Data & R code for: Paquette & Hargreaves 'Biotic interactions are more often important at species' warm vs. cool range edges'

Predicting which ecological factors constrain species distributions is a
fundamental ecological question and critical to forecasting geographic
responses to global change. Darwin hypothesized that abiotic factors
generally impose species’ high-latitude and high-elevation (typically
cool) range limits, whereas biotic interactions more often impose species’
low-latitude/low-elevation (typically warm) limits, but empirical support
has been mixed. Here, we clarify three predictions arising from Darwin’s
hypothesis, and show that previously mixed support is partially due to
researchers testing different predictions. Using a comprehensive
literature review (885 range limits), we find that biotic interactions,
including competition, predation, and parasitism, contributed to
>60% of range limits, and influenced species’ warm limits more
often than cool limits. Abiotic factors contributed more often than biotic
interactions to cool range limits, but temperature contributed frequently
to both cool and warm limits. Our results suggest that most range limits
will be sensitive to climate warming, but warm-limit responses will depend
strongly on biotic interactions.