van de Koppel Johan, Rietkerk Max
Netherlands Institute of Ecology, P.O. Box 140, NL-4400 AC Yerseke, The Netherlands.
Am Nat. 2004 Jan;163(1):113-21. doi: 10.1086/380571. Epub 2004 Jan 28.
We present a mathematical analysis of the consequences of spatial interactions between vegetation patches by means of water flow for the functioning of arid systems. Our model results suggest that spatial exchange of water improved the resilience to disturbances and increased the resistance to human-induced loss of cover. Furthermore, spatial exchange of water allowed vegetation to persist at lower rainfall levels compared to systems that lack spatial interactions. Our analysis stresses the general importance of spatial interactions for the functioning of ecological systems.
我们通过水流对干旱系统功能的影响，对植被斑块间空间相互作用的后果进行了数学分析。我们的模型结果表明，水的空间交换提高了对干扰的恢复力，并增强了对人为导致的植被覆盖丧失的抵抗力。此外，与缺乏空间相互作用的系统相比，水的空间交换使植被能够在较低降雨量水平下持续存在。我们的分析强调了空间相互作用对生态系统功能的普遍重要性。
