Does Biodiversity-Ecosystem Function Literature Neglect Tropical Ecosystems?

David A Clarke; Paul H York; Michael A Rasheed; Tobin D Northfield

doi:10.1016/j.tree.2017.02.012

Does Biodiversity-Ecosystem Function Literature Neglect Tropical Ecosystems?

Trends Ecol Evol. 2017 May;32(5):320-323. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2017.02.012. Epub 2017 Mar 7.

Authors

David A Clarke¹, Paul H York², Michael A Rasheed², Tobin D Northfield³

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, and College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Smithfield, QLD 4878, Australia; Centre for Tropical Water and Aquatic Ecosystem Research (TropWATER), James Cook University, Smithfield, QLD 4878, Australia. Electronic address: david.clarke1@my.jcu.edu.au.
² Centre for Tropical Water and Aquatic Ecosystem Research (TropWATER), James Cook University, Smithfield, QLD 4878, Australia.
³ Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, and College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Smithfield, QLD 4878, Australia.

PMID: 28279488
DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2017.02.012

Abstract

Current evidence suggests that there is a positive relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, but few studies have addressed tropical ecosystems where the highest levels of biodiversity occur. We develop two hypotheses for the implications of generalizing from temperate studies to tropical ecosystems, and discuss the need for more tropical research.

MeSH terms

Biodiversity*
Ecosystem*
Tropical Climate*