Evenness effects mask richness effects on ecosystem functioning at macro-scales in lakes

Biodiversity–ecosystem functioning (BEF) theory has largely focused on species richness, although studies have demonstrated that evenness may have stronger effects. While theory and numerous small-scale studies support positive BEF relationships, regional studies have documented negative effects of evenness on ecosystem functioning. We analysed a lake dataset spanning the continental US to evaluate whether strong evenness effects are common at broad spatial scales and if BEF relationships are similar across diverse regions and trophic levels. At the continental scale, phytoplankton evenness explained more variance in phytoplankton and zooplankton resource use efficiency (RUE; ratio of biomass to resources) than richness. For individual regions, slopes of phytoplankton evenness–RUE relationships were consistently negative and positive for phytoplankton and zooplankton RUE, respectively, and most slopes did not significantly differ among regions. Findings suggest that negative evenness effects may be more common than previously documented and are not exceptions restricted to highly disturbed systems.