Search results for "Predatory"
showing 10 items of 143 documents
Susceptibility of eye fluke-infected fish to predation by bird hosts.
2005
Host manipulation by trophically transmitted parasites may predispose infected hosts to predation and in this way enhance parasite transmission. In most study systems, however, the evidence comes from laboratory studies, and therefore knowledge of the effect of manipulation on parasite transmission efficiency in the wild is still limited. Here we examined the effect ofDiplostomum spathaceum(Trematoda) eye flukes on the susceptibility of fish intermediate hosts to predation by bird definitive hosts. Our earlier studies have shown that the parasite alters fish phenotype and increases their susceptibility to artificial predation under laboratory conditions. In the present field study, we allow…
Dietary ontogeny and niche shift to piscivory in lacustrine brown trout Salmo trutta revealed by stomach content and stable isotope analyses
2012
The feeding ecology and ontogeny of a large size range of brown trout Salmo trutta in Lake Fyresvatnet, southern Norway, were examined by stomach content and stable isotope analyses. According to the stomach contents, the S. trutta changed their diet at c. 30 cm total length (L(T) ). The smaller size classes fed on benthic invertebrates and surface insects, whereas larger S. trutta (30 cm) fed mainly on whitefish Coregonus lavaretus. A similar, but more gradual shift to piscivory in the size range 25-30 cm was found when using the stable isotope mixing model SIAR to reveal dietary ontogeny. The δ¹³C isotopic signature confirmed that S. trutta independent of size predominantly relied upon be…
Coping with continual danger: assessing alertness to visual disturbances in crucian carp following long-term exposure to chemical alarm signals.
2013
Chemical alarm signals in fish are passively released into the water from ruptured epidermal cells, and induce instant fright responses in conspecifics. Fish also display alarm responses to injured heterospecific skin, as well as to scent of piscivorous predators that have ingested prey. A conspicuous alertness to visual disturbances has also been observed in fish following long-term exposure to extracts of filtered, homogenized skin, but the chemical inducers of such vigilance are actually unknown. We tested if a continual exposure to water-soluble alarm signals, from either conspecifics or heterospecifics, affects alertness of fish. Based on previous experience, it was assumed that alertn…
Dynamics of two competing species in the presence of Lévy noise sources
2010
We consider a Lotka-Volterra system of two competing species subject to multiplicative alpha-stable Lévy noise. The interaction parameter between the species is a random process which obeys a stochastic differential equation with a generalized bistable potential in the presence both of a periodic driving term and an additive alpha-stable Lévy noise. We study the species dynamics, which is characterized by two different regimes, exclusion of one species and coexistence of both. We find quasi-periodic oscillations and stochastic resonance phenomenon in the dynamics of the competing species, analysing the role of the Lévy noise sources.
Pulsed-Resource Dynamics Constrain the Evolution of Predator-Prey Interactions
2011
Although temporal variability in the physical environment plays a major role in population fluctuations, little is known about how it drives the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of species interactions. We studied experimentally how extrinsic resource pulses affect evolutionary and ecological dynamics between the prey bacterium Serratia marcescens and the predatory protozoan Tetrahymena thermophila. Predation increased the frequency of defensive, nonpigmented prey types, which bore competitive costs in terms of reduced maximum growth rate, most in a constant-resource environment. Furthermore, the predator densities of the pulsed-resource environment regularly fluctuated above and below …
Intraguild predation and interference competition on the endangered dragonfly Aeshna viridis
2003
We examined the effects of intraguild predation (IGP) and interference competition on an endangered dragonfly, Aeshna viridis Eversm. (Odonata: Anisoptera). A. viridis is rare in Europe due to the decrease in suitable habitats harboring the macrophyte Stratiotes aloides L. Stratiotes plants are the principal oviposition substrate for A. viridis females and protect the larvae of A. viridis from fish predation. In our study lakes A. viridis larvae are sympatric with larvae of Aeshna grandis and Aeshna juncea. The susceptibility of A. viridis larvae to IGP by similar-sized larvae of A. grandis and A. juncea was tested in a laboratory predation experiment. Microhabitat use of A. viridis and A. …
Depletion of coastal predatory fish sub-stocks coincided with the largest sea urchin grazing event observed in the NE Atlantic
2020
AbstractIn this contribution, we propose fishery driven predator release as the cause for the largest grazing event ever observed in the NE Atlantic. Based on the evolving appreciation of limits to population connectivity, published and previously unpublished data, we discuss whether overfishing caused a grazer bloom of the sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) resulting in overgrazing of more than 2000 km2 kelp (Laminaria hyperborea) forest along Norwegian and Russian coasts during the 1970 s. We show that coastal fisheries likely depleted predatory coastal fish stocks through modernization of fishing methods and fleet. These fish were important predators on urchins and the reduct…
Ecosystem restoration with teeth: what role for predators?
2011
Recent advances highlight the potential for predators to restore ecosystems and confer resilience against globally threatening processes, including climate change and biological invasions. However, releasing the ecological benefits of predators entails significant challenges. Here, we discuss the economic, environmental and social considerations affecting predator-driven ecological restoration programmes, and suggest approaches for reducing the undesirable impacts of predators. Because the roles of predators are context dependent, we argue for increased emphasis on predator functionality in ecosystems and less on the identities and origins of species and genotypes. We emphasise that insuffi…
Comparative morphology of the postpharyngeal gland in the Philanthinae (Hymenoptera, Crabronidae) and the evolution of an antimicrobial brood protect…
2015
Background Hymenoptera that mass-provision their offspring have evolved elaborate antimicrobial strategies to ward off fungal infestation of the highly nutritive larval food. Females of the Afro-European Philanthus triangulum and the South American Trachypus elongatus (Crabronidae, Philanthinae) embalm their prey, paralyzed bees, with a secretion from a complex postpharyngeal gland (PPG). This coating consists of mainly unsaturated hydrocarbons and reduces water accumulation on the prey’s surface, thus rendering it unfavorable for fungal growth. Here we (1) investigated whether a North American Philanthus species also employs prey embalming and (2) assessed the occurrence and morphology of …
Social transmission in the wild can reduce predation pressure on novel prey signals
2021
Funder: Suomen Kulttuurirahasto (Finnish Cultural Foundation); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100003125