New horizons for comparative studies and meta-analyses

Patrice Pottier; Daniel W A Noble; Frank Seebacher; Nicholas C Wu; Samantha Burke; Malgorzata Lagisz; Lisa E Schwanz; Szymon M Drobniak; Shinichi Nakagawa

doi:10.1016/j.tree.2023.12.004

New horizons for comparative studies and meta-analyses

Trends Ecol Evol. 2024 May;39(5):435-445. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.12.004. Epub 2024 Jan 11.

Authors

Patrice Pottier¹, Daniel W A Noble², Frank Seebacher³, Nicholas C Wu⁴, Samantha Burke⁵, Malgorzata Lagisz⁶, Lisa E Schwanz⁵, Szymon M Drobniak⁷, Shinichi Nakagawa⁶

Affiliations

¹ Evolution and Ecology Centre, School of Biological, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Electronic address: p.pottier@unsw.edu.au.
² Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, College of Science, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
³ School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁴ Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, New South Wales, Australia.
⁵ Evolution and Ecology Centre, School of Biological, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
⁶ Evolution and Ecology Centre, School of Biological, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Theoretical Sciences Visiting Program, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Onna 904-0495, Japan.
⁷ Evolution and Ecology Centre, School of Biological, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland.

PMID: 38216408
DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.12.004

Abstract

Comparative analyses and meta-analyses are key tools to elucidate broad biological principles, yet the two approaches often appear different in purpose. We propose an integrated approach that can generate deeper insights into ecoevolutionary processes. Marrying comparative and meta-analytic approaches will allow for (i) a more accurate investigation of drivers of biological variation, (ii) a greater ability to account for sources of non-independence in experimental data, (iii) more effective control of publication bias, and (iv) improved transparency and reproducibility. Stronger integration of meta-analytic and comparative studies can also broaden the scope from species-centric investigations to community-level responses and function-valued traits (e.g., reaction norms). We illuminate commonalities, differences, and the transformative potential of combining these methodologies for advancing ecology and evolutionary biology.

Keywords: multilevel modelling; multivariate analysis; phylogenetic generalized linear mixed model; phylogenetic signal; sampling variance.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Biological Evolution*
Ecology* / methods
Meta-Analysis as Topic*