Skip to main content

On nestedness in ecological networks

Publication ,  Journal Article
Joppa, LN; Montoya, JM; Solé, R; Sanderson, J; Pimm, SL
Published in: Evolutionary Ecology Research
January 1, 2010

Questions: Are interaction patterns in species interaction networks different from what one expects by chance alone? In particular, are these networks nested - a pattern where resources taken by more specialized consumers form a proper subset of those taken by more generalized consumers? Organisms: Fifty-nine and 42 networks of mutualistic and host-parasitoid interactions, respectively. Analytical methods: For each network, the observed degree of nestedness is compared with the distribution of nestedness values derived from a collection of 1000 random networks. Those networks with nestedness values lower than 95% of all random values are considered 'unusually nested'. The analysis considers two different metrics of nestedness and five different network randomization algorithms, each of which differs in the ecological assumptions imposed. Results: Most ecological networks are unusually nested when compared with loosely constrained random networks. Comparisons with highly constrained networks temper these findings, but we still report a significant preponderance of nested networks (typically those with the most species). Conclusions: Bascompte et al. (2003) previously showed most observed mutualistic networks to be unusually nested. Later work using more ecologically realistic randomization algorithms cast doubt on those results. Across the largest set of species interactions considered to date, we conclude that an unexpectedly large number of interaction networks are patterned in a non-random manner. © 2010 Stuart L. Pimm.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Evolutionary Ecology Research

ISSN

1522-0613

Publication Date

January 1, 2010

Volume

12

Issue

1

Start / End Page

35 / 46

Related Subject Headings

  • Evolutionary Biology
  • 3104 Evolutionary biology
  • 3103 Ecology
  • 0603 Evolutionary Biology
  • 0602 Ecology
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
NLM
Joppa, L. N., Montoya, J. M., Solé, R., Sanderson, J., & Pimm, S. L. (2010). On nestedness in ecological networks. Evolutionary Ecology Research, 12(1), 35–46.
Joppa, L. N., J. M. Montoya, R. Solé, J. Sanderson, and S. L. Pimm. “On nestedness in ecological networks.” Evolutionary Ecology Research 12, no. 1 (January 1, 2010): 35–46.
Joppa LN, Montoya JM, Solé R, Sanderson J, Pimm SL. On nestedness in ecological networks. Evolutionary Ecology Research. 2010 Jan 1;12(1):35–46.
Joppa, L. N., et al. “On nestedness in ecological networks.” Evolutionary Ecology Research, vol. 12, no. 1, Jan. 2010, pp. 35–46.
Joppa LN, Montoya JM, Solé R, Sanderson J, Pimm SL. On nestedness in ecological networks. Evolutionary Ecology Research. 2010 Jan 1;12(1):35–46.

Published In

Evolutionary Ecology Research

ISSN

1522-0613

Publication Date

January 1, 2010

Volume

12

Issue

1

Start / End Page

35 / 46

Related Subject Headings

  • Evolutionary Biology
  • 3104 Evolutionary biology
  • 3103 Ecology
  • 0603 Evolutionary Biology
  • 0602 Ecology