Including parasites in food webs.
Growing evidence indicates parasite inclusion in food-web analyses is a logical default. Comparisons of food webs including and excluding host-parasite interactions demonstrate the influence of parasites on community dynamics. Although including parasites is undoubtedly informative, the necessary level of detail exists for only a handful of systems. In a recent Ecology Letters article, Lafferty et al. pose many good questions to catalyze discussions for determining when and how parasites should be incorporated into food-web analyses.
Byers
James E
JE
Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, 140 E. Green Street, Athens, GA 30602, USA. jebyers@uga.edu
D000818:Animals; D020387:Food Chain; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D006801:Humans; D010271:Parasites / Q000502:physiology*