Global loss of biodiversity and its associated ecosystem services is occurring at an alarming rate and is predicted to accelerate in the future. Metacommunity theory provides a framework to investigate multi-scale processes that drive change in biodiversity across space and time. Short-term ecological studies across space have progressed our understanding of biodiversity through a metacommunity lens, however, such snapshots in time have been limited in their ability to explain which processes, at which scales, generate observed spatial patterns. Temporal dynamics of metacommunities have been understudied, and large gaps in theory and empirical data have hindered progress in our understanding of underlying metacommunity processes that give rise to biodiversity patterns. Fortunately, we are at an important point in the history of ecology, where long-term studies with cross-scale spatial replication provide a means to gain a deeper understanding of the multiscale processes driving biodiversity patterns in time and space to inform metacommunity theory. The maturation of coordinated research and observation networks, such as the United States Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) program, provides an opportunity to advance explanation and prediction of biodiversity change with observational and experimental data at spatial and temporal scales greater than any single research group could accomplish. Synthesis of LTER network community datasets illustrates that long-term studies with spatial replication present an under-utilized resource for advancing spatio-temporal metacommunity research. We identify challenges towards synthesizing these data and present recommendations for addressing these challenges. We conclude with insights about how future monitoring efforts by coordinated research and observation networks could further the development of metacommunity theory and its applications aimed at improving conservation efforts.

中文翻译：

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将元社区理论应用于长期、空间复制的生物多样性数据将获得新见解

全球生物多样性及其相关生态系统服务的丧失正以惊人的速度发生，预计未来会加速。元社区理论提供了一个框架来研究推动生物多样性跨时空变化的多尺度过程。跨空间的短期生态研究通过元社区的视角推进了我们对生物多样性的理解，然而，这种及时的快照在解释哪些过程、在哪些尺度上产生观察到的空间模式的能力方面受到限制。元群落的时间动态尚未得到充分研究，理论和经验数据的巨大差距阻碍了我们对导致生物多样性模式的潜在元群落过程的理解的进展。幸运的是，我们正处于生态史上的一个重要时刻，其中跨尺度空间复制的长期研究提供了一种方法，可以更深入地了解在时间和空间上驱动生物多样性模式的多尺度过程，从而为元社区理论提供信息。协调研究和观测网络的成熟，例如美国长期生态研究 (LTER) 计划，提供了一个机会，利用比任何单个研究小组都大的时空尺度上的观测和实验数据来推进对生物多样性变化的解释和预测可以实现。LTER 网络社区数据集的综合表明，空间复制的长期研究为推进时空元社区研究提供了未充分利用的资源。我们确定了合成这些数据的挑战，并提出了应对这些挑战的建议。最后，我们深入探讨了未来通过协调研究和观察网络进行的监测工作如何进一步发展元社区理论及其旨在改善保护工作的应用。