SREL Reprint #3801

Climate, food and humans predict communities of mammals in the United States

Roland Kays1,2, Matthew H. Snider1, George Hess1, Michael V. Cove2, Alex Jensen2,3, Hila Shamon4,
William J. McShea4, Brigit Rooney4, Maximilian L. Allen5, Charles E. Pekins6, Christopher C. Wilmers7,
Mary E. Pendergast8,9, Austin M. Green8, Justin Suraci10, Matthew S. Leslie11, Sophie Nasrallah12,13,
Dan Farkas14, Mark Jordan15, Melissa Grigione16, Michael C. LaScaleia17, Miranda L. Davis17, Chris Hansen18,
Josh Millspaugh18,19, Jesse S. Lewis20, Michael Havrda21, Robert Long22, Kathryn R. Remine22, Kodi J. Jaspers22,
Diana J. R. Lafferty23, Tru Hubbard23, Colin E. Studds24, Erika L. Barthelmess25, Katherine Andy25,26,
Andrea Romero27,28, Brian J. O'Neill28, Melissa T. R. Hawkins29, Jason V. Lombardi30,31, Maksim Sergeyev30,32,
M. Caitlin Fisher-Reid33, Michael S. Rentz34, Christopher Nagy35, Jon M. Davenport36, Christine C. Rega-Brodsky37,
Cara L. Appel38,39, Damon B. Lesmeister38,39, Sean T. Giery40, Christopher A. Whittier41, Jesse M. Alston42,
Chris Sutherland43, Christopher Rota44, Thomas Murphy45, Thomas E. Lee Jr.46, Alessio Mortelliti47,48,
Dylan L. Bergman49, Justin A. Compton50, Brian D. Gerber51, Jess Burr51, Kylie Rezendes51, Brett A. DeGregorio52,
Nathaniel H. Wehr53,54, John F. Benson53, M. Teague O'Mara55,56,57, David S. Jachowski3, Morgan Gray58,
Dean E. Beyer Jr.54, Jerrold L. Belant54, Robert V. Horan III59, Robert C. Lonsinger60, Kellie M. Kuhn61,
Steven C. M. Hasstedt61, Marketa Zimova62,63, Sophie M. Moore64, Daniel J. Herrera64, Sarah Fritts65,
Andrew J. Edelman66, Elizabeth A. Flaherty67, Tyler R. Petroelje68, Sean A. Neiswenter69, Derek R. Risch70,
Fabiola Iannarilli71, Marius van der Merwe72, Sean P. Maher73, Zach J. Farris74, Stephen L. Webb75,76,
David S. Mason77, Marcus A. Lashley77, Andrew M. Wilson78, John P. Vanek79,80, Samuel R. Wehr81,
L. Mike Conner82, James C. Beasley83, Helen L. Bontrager83, Carolina Baruzzi84, Susan N. Ellis-Felege85,
Mike D. Proctor86, Jan Schipper87,88, Katherine C. B. Weiss89, Andrea K. Darracq90, Evan G. Barr90,
Peter D. Alexander91, Çağan H. Şekercioğlu92,93, Daniel A. Bogan94, Christopher M. Schalk95,
Jean E. Fantle-Lepczyk96, Christopher A. Lepczyk96, Scott LaPoint97, Laura S. Whipple98, Helen Ivy Rowe99,100,
Kayleigh Mullen101, Tori Bird101, Adam Zorn102, LaRoy Brandt103, Richard G. Lathrop104, Craig McCain105,
Anthony P. Crupi106, James Clark107, Arielle Parsons1,100

1Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
2North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
3Department of Forestry and Environmental Conservation, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA
4Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, Virginia, USA
5Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois, Champaign, Illinois, USA
6Fort Hood Natural Resources Management Branch, United States Army Garrison, Fort Hood, Texas, USA
7Environmental Studies Department, Center for Integrated Spatial Research, University of California Santa Cruz,
Santa Cruz, California, USA
8Science Research Initiative, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
9Sageland Collaborative, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
10Conservation Science Partners, Inc., Truckee, California, USA
11National Climate Adaptation Science Center, United States Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia, USA
12Biology Department, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, USA
13Entomology Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
14Information Technology Department, Pace University, Pleasantville, New York, USA
15Seattle University Department of Biology, Seattle, Washington, USA
16Department of Biology, Pace University, Pleasantville, New York, USA
17Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
18Wildlife Biology Program, Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences,
University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, USA
19Department of Forest and Environmental Biology, SUNY-ESF, Syracuse, New York, USA
20Arizona State University, College of Integrative Sciences and Arts, Mesa, Arizona, USA
21University of Washington, School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, Seattle, Washington, USA
22Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, Washington, USA
23Department of Biology, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Science Lab, Northern Michigan University,
Marquette, Michigan, USA
24Department of Geography and Environmental Systems, University of Maryland Baltimore County,
Baltimore, Maryland, USA
25Biology Department and Nature Up North Program, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, USA
26School of Resource and Environmental Management, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
27Department of Geography, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater,
Whitewater, Wisconsin, USA
28Department of Biology, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Whitewater, Wisconsin, USA
29Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History,
Washington, District of Columbia, USA
30Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, Texas, USA
31Wildlife Health Laboratory, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Rancho Cordova, California, USA
32Warner College of Natural Resources, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
33Department of Biological Sciences, Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, Massachusetts, USA
34Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA
35Mianus River Gorge, Bedford, New York, USA
36Department of Biology, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, USA
37School of Science and Mathematics, Pittsburg State University, Pittsburg, Kansas, USA
38USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
39Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
40Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA
41Center for Conservation Medicine, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University,
North Grafton, Massachusetts, USA
42School of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
43Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling, School of Mathematics and Statistics,
St Andrews University, St Andrews, UK
44Division of Forestry and Natural Resources, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA
45Edmonds Community College, Lynnwood, Washington, USA
46Department of Biology, Abilene Christian University, Abilene, Texas, USA
47Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Conservation Biology, University of Maine, Orono, Maine, USA
48Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
49Point No Point Treaty Council, Poulsbo, Washington, USA
50Environmental Sciences and Studies Department, Stonehill College, Easton, Massachusetts, USA
51Department of Natural Resources Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, Rhode Island, USA
52U.S. Geological Survey, Michigan Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit,
Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
53School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
54Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
55Bat Conservation International, Austin, Texas, USA
56Department of Biology, Southeastern Louisiana University, Hammond, Louisiana, USA
57Department of Migration, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Radolfzell, Germany
58Pepperwood, Santa Rosa, California, USA
59Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division, Brunswick, Georgia, USA
60U.S. Geological Survey, Oklahoma Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit,
Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
61U.S. Air Force Academy, Department of Biology, Faculty Drive, Colorado, USA
62Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, USA
63School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
64Humane Rescue Alliance, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
65Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas, USA
66Department of Natural Sciences, University of West Georgia, Carrollton, Georgia, USA
67Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
68Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Division, Marquette, Michigan, USA
69School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
70Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, University of Hawaii Mānoa,
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
71Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
72Biological Sciences Department, Utah Tech University, St. George, Utah, USA
73Department of Biology, Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri, USA
74Department of Public Health & Exercise Science, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, USA
75Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
76Department of Rangeland, Wildlife and Fisheries Management, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
77Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA
78Environmental Studies Department, Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, USA
79Department of Biology, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA
80New York Natural Heritage Program, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Albany, New York, USA
81Department of Biology, Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio, USA
82The Jones Center at Ichauway, Newton, Georgia, USA
83Savannah River Ecology Laboratory and Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources,
University of Georgia, Aiken, South Carolina, USA
84Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, North Florida Research and Education Center,
University of Florida, Quincy, Florida, USA
85Department of Biology, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, North Dakota, USA
86Noble Research Institute, Ardmore, Oklahoma, USA
87New College of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences, Arizona State University, Glendale, Arizona, USA
88Arizona Center for Nature Conservation, Phoenix Zoo, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
89School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
90Department of Biological Sciences, Watershed Studies Institute, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky, USA
91Craighead Beringia South, Kelly, Wyoming, USA
92School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
93Koç University Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Istanbul, Turkey
94Department of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Siena College, Loudonville, New York, USA
95USDA Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Nacogdoches, Texas, USA
96College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA
97Black Rock Forest, Cornwall, New York, USA
98Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, USA
99McDowell Sonoran Conservancy, Scottsdale, Arizona, USA
100School of Earth and Sustainability, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
101Utah's Hogle Zoo, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
102Huston-Brumbaugh Nature Center, University of Mount Union, Alliance, Ohio, USA
103Cumberland Mountain Research Center, Department of Biology, Lincoln Memorial University,
Harrogate, Tennessee, USA
104Rutgers University Ecological Preserve, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA
105Department of Biology, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, USA
106Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Division of Wildlife Conservation, Juneau, Alaska, USA
107Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
108Alexander Center for Applied Population Biology, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Abstract:
Aim: The assembly of species into communities and ecoregions is the result of interacting factors that affect plant and animal distribution and abundance at biogeographic scales. Here, we empirically derive ecoregions for mammals to test whether human disturbance has become more important than climate and habitat resources in structuring communities.
Location: Conterminous United States.
Time Period: 2010–2021.
Major Taxa Studied: Twenty-five species of mammals.
Methods: We analysed data from 25 mammal species recorded by camera traps at 6645 locations across the conterminous United States in a joint modelling framework to estimate relative abundance of each species. We then used a clustering analysis to describe 8 broad and 16 narrow mammal communities.
Results: Climate was the most important predictor of mammal abundance overall, while human population density and agriculture were less important, with mixed effects across species. Seed production by forests also predicted mammal abundance, especially hard-mast tree species. The mammal community maps are similar to those of plants, with an east–west split driven by different dominant species of deer and squirrels. Communities vary along gradients of temperature in the east and precipitation in the west. Most fine-scale mammal community boundaries aligned with established plant ecoregions and were distinguished by the presence of regional specialists or shifts in relative abundance of widespread species. Maps of potential ecosystem services provided by these communities suggest high herbivory in the Rocky Mountains and eastern forests, high invertebrate predation in the subtropical south and greater predation pressure on large vertebrates in the west.
Main Conclusions: Our results highlight the importance of climate to modern mammals and suggest that climate change will have strong impacts on these communities. Our new empirical approach to recognizing ecoregions has potential to be applied to expanded communities of mammals or other taxa.

