1. Ecological interactions are the glue of biodiversity, structuring communities and determining their functionality. However, our knowledge about ecological interactions is usually biased against cryptic interactions (i.e. overlooked interactions involving inconspicuous species). Mosses are a neglected component in community ecology despite being diverse and abundant in boreal and temperate forests. Therefore, the cryptic relationships of trees as hosts for epiphytic mosses, and vertebrates using mosses as nesting material, may have important consequences for community structuring.
2. We built species‐ and individual‐based ecological networks to characterise tree–moss associations in 120 tree individuals representing 13 species, which hosted 19 moss species. We also used those ecological networks to simulate the effects of non‐random extinctions due to selective logging, to assess the presence of moss species in hummingbird nests (30 nests), whether these mosses were a subset of those found on the trees if moss diversity varies with tree height and whether these moss–tree relationships are phylogenetically constrained.
3. We found a nested pattern in the tree–moss network. Taller trees were the most connected, with tree height positively related to number of moss species, network degree and centrality. Extinction simulations showed changes in network topology, with the strongest effect from the removal of the most connected tree species. However, tree and moss networks were not influenced by phylogenetic relatedness. The hummingbird Sephanoides sephaniodes selectively collected mosses; the moss species used as nesting material by hummingbirds were a subset of available species. These complex relationships among trees, birds and mosses underpin the importance of neglected components in the community.
4. We found that tree–moss associations were non‐random, showing a positive relationship between tree height and moss diversity. Those associations are the reflection of preferences beyond relative abundances in the forest, and the removal of certain tree species (due to selective logging) may have cascade effects in the community. Furthermore, the lack of phylogenetic correspondence suggests that tree–moss associations are governed by ecological factors (host tree preferences). Moss–hummingbird associations are non‐random, as hummingbirds (that pollinate these trees) are actively selecting mosses for nest building, stressing the importance of cryptic interactions as a community‐structuring process.

中文翻译：

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从生态网络重新审视隐密互动：苔藓作为树木与蜂鸟之间的重要纽带

1. 生态互动是生物多样性的粘合剂，可以构建社区并确定其功能。但是，我们对生态相互作用的认识通常偏向于隐秘相互作用（即，涉及不显眼物种的被忽视的相互作用）。苔藓虽然在寒带和温带森林中种类繁多且丰富，但却是社区生态中被忽视的组成部分。因此，树木作为附生苔藓宿主的隐秘关系，以及使用苔藓作为巢状材料的脊椎动物，可能对群落结构产生重要影响。
2. 我们建立了基于物种和个体的生态网络，以表征代表13个物种的120个树木个体中的树木与苔藓的关联，其中包括19个苔藓物种。我们还使用了这些生态网络来模拟由于选择性伐木而引起的非随机灭绝的影响，评估了蜂鸟巢（30个巢）中是否存在苔藓物种，如果苔藓多样性，这些苔藓是否是树木中的一部分随树高以及这些苔藓-树的关系是否在系统发育上受到约束而变化。
3. 我们在树-苔藓网络中发现了一个嵌套模式。高大的树木之间的联系最密切，树木的高度与苔藓种类的数量，网络度和中心度成正比。灭绝模拟显示了网络拓扑结构的变化，其中最强的影响来自于移除连接最紧密的树种。但是，树和苔藓网络不受系统发育相关性的影响。蜂鸟Sephanoides sephaniodes选择性地收集了苔藓；蜂鸟用作筑巢材料的苔藓物种是可用物种的子集。树木，鸟类和苔藓之间的这些复杂关系巩固了社区中被忽视的组成部分的重要性。
4. 我们发现树与苔藓之间的联系是非随机的，表明树高与苔藓多样性之间存在正相关关系。这些联系反映了人们偏好超出了森林中相对丰度，并且某些树木物种的清除（由于选择性伐木）可能在社区中产生级联效应。此外，缺乏系统发育的对应关系表明，树-苔藓的联系受生态因素（寄主树的偏好）的支配。苔藓与蜂鸟之间的联系是非随机的，因为蜂鸟（给这些树授粉）正在积极地选择苔藓筑巢，从而强调了秘密互动在社区构建过程中的重要性。