Data sources
Forest Inventory and Analysis data (USDA Forest Service 2020 available
in https://www.fia.fs.fed.us/ and Stanke et al. 2020); eBird data
(Sullivan et al. 2009, available in https://ebird.org/home);
Environmental predictors (Sheffield et al. 2006, available in
http://hydrology.princeton.edu/data/pgf/v3)
Number of words in abstract: 149
Number of words in the main text: 4,922
Number of references: 70
Number of figures: 5
Abstract
The Law of the Minimum states that
species’ abundance at a location is limited by one single factor. If
true, abundance-environment plots should take polygonal shapes
constrained by an upper boundary representing the maximum abundance that
the species can reach across the environmental gradient. Here, we
examine the generality of polygonal plots in the literature and in
observational data, and assess how often they are analyzed under the
theory of ecological limitation. We also present a proof-of-concept of a
method to identify polygon-shaped plots. We found polygonal plots in
76% of reviewed studies and in 73% of the 300 analyzed tree and bird
species. We demonstrate that polygonal shapes with upper boundaries are
prevalent in abundance-environment plots; yet they are rarely
interpreted considering the Law of the Minimum. A wider acknowledgement
of limiting relationships would improve our ecological understanding and
estimation with further benefits to theoretical and applied ecology.