Food Web Complexity and Species Diversity

@article{Paine1966FoodWC,
  title={Food Web Complexity and Species Diversity},
  author={Robert Treat Paine},
  journal={The American Naturalist},
  year={1966},
  volume={100},
  pages={65 - 75}
}
  • R. Paine
  • Published 1966
  • Biology
  • The American Naturalist
It is suggested that local animal species diversity is related to the number of predators in the system and their efficiency in preventing single species from monopolizing some important, limiting, requisite. In the marine rocky intertidal this requisite usually is space. Where predators capable of preventing monopolies are missing, or are experimentally removed, the systems become less diverse. On a local scale, no relationship between latitude (10⚬ to 49⚬ N.) and diversity was found. On a… Expand
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Food Web Complexity and Species Diversity

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It is suggested that the major factor causing the tropical increase in numbers of bird species is neither increased complexity of habitat nor, solely, increased specialization, but an increase in the… Expand
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