Species interactions, such as competition or facilitation, are part of what shapes how populations are distributed in a landscape. Researchers used a 15-year dataset on bird distribution and abundance and associated microclimate from the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest Long-Term Ecological Research site to test the long-held hypothesis that the strength and direction of species interactions might be mediated by climatic conditions. They found evidence that species interactions are, in fact, influenced by microclimate. Further, they found that more of the interactions were positive, indicating apparent attraction, than competitive. The findings highlight the importance of using long-term data to incorporate species interactions into models, and support the notion that the strength and direction of species interactions can be dependent on microclimatic conditions.  

Full paper: Frey, S.J.K., Gerber, B.D., Hadley, A.S., Kim, H., Sutton, M., Ferrari, N.C. and Betts, M.G. (2026), Microclimate mediates the strength and direction of avian biotic interactions. Ecography e08313. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecog.08313