关键词: 多维超体积模型, 内稳性, 群落构建, 生态化学计量学, 生物地球化学生态位, 物种共存, 物种进化历史, 种间竞争

Abstract

Background & Aims: All biological organisms are constructed with a specific range and ratio of bioelements; namely, the elementome. Organisms integrate multiple elements in optimal ratios to adapt to environmental heterogeneity. Biological elementome are assumed to be species-specific, which are determined by evolutionary history (phylogenetic distances) and controlled by inter- species competition and homeostasis. In community ecology, bioelemental composition and the variations in elementome provide an ideal indicator for quantifying the niche segregation of certain species in a community and predicting the possible responses of niche (displacement, expansion or concentration) to changes in environmental conditions. Biogeochemical niche (BN) quantify species niches using the concept of elementome and n-dimensional hypervolume. On the basis of a brief summary of niche theory and ecological stoichiometry, we introduced the theoretical framework and the confirmatory studies of biogeochemical niche hypothesis (BNH) in this review. The prospects of its applications in different ecosystems were also discussed.

Review results: According to the BNH, the biogeochemical niche of certain species is defined as a function of phylogenetic distances (taxonomy), species sympatry (inter-species competitive pressure) and homeostasis/plasticity (the ability to maintain a stable elemental composition). This theory applies not only to plants, but also to animals and microbes. Using “biogeochemical niche(s)”, “metabolomic niche(s)”, “stoichiometric niche(s)” as key words, we conducted literature searches utilizing Web of Science (WoS) and CNKI, and manually picked out 84 relevant studies in November 2023. The studies mainly focused on C, N and P, and the most common keywords were “ecological stoichiometry” and “elemental composition”. In terms of taxa, the main taxa concerned in the studies were plants (54 articles), followed by animals (14 articles) and microorganisms (14 articles). We review the recent progress of BNH by taxa in this article.

Key words: biogeochemical niche, community assembly, ecological stoichiometry, evolutionary history, homeostasis, n-dimensional hypervolume, species coexistence, species competition