Hybrid structural arrangements mediate stability and feasibility in mutualistic networks
release_u2eythrj3bhenpsp2vmywhnzti
by
Aniello Lampo, María J. Palazzi, Javier Borge-Holthoefer, Albert Solé-Ribalta
2021
Abstract
Perhaps the largest debate in network Ecology, the emergence of structural
patterns stands out as a multifaceted problem. To the methodological challenges
-- pattern identification, statistical significance -- one has to add the
relationship between candidate architectures and dynamical performance. In the
case of mutualistic communities, the debate revolves mostly around two
structural arrangements (nestedness and modularity) and two requirements for
persistence, namely feasibility and stability. So far, it is clear that the
former is strongly related to nestedness, while the latter is enhanced in
modular systems. Adding to this, it has recently become clear that nestedness
and modularity are antagonistic patterns -- or, at the very least, their
coexistence in a single system is problematic. In this context, this work
addresses the role of the interaction architecture in the emergence and
maintenance of both properties, introducing the idea of hybrid architectural
configurations. Specifically, we examine in-block nestedness, compound by
disjoint subsets of species (modules) with internal nested organization, and
prove that it grants a balanced trade-off between stability and feasibility.
Remarkably, we analyze a large amount of empirical communities and find that a
relevant fraction of them exhibits a marked in-block nested structure. We
elaborate on the implications of these results, arguing that they provide new
insights about the key properties ruling community assembly.
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