Lester Sarah E, Ruttenberg Benjamin I, Gaines Steven D, Kinlan Brian P
Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology and Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9610, USA.
Ecol Lett. 2007 Aug;10(8):745-58. doi: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2007.01070.x.
There are a variety of proposed evolutionary and ecological explanations for why some species have more extensive geographical ranges than others. One of the most common explanations is variation in species' dispersal ability. However, the purported relationship between dispersal distance and range size has been subjected to few theoretical investigations, and empirical tests reach conflicting conclusions. We attempt to reconcile the equivocal results of previous studies by reviewing and synthesizing quantitative dispersal data, examining the relationship between average dispersal ability and range size for different spatial scales, regions and taxonomic groups. We use extensive data from marine taxa whose average dispersal varies by seven orders of magnitude. Our results suggest dispersal is not a general determinant of range size, but can play an important role in some circumstances. We also review the mechanistic theories proposed to explain a positive relationship between range size and dispersal and explore their underlying rationales and supporting or refuting evidence. Despite numerous studies assuming a priori that dispersal influences range size, this is the first comprehensive conceptual evaluation of these ideas. Overall, our results indicate that although dispersal can be an important process moderating species' distributions, increased attention should be paid to other processes responsible for range size variation.
对于为何有些物种的地理分布范围比其他物种更广，有多种提出的进化和生态解释。最常见的解释之一是物种扩散能力的差异。然而，扩散距离与分布范围大小之间所谓的关系很少受到理论研究，实证检验也得出了相互矛盾的结论。我们试图通过回顾和综合定量扩散数据，研究不同空间尺度、区域和分类群的平均扩散能力与分布范围大小之间的关系，来调和先前研究中模棱两可的结果。我们使用了来自海洋类群的大量数据，其平均扩散能力相差七个数量级。我们的结果表明，扩散并非分布范围大小的一般决定因素，但在某些情况下可能发挥重要作用。我们还回顾了为解释分布范围大小与扩散之间的正相关关系而提出的机制理论，并探讨了它们的基本原理以及支持或反驳的证据。尽管有大量研究先验地假设扩散会影响分布范围大小，但这是对这些观点的首次全面概念评估。总体而言，我们的结果表明，尽管扩散可能是调节物种分布的一个重要过程，但应更多地关注导致分布范围大小变化的其他过程。
