Warming winters promote biodiversity through reduced mortality of a habitat‐forming species in soft‐sediment intertidal systems
de la Barra, P.; Alter, K.; Bijleveld, A.I. (2025). Warming winters promote biodiversity through reduced mortality of a habitat‐forming species in soft‐sediment intertidal systems. Oikos (Kbh.) 2025(8): e10877. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/oik.10877
In: Oikos (København). Munksgaard: Copenhagen. ISSN 0030-1299; e-ISSN 1600-0706, more
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| Author keywords |
climate change; foundation species; Lanice conchilega; macrozoobenthos; mudflats; population dynamics |
| Abstract |
Habitat-forming species enhance biodiversity by providing shelter, substrate and feeding grounds for many species. Climate-change effects on these species may have wide ranging impacts on local species richness and abundance. Warmer winter temperatures in particular are an important driver of demographic parameters in temperate to polar environments. However, the extent of these effects on local biodiversity remains unclear. We address this topic by studying the abundance of the tube-worm Lanice conchilega, a habitat-forming species that shows mass mortalities in intertidal areas after cold winters. Using 15 years of data collected throughout the intertidal Dutch Wadden Sea, we modelled population dynamics of L. conchilega relative to inundation and winter temperatures, and related its population growth to changes in species richness. Winter temperature was positively associated with L. conchilega's population growth, which in turn correlated with increased local species richness. Specifically, for every 10-fold increase in L. conchilega population, 0.69 additional species were found. We conclude that increases in winter temperature promote L. conchilega's abundance and, in turn, species richness due to its role as a habitat-forming species. The direct positive effect of warmer winters on L. conchilega abundance and the subsequent indirect effect on biodiversity might represent a silver lining within the environmental and biodiversity crisis we are facing. |
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