Data from: Mutualistic mimicry and filtering by altitude shape the structure of Andean butterfly communities

Both the abiotic environment and abiotic interactions among species contribute to shaping species assemblages. While the roles of habitat filtering and competitive interactions are clearly established, less is known about how positive interactions, whereby species benefit from the presence of one another, affect community structure. Here we assess the importance of positive interactions by studying Andean communities of butterflies that interact mutualistically via Müllerian mimicry. We show that communities at similar altitudes have a similar phylogenetic composition, confirming that filtering by altitude is an important process. We also provide evidence that species that interact mutualistically (i.e., species that share the same mimicry wing pattern) coexist at large scales more often than expected by chance. Furthermore, we detect an association between mimicry structure and altitude that is stronger than expected even when phylogeny is corrected for, indicating adaptive convergence for wing pattern and/or altitudinal range driven by mutualistic interactions. Positive interactions extend far beyond Müllerian mimicry, with many examples in plants and animals, and their role in the evolution and assembly of communities may be more pervasive than is currently appreciated. Our findings have strong implications for the evolution and resilience of community structure in a changing world.

非生物环境与物种种间非生物相互作用共同塑造了物种组合。尽管生境过滤与种间竞争互作的生态功能已得到明确证实，但对于物种间彼此受益的正相互作用如何影响群落结构，目前仍缺乏深入认知。本研究以通过缪氏拟态（Müllerian mimicry）形成互利互作的安第斯蝴蝶群落为研究对象，评估正相互作用的重要性。研究发现，海拔相近的蝴蝶群落具有相似的系统发育组成，证实了海拔过滤是群落组装的关键过程。此外，本研究提供证据表明：互利互作的物种（即共享同一拟态翅型的物种）在大尺度上的共存频率显著高于随机预期。进一步分析显示，即使校正系统发育因素后，拟态结构与海拔之间的关联仍强于随机预期，这表明互利互作驱动了翅型和/或海拔分布范围的适应性趋同。正相互作用的范畴远不止缪氏拟态，动植物类群中均存在大量相关案例，其在群落演化与组装过程中的作用可能比当前学界认知更为广泛。本研究结果对于变化世界中群落结构的演化与恢复力具有重要启示意义。