6533b7d0fe1ef96bd125a310
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Towards a Unified Functional Trait Framework for Parasites
Juan Antonio BalbuenaFrancesco De BelloFrancesco De BelloCristina Llopis-belenguerIsabel Blasco-costaKatharina Langesubject
0301 basic medicinePersistence (psychology)030231 tropical medicineFunctional approachBiologyModels BiologicalHost-Parasite InteractionsPersistence03 medical and health sciencesFunctional diversity0302 clinical medicineEstablishmentAnimalsParasitesCommunity ecologyLife History TraitsEcosystemHigh potentialLife Cycle StagesFunctional traitsfunctional diversityCommunityDispersalIndividual level030104 developmental biologyInfectious DiseasesEvolutionary biologyTraitBiological dispersalParasitologydescription
Trait-based research holds high potential to unveil ecological and evolutionary processes. Functional traits are fitness-related characteristics of individuals, which are measured at individual level and defined without using information external to the individual. Despite the usefulness of the functional approach to understand the performance of individuals in ecosystems, and parasitism being the most common life-history strategy on Earth, studies based on functional traits of parasites are still scarce. Since the choice of functional traits is a critical step for any study, we propose a core list of seven functional traits of metazoan parasites, related to three universal challenges faced by organisms (dispersal, establishment, and persistence), and give guidelines to define appropriate functional traits in future parasite community studies.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-12-01 | Trends in Parasitology |