Functional trait approaches for the study of metazooplankton ecology
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| Authors | | Top |
- Hébert, M.-P.
- Beisner, B.E.
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| Abstract |
The use of functional traits to characterize the structure and function of metazooplankton communities has been increasing since the turn of the millennium, developing out of functional group approaches that gained in popularity earlier on. Akin to developments in other subfields of ecology, the emergence of trait-based ecology has provided an integrative framework for assessing community response to environmental changes and predicting feedback to ecosystem processes. This chapter reviews a broad array of traits currently in use to describe metazooplankton in freshwater and marine environments, discussing their information value and estimation. The chapter examines known trait correlations and trade-offs, as well as variations in trait patterns among habitats, and also bring to light several aspects of trait-based studies on metazooplankton that have been underrepresented to date, including lesser studied traits, taxa or habitats. In addition to providing mechanistic insight into community composition and processes, the goal of trait-based approaches often relates to improving estimates of diversity through the calculation of functional diversity indices; a section of this chapter discusses the use of traits for functional diversity estimation in metazooplankton communities. The chapter concludes by making recommendations for future developments of trait-based approaches to metazooplankton ecology. |
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