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Computational Ecology and Software, 2026, 16(3): 243-272
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Article

The Niche-Energy-Time triadic synergy hypothesis (NET Hypothesis): A unified explanatory framework for determinants of species diversity

WenJun Zhang
School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China

Received 2 April 2026;Accepted 11 May 2026;Published online 21 May 2026;Published 1 September 2026
IAEES

Abstract
The geographical patterning of species diversity, most famously the latitudinal gradient, one of the oldest and most celebrated patterns in ecology, still lacks a unified mechanistic explanation. Existing hypotheses, including the species-energy hypothesis, the environmental heterogeneity hypothesis, the area hypothesis, neutral theory, metabolic theory, maximum entropy theory, and historical-evolutionary hypotheses, each capture a critical dimension of diversity generation. Yet none alone can explain why regions with identical energy inputs can differ so dramatically in species richness. After systematically reviewing these classical and cutting-edge theories, I propose a novel integrative framework: the Niche-Energy-Time triadic synergy hypothesis (NET hypothesis) in present paper. The NET hypothesis starts from three irreducible ultimate constraints: a thermodynamic constraint, available energy flux (E) sets the upper limit on the total biomass and number of individuals a community can sustain; a structural constraint, multidimensional niche space volume (H) determines the fineness with which that energy flow can be partitioned among species; and a historical constraint, the effective evolutionary and community assembly time (T) determines the degree to which that niche space has been filled. I argue that species diversity is an emergent outcome of these three constraints acting as a serial filter not a linear function of any single factor. I present the core mathematical structure of the NET hypothesis, demonstrate its logical necessity by deriving it from population energy allocation, the niche-width-species-number trade-off, and the macro-dynamics of speciation-extinction balance, and show its power to unify a wide range of classical diversity patterns, including the latitudinal gradient, elevational patterns, and island species-area relationships, as well as anomalous cases. The NET hypothesis does not overturn existing hypotheses but embeds energy, heterogeneity, area, and time into the E, H, and T dimensions, revealing the synergistic mechanisms by which they act as necessary but not sufficient conditions. It provides a testable, quantifiable, mechanistic foundation for predicting biodiversity change and guiding conservation planning.

Keywords species diversity;latitudinal gradient;niche theory;species-energy hypothesis;evolutionary time;metabolic theory;unified theory;macroecology.


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