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Studying interspecific population synchrony: current status and future perspectives

Ragnhild Bjørkås,I. Herfindal,Marlène Gamelon,A. Lee

Published 2025 in Ecography

ABSTRACT

Interspecific population synchrony, or co‐fluctuations in the population dynamics and demographic parameters of different species, is an important ecological phenomenon with major implications for the stability of communities and ecosystems. It is also central in the context of biodiversity loss, as interspecific synchrony can influence how ecological communities are affected by anthropogenic stressors. Studies of interspecific synchrony are therefore important for understanding fundamental mechanisms underlying the biodiversity changes occurring worldwide. Interspecific synchrony has received increased interest in recent years, and studies have focused on synchrony in abundances, growth rates and vital rates at species, community and metacommunity levels. However, there is little cohesiveness in the literature, as studies focused on different levels of biological organization are largely separate from each other. Still, synchrony at these levels of biological organization is likely interconnected in nature. Understanding these connections would greatly benefit our understanding of interspecific synchrony and its implications for populations and communities. Here, we provide an overview of the current status and future perspectives of interspecific synchrony research, highlighting major knowledge gaps. We show how interspecific synchrony at different levels of biological organization is conceptually linked and present an accessible overview of the terminology and methods used to study it. By providing a common understanding of the meaning and applicability of terms and an overview of commonly used methods, this overview will serve as a point of departure for integrating research on interspecific synchrony. Such integration is important to fully understand the impacts of environmental change on species and ecological communities.

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