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Functional-phylogenetic diversity in European and African freshwater systems

Subject Area Ecology and Biodiversity of Animals and Ecosystems, Organismic Interactions
Bioinformatics and Theoretical Biology
Systematics and Morphology (Zoology)
Term from 2018 to 2024
Project identifier Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 409487552
 
Final Report Year 2024

Final Report Abstract

This project represents a series of key advances in insect ecology, providing the first global assessment of mechanisms shaping geographical patterns of body size, species richness, range size and threat status of insects. It also offers a novel application of the Metabolic Theory of Ecology (MTE) to insects, highlighting its predictive power for species richness, body size, and range size patterns. Our findings reveal that metabolic constraints interact with environmental factors, such as temperature and productivity, to shape diversity, while emphasizing idiosyncrasies of freshwater systems where habitat preferences, dispersal dynamics and thermal adaptations also play a critical role. 1) We provide the first global analysis of the environmental drivers of species richness and range size for an entire insect order or freshwater taxon. Species richness is largely driven by temperature and productivity, but adaptations to climate seasonality significantly influence patterns, particularly for lentic species inhabiting unstable environments. These species show broader ranges and greater dispersal capacities than lotic species, which are more vulnerable due to their narrower ecological niches and lesser adaptability. 2) Our findings highlight the broad evolutionary and ecological significance of habitat preferences, which shape past and present species distributions and diversification patterns. Lentic species dominate higher latitudes, reflecting their ability to thrive in seasonal and unstable climates, while lotic species are constrained by annual environmental factors and their thermal requirements. These differences are rooted in the evolutionary history of Odonata, where lentic species have diversified more extensively across temperate and high-latitude regions. 3) With the first globally comprehensive study in body size variation for any insect order, we resolve longstanding ambiguities in the drivers of body size variation. Specifically, we demonstrate that complex interactions between temperature and productivity obscure the expected latitudinal gradient. Larger-bodied dragonflies (Anisoptera) display stronger size-temperature relationships than damselflies (Zygoptera), supporting both Bergmann’s rule and the resource availability hypothesis. These findings clarify that conflicting size gradients arise from ecological complexities rather than physiological irrelevance. 4) The project emphasizes the combined importance of colour- and size-based thermoregulation for insect distribution, abundance, and community composition. Protective functions of colour, such as UV resistance and pathogen protection, and the association of body size with resource availability and competition shape species’ distributions across space and time. Larger dragonflies, for instance, thrive in extreme climates due to their superior thermal capacity. 5) Our study highlights the importance of considering both habitat type and climatic factors when developing conservation strategies for Odonata. The higher vulnerability of lotic species to climate change emphasizes the need for targeted conservation efforts, particularly for lotic species in sub(tropical) regions and higher elevations where their current threat coincides with both pronounced projected changes and increasing habitat loss. Furthermore, our findings suggest that enhancing habitat connectivity will be critical to ensuring the dispersal of species, particularly those that are geographically isolated or adapted to specialized ecological conditions. Beyond species-specific conservation measures, our project lays the foundation for identifying regions of greatest conservation concerns, including species richness and range rarity (the inverse of range size) hotspots, but similarly concentrations of functionally and phylogenetically distinct. In conclusion, our research underscores the ecological and evolutionary importance of metabolic constraints, habitat preferences, and trait-based adaptations. It demonstrates the predictive power of MTE while revealing the critical role of habitat stability and dispersal dynamics in shaping diversity in freshwater taxa. By resolving ambiguities in body size variation and demonstrating the broad relevance of thermoregulation, this work provides a robust framework for predicting insect responses to environmental change, offering critical insights into the mechanisms driving community composition, diversity, and abundance in Odonata.

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