10.5061/DRYAD.33K4GP8
Osorio-Olvera, Luis
Univ. Nacional Autónoma de México Facultad de Ciencias México
Soberon, Jorge
University of Kansas
Falconi, Manuel
Univ. Nacional Autónoma de México Facultad de Ciencias México
Data from: On population abundance and niche structure
Dryad
dataset
2019
Population density
Cryptotis nigrescens
Holocene
National Science Foundation
https://ror.org/021nxhr62
ABI-1458640
2019-03-08T16:40:01Z
2019-03-08T16:40:01Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.04442
310447 bytes
1
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Recent published evidence indicates a negative correlation between density
of populations and the distance of their environments to a suitably
defined ‘niche centroid’. This empirical observation lacks theoretical
grounds. We provide a theoretical underpinning for the empirical
relationship between population density and position in niche space, and
use this framework to understand the circumstances under which the
relationship will fail. We propose a metapopulation model for the area of
distribution, as a system of ordinary differential equations coupled with
a dispersal kernel. We present an analytical approximation to the solution
of the system as well as an R code to solve the full model numerically. We
use this tool to analyze various scenarios and assumptions. General and
realistic demographic assumptions imply a good correlation between
position in niche space and population abundance. Factors that modify this
correlation are: transitory states, a heterogeneous spatial structure of
suitability, and Allee effects. We also explain why the raw output of the
niche modeling algorithm MaxEnt is not a good predictor of environmental
suitability. Our results elucidate the empirical results for spatial
patterns of population size in niche terms, and provide a theoretical
basis for a structured theory of the niche.
Raw data and Simulation Outputs for ECOG_04442The occurrence coordinates
used to define the niche of the virtual species, and tables with the
outputs of simulations.data_10_1111_ecog_04442.xlsx
Mesoamerica