a comparison of random draw and locally neutral models for the avifauna of an english woodland比较的随机画和局部中性模型的鸟类英语林地.pdfVIP

BMC Ecology BioMed Central Research article Open Access A comparison of random draw and locally neutral models for the avifauna of an English woodland Andrew M Dolman* and Tim M Blackburn Address: School of Biosciences, The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK Email: Andrew M Dolman* - amd169@bham.ac.uk; Tim M Blackburn - t.blackburn@bham.ac.uk * Corresponding author Published: 03 June 2004 Received: 14 February 2004 Accepted: 03 June 2004 BMC Ecology 2004, 4:8 This article is available from: /1472-6785/4/8 © 2004 Dolman and Blackburn; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article: verbatim copying and redistribution of this article are permit- ted in all media for any purpose, provided this notice is preserved along with the articles original URL. Abstract Background: Explanations for patterns observed in the structure of local assemblages are frequently sought with reference to interactions between species, and between species and their local environment. However, analyses of null models, where non-interactive local communities are assembled from regional species pools, have demonstrated that much of the structure of local assemblages remains in simulated assemblages where local interactions have been excluded. Here we compare the ability of two null models to reproduce the breeding bird community of Eastern Wood, a 16-hectare woodland in England, UK. A random draw model, in which there is co