Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

Feedback spectra of soil food webs across a complexity gradient, and the importance of three-species loops to stability

  • Brief Communication
  • Published:
Theoretical Ecology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

    We’re sorry, something doesn't seem to be working properly.

    Please try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, please contact support so we can address the problem.

Abstract

It has been shown that in real food webs, the strongest omnivorous feedback, a three-link positive feedback, is a good indicator of system stability, suggesting that the strongest positive feedback in a food web could be the Achilles heel of stability. However, the complete spectrum of feedbacks in observed food webs has never been analyzed. Here, we have quantified all the feedbacks in 32 soil food webs along a complexity gradient, including trophic feedbacks and feedbacks resulting from recycling of organic matter. We found that, although the maximum omnivorous feedback was rarely the strongest positive feedback in a system, it stood out over longer and stronger feedbacks as the indicator of stability. The results emphasize the importance of small substructures in complex networks.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Notes

  1. In this study, we use the term species in a broad sense to refer to trophic groups of functionally similar species.

References

  • Allesina S, Pascual M (2008) Theoretical Ecology 1:55–64

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Ruiter PC, Neutel AM, Moore JC (1995) Energetics, patterns of interaction strengths, and stability in real ecosystems. Science 269:1257–1260

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • DeAngelis D, Bartell S, Brenkert A (1989) Am Nat 134:778–805

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hofbauer J, Sigmund K (1988) Cambridge University Press, New York, NY(USA) 1988

  • Holt R, Polis G (1979) Am Nat 149:745–764

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hunt HW, Coleman DC, Ingham ER, Ingham RE, Elliott ET, Moore JC, Rose SL, Reid CPP, Morley CR (1987) The detrital foodweb in a shortgrass praririe. Biol Fertil Soils 3:57

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huxel G, McCann K, Polis G (2002) Ecol Res 17:419–432

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levins R (1974) Ann NY Acad Sci 231:123–138

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Levins R (1975) Ecology and evolution of communities. Belknap Press, Cambridge. pp 16–50

    Google Scholar 

  • May RM (1972) Will a large complex system be stable? Nature 238:413–414

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neutel AM, Heesterbeek JAP, de Ruiter PC (2002) Science 296:1120–1123

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neutel AM, Heesterbeek JAP, van de Koppel J, Hoenderboom G, Vos A, Kaldeway C, Berendse F, de Ruiter PC (2007) Nature 449:559–602

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Odum H (1971) Fundamentals of ecology. Wiley, New York, USA

    Google Scholar 

  • Pimm S, Lawton J (1978) Nature 275:542–544

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schoener TW (1989) Food webs from the small to the large: The Robert H. MacArthur award lecture. Ecology 70(6):1559–1589

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams R, Berlow E, Dunne J, Barabási A, Martinez N (2002) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 99:12913

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

Emily Mitchell was supported by a National Environmental Research Council Ph.D. studentship. Thanks to Mervyn Freeman, Michael Thorne, Peter de Ruiter, and the two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on this manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EQ, UK

    Emily G. Mitchell

  2. British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, UK

    Emily G. Mitchell & Anje-Margriet Neutel

Authors
  1. Emily G. Mitchell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Anje-Margriet Neutel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Emily G. Mitchell.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mitchell, E.G., Neutel, AM. Feedback spectra of soil food webs across a complexity gradient, and the importance of three-species loops to stability. Theor Ecol 5, 153–159 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12080-011-0143-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12080-011-0143-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation