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Species richness and stability of space-limited communities

Nature volume 264, pages 540–541 (1976)Cite this article

Abstract

ECOLOGICAL competition theory has reached its fullest state of development for the special case of competition for a renewable resource1,2. There are, however, many instances of competition in nature to which this theory does not apply; for example, competition for space (Lebensraum). Because there are many space-limited organisms in nature, including many primary producers, this is an important gap in our theoretical understanding of ecological communities. Moreover, since the fundamental dynamic of competition for space—spatial mobility—is quite different from that of competition for a renewable resource, it would be unwise to try to extrapolate the theory of resource limitation to space-limited communities. In this paper, I outline some calculations, in the spirit of refs 3–7, which bear on the relation between stability and diversity for space-limited communities. (Full details will appear elsewhere.)

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  1. Institut für Theoretische Physik, Universität Bern, Sidlerstrasse 5, 3012, Bern, Switzerland

    P. YODZIS

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  1. P. YODZIS
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YODZIS, P. Species richness and stability of space-limited communities. Nature 264, 540–541 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1038/264540a0

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