Is a healthy ecosystem one that is rich in parasites?

Historically, the role of parasites in ecosystem functioning has been considered trivial because a cursory examination reveals that their relative biomass is low compared with that of other trophic groups. However there is increasing evidence that parasite-mediated effects could be significant: they...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Trends in ecology & evolution (Amsterdam) 2006-07, Vol.21 (7), p.381-385
Main Authors: Hudson, Peter J., Dobson, Andrew P., Lafferty, Kevin D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Biodiversity
Biological and medical sciences
Ecosystem
Evolution, Molecular
Food Chain
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
General aspects
Health
Host-Parasite Interactions - physiology
Parasites - physiology
Synecology
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Summary:Historically, the role of parasites in ecosystem functioning has been considered trivial because a cursory examination reveals that their relative biomass is low compared with that of other trophic groups. However there is increasing evidence that parasite-mediated effects could be significant: they shape host population dynamics, alter interspecific competition, influence energy flow and appear to be important drivers of biodiversity. Indeed they influence a range of ecosystem functions and have a major effect on the structure of some food webs. Here, we consider the bottom-up and top-down processes of how parasitism influences ecosystem functioning and show that there is evidence that parasites are important for biodiversity and production; thus, we consider a healthy system to be one that is rich in parasite species.
ISSN:0169-5347
1872-8383
DOI:10.1016/j.tree.2006.04.007