Background/Question/Methods Natural landscapes are characterized by contrasting ecosystem types that are connected by spatial flows of matter that can impact local diversity and ecosystem functions. Consequently, local community dynamics can be affected by spatial flows between ecosystems that have little to no overlap in species composition. These flows of matter can have multiple roles, serving as resources (food), material (environment), and/or information (behavior). Incorporating these features into meta-ecosystem theory requires that we treat environmental factors as explicit ecosystem compartments (matter) that interact with living compartments. It must also consider connectivity among contrasting ecosystem types. We will first present a simple meta-ecosystem framework to study feedbacks between multiple roles played by spatial flows of matter and species interactions. We will then present results from models of aquatic and marine meta-ecosystems incorporating foraging behavior and foundations species to study the role of spatial flows as resources and material for the maintenance of ecosystem heterogeneity, species coexistence, and ecosystem functions.
Results/Conclusions Results show that spatial flows of nutrients mediated by the foraging behavior of fish can drive community dynamics across heterogeneous ecosystems. More specifically, we find that foraging traits measured as the correlation between habitat and feeding preferences can lead to the emergence of heterogeneous trophic regulation (top-down vs bottom-up) and promote species coexistence and ecosystem function measured as productivity in the meta-ecosystem. When spatial flows of matter modify environmental conditions under the action of foundation species, we find that the role of matter as material rather than as a resource can explain the maintenance of environmental heterogeneity and of spatial asynchrony at the meta-ecosystem scale, promoting both species persistence and ecosystem function measured as the retention of matter. These results suggest a broader integration of connectivity in ecology where matter can create both trophic and non-trophic interactions between species inhabiting contrasting ecosystem types, and affect the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem function across scales.
