An empirical test of stable species coexistence in an amphipod species complex.

The ability of phenotypically similar species to coexist at local scales is paradoxical given that species that closely resemble each other should compete strongly for resources and thus be subject to competitive exclusion. Although theory has identified the key requirements for species to stably coexist, empirical tests of coexistence have rarely been conducted. We explored a key requirement for species to stably coexist: a species can invade a community when it is initially rare.