionary Ecology Research, 15(8), pp.853-868.