Keywords: climate, macroecology, mammal communities, masting, species distribution models

SREL Reprint #3801

Kays, R., M. H. Snider, G. Hess, M. V. Cove, A. Jensen, H. Shamon, W. J. McShea, B. Rooney, M. L. Allen, C. E. Pekins, C. C. Wilmers, M. E. Pendergast, A. M. Green, J. Suraci, M. S. Leslie, S. Nasrallah, D. Farkas, M. Jordan, M. Grigione, M. C. LaScaleia, M. L. Davis, C. Hansen, J. Millspaugh, J. S. Lewis, M. Havrda, R. Long, K. R. Remine, K. J. Jaspers, D. J. R. Lafferty, T. Hubbard, C. E. Studds, E. L. Barthelmess, K. Andy, A. Romero, B. J. O'Neill, M. T. R. Hawkins, J. V. Lombardi, M. Sergeyev, M. C. Fisher-Reid, M. S. Rentz, C. Nagy, J. M. Davenport, C. C. Rega-Brodsky, C. L. Appel, D. B. Lesmeister, S. T. Giery, C. A. Whittier, J. M. Alston, C. Sutherland, C. Rota, T. Murphy, T. E. Jr. Lee, A. Mortelliti, D. L. Bergman, J. A. Compton, B. D. Gerber, J. Burr, K. Rezendes, B. A. DeGregorio, N. H. Wehr, J. F. Benson, M. T. O'Mara, D. S. Jachowski, M. Gray, D. E. Jr. Beyer, J. L. Belant, R. V. III Horan, R. C. Lonsinger, K. M. Kuhn, S. C. M. Hasstedt, M. Zimova, S. M. Moore, D. J. Herrera, S. Fritts, A. J. Edelman, E. A. Flaherty, T. R. Petroelje, S. A. Neiswenter, D. R. Risch, F. Iannarilli, M. van der Merwe, S. P. Maher, Z. J. Farris, S. L. Webb, D. S. Mason, M. A. Lashley, A. M. Wilson, J. P. Vanek, S. R. Wehr, L. M. Conner, J. C. Beasley, H. L. Bontrager, C. Baruzzi, S. N. Ellis-Felege, M. D. Proctor, J. Schipper, K. C. B. Weiss, A. K. Darracq, E. G. Barr, P. D. Alexander, Ç. H. Şekercioğlu, D. A. Bogan, C. M. Schalk, J. E. Fantle-Lepczyk, C. A. Lepczyk, S. LaPoint, L. S. Whipple, H. I. Rowe, K. Mullen, T. Bird, A. Zorn, L. Brandt, R. G. Lathrop, C. McCain, A. P. Crupi, J. Clark, and A. Parsons. 2024. Climate, food and humans predict communities of mammals in the United States. Diversity and Distributions 30(e13900).

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).