Mutualistic mimicry and filtering by altitude shape the structure of Andean butterfly communities

The American Naturalist
Nicolas ChazotMarianne Elias

Abstract

Both the abiotic environment and abiotic interactions among species contribute to shaping species assemblages. While the roles of habitat filtering and competitive interactions are clearly established, less is known about how positive interactions, whereby species benefit from the presence of one another, affect community structure. Here we assess the importance of positive interactions by studying Andean communities of butterflies that interact mutualistically via Müllerian mimicry. We show that communities at similar altitudes have a similar phylogenetic composition, confirming that filtering by altitude is an important process. We also provide evidence that species that interact mutualistically (i.e., species that share the same mimicry wing pattern) coexist at large scales more often than expected by chance. Furthermore, we detect an association between mimicry structure and altitude that is stronger than expected even when phylogeny is corrected for, indicating adaptive convergence for wing pattern and/or altitudinal range driven by mutualistic interactions. Positive interactions extend far beyond Müllerian mimicry, with many examples in plants and animals, and their role in the evolution and assembly of communities may be...Continue Reading

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Citations

Aug 23, 2016·Journal of Biogeography·Donna Lisa De-SilvaJulia J Day
May 28, 2015·Systematic Biology·Ivonne J Garzón-OrduñaAndrew V Z Brower
Jun 17, 2016·BMC Evolutionary Biology·Melanie McClure, Marianne Elias
Jan 28, 2017·Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution·Thomas G AubierNicolas Chazot
Apr 8, 2017·Scientific Reports·Donna Lisa De-SilvaMarianne Elias
Jan 21, 2017·PloS One·Frantisek Xaver Jiri SladecekMartin Konvicka
Dec 15, 2018·Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society·Mark K L WongOwen T Lewis
Dec 12, 2020·Ecology and Evolution·Elena Ortiz-AcevedoKeith R Willmott
Mar 5, 2021·Scientific Reports·Irina Birskis-BarrosPaulo R Guimarães
Jun 16, 2021·Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society·David W KikuchiJohanna Mappes
Jul 8, 2021·Molecular Ecology·Gabriela Montejo-KovacevichNicola J Nadeau

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