We examined the relationship between a Chihuahuan Desert grassland keystone species (banner tailed kangaroo rat, Dipodomys spectabilis) and several vegetation and soil indicators of rangeland health in order to define a threshold indicator value for irreversible change in ecosystem structure and function. ...
Ecosystem health and sustainability, to a large degree, depend on the performance of keystone or dominant species. The role of climate on population dynamics of such species has been extensively examined, especially for health indicator species. Yet the life-cycle processes and response lags for ...
2016. Life cycle and masting of a recovering keystone indicator species under climate fluctuation. Ecosystem Health and Sustainability 2: e01226.Guo, Q., S.J. Zarnoch, X. Chen, and D.G. Brock- way. 2016. Life cycle and masting of a recovering keystone indicator species under climate ...
Such 'functional diversity' refers to the number of species that perform the same function; if a member of a functional group were to be lost (either temporarily or permanently) via a disturbance event, then its function could be replaced by another species. Ecological systems with high ...