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Functional and Phylogenetic Structure of Forest Bird Assemblages Along an Afrotropical Elevational Gradient.

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Title: Functional and Phylogenetic Structure of Forest Bird Assemblages Along an Afrotropical Elevational Gradient.
Authors: Pernice, Riccardo1 (AUTHOR) pernicer@natur.cuni.cz, Sedláček, Ondřej1 (AUTHOR), Albrecht, Tomáš2,3 (AUTHOR), Tomášek, Oldřich2 (AUTHOR), Kauzál, Ondřej2 (AUTHOR), Kauzálová, Tereza2 (AUTHOR), Motombi, Francis Njie4 (AUTHOR), Ewome, Francis Luma4 (AUTHOR), Ferenc, Michal1 (AUTHOR), Chmel, Kryštof1 (AUTHOR), Mlíkovský, Jiří1 (AUTHOR), Riegert, Jan5 (AUTHOR), Kamga, Solange Mekuate6 (AUTHOR), Hořák, David1 (AUTHOR) david.horak@natur.cuni.cz
Source: Ecology & Evolution (20457758). Sep2025, Vol. 15 Issue 9, p1-17. 17p.
Subject Terms: *Biodiversity, *Species diversity, *Forest animals, Altitudes, Ecosystem dynamics, Abiotic environment
Geographic Terms: Africa, Cameroon
Abstract: Elevational gradients offer valuable opportunities to investigate biodiversity patterns and the ecological and evolutionary processes that shape them. Although tropical mountains are recognized as biodiversity hotspots, the various dimensions of biodiversity in these systems, particularly in equatorial Africa, remain poorly understood. In this study, we examined the functional (FD) and phylogenetic diversity (PD) of bird assemblages along a primary forest elevational gradient in Cameroon, West‐Central Africa, spanning from lowland forests to the treeline (~2300 m a.s.l.). We analyzed how FD and PD vary with elevation and tested the roles of abiotic filtering and biotic interactions, such as competition, in community assembly. Additionally, we assessed whether taxonomic diversity (TD) increases through niche packing or expansion, based on morphological and resource‐use traits. Using null models and bird occurrence data, we inferred the drivers of FD and PD patterns and evaluated whether species in more diverse assemblages occupied novel functional space compared to less diverse assemblages. Our results showed that both functional richness and TD declined with elevation, whereas functional nearest neighbor distance, functional evenness, and mean nearest taxon distance increased. Traits related to resource use suggested that bird species at higher elevations were functionally less similar than expected by chance, partially supporting the influence of competition consistent with the guild assembly rule. Phylogenetic clustering observed at both low and high elevations pointed to independent species radiations, likely shaped by historical forest dynamics. In species‐rich lowland assemblages, we found evidence of niche packing, suggesting increased specialization or niche overlap. In contrast, niche expansion appeared to contribute to higher TD at elevated sites. Overall, our findings indicate that while abiotic filters along forested elevational gradients and competition in lowland forests play roles in shaping avian diversity, they are not the sole or dominant mechanisms. Nonetheless, partial support for competition aligns with theoretical expectations under the guild assembly framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Ecology & Evolution (20457758) is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: Functional and Phylogenetic Structure of Forest Bird Assemblages Along an Afrotropical Elevational Gradient.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Pernice%2C+Riccardo%22">Pernice, Riccardo</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> pernicer@natur.cuni.cz</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Sedláček%2C+Ondřej%22">Sedláček, Ondřej</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Albrecht%2C+Tomáš%22">Albrecht, Tomáš</searchLink><relatesTo>2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Tomášek%2C+Oldřich%22">Tomášek, Oldřich</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kauzál%2C+Ondřej%22">Kauzál, Ondřej</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kauzálová%2C+Tereza%22">Kauzálová, Tereza</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Motombi%2C+Francis+Njie%22">Motombi, Francis Njie</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Ewome%2C+Francis+Luma%22">Ewome, Francis Luma</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Ferenc%2C+Michal%22">Ferenc, Michal</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Chmel%2C+Kryštof%22">Chmel, Kryštof</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Mlíkovský%2C+Jiří%22">Mlíkovský, Jiří</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Riegert%2C+Jan%22">Riegert, Jan</searchLink><relatesTo>5</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kamga%2C+Solange+Mekuate%22">Kamga, Solange Mekuate</searchLink><relatesTo>6</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hořák%2C+David%22">Hořák, David</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> david.horak@natur.cuni.cz</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Ecology+%26+Evolution+%2820457758%29%22">Ecology & Evolution (20457758)</searchLink>. Sep2025, Vol. 15 Issue 9, p1-17. 17p.
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Biodiversity%22">Biodiversity</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Species+diversity%22">Species diversity</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Forest+animals%22">Forest animals</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Altitudes%22">Altitudes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Ecosystem+dynamics%22">Ecosystem dynamics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Abiotic+environment%22">Abiotic environment</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Africa%22">Africa</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cameroon%22">Cameroon</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Elevational gradients offer valuable opportunities to investigate biodiversity patterns and the ecological and evolutionary processes that shape them. Although tropical mountains are recognized as biodiversity hotspots, the various dimensions of biodiversity in these systems, particularly in equatorial Africa, remain poorly understood. In this study, we examined the functional (FD) and phylogenetic diversity (PD) of bird assemblages along a primary forest elevational gradient in Cameroon, West‐Central Africa, spanning from lowland forests to the treeline (~2300 m a.s.l.). We analyzed how FD and PD vary with elevation and tested the roles of abiotic filtering and biotic interactions, such as competition, in community assembly. Additionally, we assessed whether taxonomic diversity (TD) increases through niche packing or expansion, based on morphological and resource‐use traits. Using null models and bird occurrence data, we inferred the drivers of FD and PD patterns and evaluated whether species in more diverse assemblages occupied novel functional space compared to less diverse assemblages. Our results showed that both functional richness and TD declined with elevation, whereas functional nearest neighbor distance, functional evenness, and mean nearest taxon distance increased. Traits related to resource use suggested that bird species at higher elevations were functionally less similar than expected by chance, partially supporting the influence of competition consistent with the guild assembly rule. Phylogenetic clustering observed at both low and high elevations pointed to independent species radiations, likely shaped by historical forest dynamics. In species‐rich lowland assemblages, we found evidence of niche packing, suggesting increased specialization or niche overlap. In contrast, niche expansion appeared to contribute to higher TD at elevated sites. Overall, our findings indicate that while abiotic filters along forested elevational gradients and competition in lowland forests play roles in shaping avian diversity, they are not the sole or dominant mechanisms. Nonetheless, partial support for competition aligns with theoretical expectations under the guild assembly framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
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  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Ecology & Evolution (20457758) is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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        Value: 10.1002/ece3.72065
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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      Pagination:
        PageCount: 17
        StartPage: 1
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Biodiversity
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Species diversity
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Forest animals
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Altitudes
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Ecosystem dynamics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Abiotic environment
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Africa
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Cameroon
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Functional and Phylogenetic Structure of Forest Bird Assemblages Along an Afrotropical Elevational Gradient.
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              Text: Sep2025
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