Functional variations in spider communities across different land-use categories along an elevational gradient in North-Western Indian Himalaya

 

Functional variations in spider communities across different land-use categories along an elevational gradient in North-Western Indian Himalaya

Abstract

1. Land-use change and elevational gradients jointly influence biodiversity and species distribution, yet their concurrent effects on arthropods in the Indian Himalayan Region remain largely undocumented.
2. Using spiders as a model taxon, this study assesses the parallel influences of elevation (1500–4500-m at 500-m intervals) and land-use categories viz. forests, agricultural lands and human-dominated regions on spider functional diversity in a North-Western Himalayan landscape.
3. The results show non-general patterns, with significant discrepancies in managed habitats compared to forests, and a higher abundance of synanthropic species in human-dominated regions.
4. Directional shifts in functional traits are associated with elevational change, with the transition between 3000 and 3500 m emerging as a critical functional and community threshold for Himalayan spider assemblages.
5. The findings highlight functional variability under simultaneous natural and anthropogenic pressures and raise concerns about habitat homogenization driven by large-scale agro-production in climate-vulnerable Himalayan regions, potentially shifting biodiversity towards new functional regimes.

Sarkar, I. D., Siliwal, M., Dasgupta, S., & Uniyal, V. P. Functional variations in spider communities across different land-use categories along an elevational gradient in North-Western Indian Himalaya. Insect Conservation and Diversity. https://doi.org/10.1111/icad.70062