Body size and trophic position determine the outcomes of species invasions along temperature and productivity gradients

Species invasions are predicted to increase in frequency with global change, but quantitative predictions of how environmental filters and species traits influence the success and consequences of invasions for local communities are lacking. Here we investigate how invaders alter the structure, diversity and stability regime of simple communities across environmental gradients (habitat productivity, temperature) and community size structure. We simulate all three-species trophic modules (apparent and exploitative competition, trophic chain and intraguild predation). We predict that invasions most often succeed in warm and productive habitats and that successful invaders include smaller competitors, intraguild predators and comparatively small top predators. This suggests that species invasions and global change may facilitate the downsizing of food webs. Furthermore, we show that successful invasions leading to species substitutions rarely alter system stability, while invasions leading to increased diversity can destabilize or stabilize community dynamics depending on the environmental conditions and invader's trophic position. We model species invasions (characterized by varying body mass and trophic positions) in a simple consumer-resource system along environmental gradients of temperature and nutrient levels. Accounting for the structural influences of environmental conditions on resident community prior to invasions, we mapped all invasion-driven changes in diversity, composition and stability regime of the community along environmental gradients for all trophic modules and a wide range of species body mass ratios.image

Automated summary

This study investigates how species invasions affect the structure, diversity, and stability of simple communities, and predicts the factors influencing invasion success and consequences. The results suggest that warm and productive habitats are more susceptible to successful invasions, with smaller competitors, intraguild predators, and relatively small top predators being the most successful invaders. Additionally, successful invasions can either destabilize or stabilize community dynamics, depending on the environmental conditions and the trophic position of the invader.