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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Trophic role of marbled crayfish in a lentic freshwater ecosystem

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Species’ introductions may cause severe adverse effects on freshwater ecosystems and their biota. The marbled crayfish, Procambarus virginalis Lyko, 2017, is an invasive parthenogenetically reproducing crayfish with rapid reproduction, maturation and tolerance to a wide range of environmental conditions, which was introduced to many sites across Europe during the last decade. Due to its recent speciation and limited number of field studies, the knowledge of trophic interactions of the marbled crayfish in freshwater food webs is scarce. An invaded area located in Central Europe was studied to identify the marbled crayfish food web interactions using analysis of carbon 13 C and nitrogen 15N isotopes. This study brings the first insight into the trophic ecology of marbled crayfish in lentic freshwater ecosystems. Algae and detritus were identified as the most important food sources for the marbled crayfish, while zoobenthos and macrophytes were less important. Moreover, the marbled crayfish was found to be an important food source for top fish predators, but marginal for omnivorous fish. Being able to utilize energy from the bottom of the trophic food web, the marbled crayfish may have important roles in the ecosystem, transferring energy to higher trophic levels. It processes allochthonous and autochthonous matter in the ecosystem, thus being a competitor to other organisms with similar food preferences and impacting zoobenthos, algae and macrophytes through predation or direct consumption. To sum up, the marbled crayfish has a strong ability to utilize food sources from different trophic levels, and, thanks to its life history, can be a highly adaptable invader. This study was supported by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic – projects CENAKVA (No. CZ.1.05/2.1.00/01.0024), CENAKVA II (No. LO1205 under the NPU I program), the Grant Agency of the University of South Bohemia (012/2016/Z) and the Estonian Research Council, Mobilitas Pluss research project (MOBJD29). We thank Anton Mutkovič, Samuel Baranovič and other local fishermen for their help in collecting the material for this research. We thank Julian Reynolds for language editing. Our appreciation is also extended to the two reviewers and Elena Tricarico, a Thematic-Deputy Editor-in-Chief, for their constructive comments on the manuscript. This study was supported by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic – projects CENAKVA (No. CZ.1.05/2.1.00/01.0024), CENAKVA II (No. LO1205 under the NPU I program), the Grant Agency of the University of South Bohemia (012/2016/Z) and the Estonian Research Council, Mobilitas Pluss research project (MOBJD29). We thank Anton Mutkovič, Samuel Baranovič and other local fishermen for their help in collecting the material for this research. We thank Julian Reynolds for language editing. Our appreciation is also extended to the two reviewers and Elena Tricarico, a Thematic-Deputy Editor-in-Chief, for their constructive comments on the manuscript.