The propagation of disturbances in ecological networks

Network science has revealed that the architecture of many complex biological, physical, and social systems facilitates the direct and indirect propagation of disturbances.

Ecological disturbances, such as species extinctions and the disruption of their interactions by environmental change drivers, may propagate across space and time. However, the scale over which these impacts propagate remains largely unknown.

Ecological disturbances vary in their propagation pathways and effects on network structure and functioning. The characteristics of species and of their interaction networks and metanetworks contribute to predicting the rate and extent to which different disturbances spread across ecological communities.

The identification of spatial or temporal boundaries for ecological networks is key to capturing metanetwork dynamics and the scale over which disturbance effects can propagate.