SynthesisEcology2018
Functional diversity positively affects prey suppression by invertebrate predators: a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Ecology, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed.
- Bottom-up and top-down effects combine to drive predator-prey interactions in a forest biodiversity experiment.The Journal of animal ecology · 2025Article
- Complementarity between Orius predators improves control of foliar and flower pests.Pest management science · 2025Article
- Reduced temporal turnover in carabid communities enhances biomass stability in agricultural landscapes.The Journal of animal ecology · 2025Article
- Functional diversity of ground beetles improved aphid control but did not increase crop yields on European farms.Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America · 2024Article
- Molecular identification of predation on the Dubas bug (Hemiptera: Tropiduchidae) in Oman date palms: density-dependent response to prey.Journal of insect science (Online) · 2024Article
- Article
- The relative influence of agricultural abandonment and semi-natural habitats on parasitoid diversity and community composition.PloS one · 2024Article
- Species composition, seasonal abundance and population dynamics of predatory spiders from cotton field plots of irrigated and semi-arid regions of Punjab, Pakistan.Saudi journal of biological sciences · 2023Article
- Functional and phylogenetic relationships link predators to plant diversity via trophic and non-trophic pathways.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2023Article
- Greater bee diversity is needed to maintain crop pollination over time.Nature ecology & evolution · 2022Article
- The presence of multiple parasitoids decreases host survival under warming, but parasitoid performance also decreases.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2022Article
- Effects of enhanced productivity of resources shared by predators in a food-web module: Comparing results of a field experiment to predictions of mathematical models of intra-guild predation.Ecology and evolution · 2021Article
- Exploring multitrophic interactions in oilseed rape fields reveals the prevailing role of Carabidae.Ecology and evolution · 2021Article
- Landscape composition mediates the relationship between predator body size and pest control.Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America · 2021Article
- Prey removal in cotton crops next to woodland reveals periodic diurnal and nocturnal invertebrate predation gradients from the crop edge by birds and bats.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Predation yields greater population performance: What are the contributions of density- and trait-mediated effects?Ecological entomology · 2021Article
- Hymenopteran Parasitoids of Aphid Pests within Australian Grain Production Landscapes.Insects · 2021Article
- Can Generalist Predators ControlInsects · 2020Review
- Veteran trees are a source of natural enemies.Scientific reports · 2020Article
- A global class reunion with multiple groups feasting on the declining insect smorgasbord.Scientific reports · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The use of pesticides within agricultural ecosystems has led to wide concern regarding negative effects on the environment. One possible alternative is the use of predators of pest species that naturally occur within agricultural ecosystems. However, the mechanistic basis for how species can be manipulated in order to maximize pest control remains unclear. We carried out a meta-analysis of 51 studies that manipulated predator species richness in reference to suppression of herbivore prey to determine which components of predator diversity affect pest control. Overall, functional diversity (FD) based on predator's habitat domain, diet breadth and hunting strategy was ranked as the most important variable. Our analysis showed that increases in FD in polycultures led to greater prey suppression compared to both the mean of the component predator species, and the most effective predator species, in monocultures. Further analysis of individual traits indicated these effects are likely to be driven by broad niche differentiation and greater resource exploitation in functionally diverse predator communities. A decoupled measure of phylogenetic diversity, whereby the overlap in variation with FD was removed, was not found to be an important driver of prey suppression. Our results suggest that increasing FD in predatory invertebrates will help maximize pest control ecosystem services in agricultural ecosystems, with the potential to increase suppression above that of the most effective predator species.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.