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Taxonomic diversity, size-functional diversity, and species dominance interrelations in phytoplankton communities: a critical analysis of data interpretation

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Abstract

Species diversity, functional diversity, species richness, and dominance are fundamental topics in conservation ecology, but studies on their interrelationship remain underexplored and controversial issues in the literature. This investigation is a critical analysis focusing on the interrelations between species taxonomic diversity (based on the Shannon diversity index), cell size-based functional diversity (as a measure of Rao’sQ), species richness (number of species), and species dominance (as per McNaughton’s dominance index) in marine phytoplankton communities. The results revealed no statistical relationship between Shannon’s and Rao’sQ diversity indices, as well as no correlation between these indices and species richness. The importance of the applied functional diversity metric (Rao’sQ) for data interpretation and the misuse of species richness as a species diversity surrogate in the literature were discussed. The taxonomic composition and cell size of the dominant species and the dominant index over time were described. The species dominance index was related to Shannon’s species diversity and Rao’sQ functional diversity according to a negative linear regression, and the inverse correlation between these properties was statistically significant suggesting the species dominance control over the examined diversity system. Patterns across the data sets of species dominance and total community cell abundance showed resembling temporal fluctuations over a 2-year period, implying that species dominance may be a critical driver affecting temporal variations in total community cell abundance. This work provides a comprehensive critical evaluation of the link between taxonomic and functional diversity, and information on the importance of phytoplankton species dominance in maintaining ecosystem functioning.

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Acknowledgments

This work was undertaken within the framework of the project STRATEGY from the Eurropean Community under contract EVK3-CT-2001-0004609; 2001-09/2004. The financial support by the EC is acknowledged. I would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their careful reading of this manuscript and their many insightful comments and suggestions towards improving this work.

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  1. Institute of Biosciences and Applications, National Center of Scientific Research “Demokritos”, Athens, Greece

    Lydia Ignatiades

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  1. Lydia Ignatiades
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Correspondence to Lydia Ignatiades.

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No use of animals was undertaken in this investigation.

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All necessary permits for sampling and observational field studies have been obtained from the competent authorities.

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The phytoplankton species data set used in this analysis are recorded in the MedOBIS database (http://ipt.medobis.eu/resource?r=strategy).

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Communicated by H. Hillebrand

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This work was undertaken within the framework of the project STRATEGY from the European Community under contract EVK3-CT-2001-0004609; 2001-09/2004.

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Ignatiades, L. Taxonomic diversity, size-functional diversity, and species dominance interrelations in phytoplankton communities: a critical analysis of data interpretation. Mar. Biodivers. 50, 58 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-020-01086-4

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