Publication details
The abundance-centre hypothesis re-examined: body mass, blood glucose, and elevational distributions in Afrotropical forest birds
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2026 |
| Type | Peer-reviewed scientific article |
| Magazine / Source | Journal of Avian Biology |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | URL |
| Doi | https://doi.org/10.1002/jav.03612 |
| Keywords | abundance-centre hypothesis; avian physiology; blood glucose; body mass; elevational gradient; habitat barriers; truncated niche |
| Attached files | |
| Description | This study re-examines the validity of the long-standing abundance-centre hypothesis (ACH), which predicts that species peak in abundance at the centre of their geographic ranges and decline towards range limits. Utilizing data from an Afrotropical elevational gradient on Mt Cameroon, the research tests whether avian abundance patterns can be predicted by physiological and life-history traits associated with nutritional status and environmental stress, specifically blood glucose concentrations and body mass. The analyses provided little support for the ACH, demonstrating that neither blood glucose nor body mass serves as a strong predictor of population density in the wild. Characteristically, the study reveals that most lowland and highland bird species exhibit monotonic abundance trends, occupying truncated realized niches tightly constrained by the physical elevational boundaries of the forest ecosystem, such as the treeline and the lower forest edge. These findings bring essential insights into the mechanisms driving tropical species distributions and underscore the dominant role of habitat boundaries over intrinsic physiology. |
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