Ecosystem significance of crayfishes and stonerollers in a prairie stream: functional differences between co-occurring omnivores
نویسندگان
چکیده
The ecosystem significance of crayfishes (Orconectes nais (Faxon) and O. neglectus (Faxon)) and central stoneroller minnows (Campostoma anomalum (Rafinesque)), was examined in a tallgrass prairie stream by estimating the trophic basis of production and consumption for each species. Annual ash-free dry mass production and production to biomass ratios of C. anomalum (260 mg m22 y21, 1.3) were lower than that of O. nais (719 mg m22 y21, 2.4) and O. neglectus (508 mg m22 y21, 2.1). Gut content analysis revealed no significant differences in the percentages of the various food items ingested by O. nais and O. neglectus, indicating they were functionally similar with respect to the types of organic matter processed in this system. We found a significant difference among seasons in the % of invertebrates in C. anomalum guts (p 5 0.0001) and the % of algae in Orconectes spp. guts (p 5 0.005), indicating the importance of measuring resource use throughout the growing season. Leaves contributed most to Orconectes spp. annual production (45%) followed by animal matter (30%), algae (19%), and amorphous detritus (6%). Algae contributed most to C. anomalum production (47%) followed by amorphous detritus (30%), animal matter (21%), and leaves (2%). Orconectes spp. consumed more leaf litter, filamentous green algae, and macroinvertebrates than C. anomalum, whereas C. anomalum consumed more diatoms. Crayfish and central stonerollers are both omnivores that function as important consumers and processors of algae and detritus in this tallgrass prairie stream, but each focuses on slightly different types of similar resources.
منابع مشابه
Disturbance frequency and functional identity mediate ecosystem processes in prairie streams
A major consequence of climate change will be the alteration of precipitation patterns and concomitant changes in the flood frequencies in streams. Species losses or introductions will accompany these changes, which necessitates understanding the interactions between altered disturbance regimes and consumer functional identity to predict dynamics of streams. We used experimental mesocosms and f...
متن کاملTrophic Tangles through Time? Opposing Direct and Indirect Effects of an Invasive Omnivore on Stream Ecosystem Processes
Omnivores can impact ecosystems via opposing direct or indirect effects. For example, omnivores that feed on herbivores and plants could either increase plant biomass due to the removal of herbivores or decrease plant biomass due to direct consumption. