Paine Robert T
Department of Zoology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1800, USA.
Science. 2002 Apr 26;296(5568):736-9. doi: 10.1126/science.1069811.
In the low intertidal zone at Tatoosh Island, Washington, United States, minimal estimates of primary production can vary from 0 to an average of 86 kilograms of wet mass per square meter per year when the grazing assemblage is manipulated. Highly productive annual kelps (Laminariales) replace less productive perennial species when macroscopic grazers are reduced or absent, resulting in monodominant assemblages of Alaria marginata. Experiments were repeated in seven consecutive years. Increased species richness makes no significant additional contribution to annual production. Rather, a competitively superior species is favored when its enemies are reduced, suggesting that terrestrial perspectives on the role of biodiversity that are developed without considering consumers may not be general.
在美国华盛顿州塔图什岛的低潮间带，当对食草动物群落进行调控时，初级生产力的最低估计值每年每平方米湿重可在0至平均86千克之间变化。当大型食草动物数量减少或不存在时，高产的一年生海带（海带目）取代了生产力较低的多年生物种，导致形成了以缘边海带为主的单一优势群落。连续七年重复进行了实验。物种丰富度的增加对年产量没有显著的额外贡献。相反，当一个竞争优势物种的天敌减少时，它就会受到青睐，这表明在不考虑消费者的情况下形成的关于生物多样性作用的陆地观点可能并不具有普遍性。
