Zoology Faculty Work
Title
Extinction and Ecosystem Function in the Marine Benthos
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2004
Publication Title
Science
Volume Number
306
Issue Number
5699
DOI
10.1126/science.1103960
Abstract
Rapid changes in biodiversity are occurring globally, yet the ecological impacts of diversity loss are poorly understood. Here we use data from marine invertebrate communities to parameterize models that predict how extinctions will affect sediment bioturbation, a process vital to the persistence of aquatic communities. We show that species extinction is generally expected to reduce bioturbation, but the magnitude of reduction depends on how the functional traits of individual species covary with their risk of extinction. As a result, the particular cause of extinction and the order in which species are lost ultimately govern the ecosystem-level consequences of biodiversity loss.
ISSN
0036-8075
First Page
1177
Last Page
1180
Recommended Citation
Downing, Amy L.; Solan, Martin; Cardinale, Bradley J.; Engelhardt, Katharina A.M.; Ruesink, Jennifer L.; and Srivastava, Diane S., "Extinction and Ecosystem Function in the Marine Benthos" (2004). Zoology Faculty Work. 32.
https://digitalcommons.owu.edu/zool_pubs/32
Link Out URL
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1103960