Species-rich food webs produce biomass more efficiently

Researchers at the Senckenberg have discovered a feedback in complex food webs: Species-rich ecosystems favor large, heavy animals. Even though this increases the amount of plants consumed, the plant biomass remains approximately at the same level as in species-poor ecosystems. This is due to the fact that in species-rich ecosystems, plant communities develop whose growth is more energetically efficient. The extent of biomass production in species-rich ecosystems is more stable and thereby predictable whereas the loss of species leads to unpredictable deficiencies, which would have to be compensated by humans, according to the paper, published today in Nature Communications.

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