Ecological plasticity governs ecosystem services in multilayer networks

Abstract

Clare Gray et al. construct multilayer networks of weed seed regulation and pest gastropod predation by carabid beetles in 374 agricultural fields and show that these ecosystem services are mediated by trophic interaction frequencies. This study reveals that ecosystem services are governed by ecological plasticity in structurally complex, multi-layer trophic networks and these could assist in the assessment of the contribution of biodiversity to ecosystem services.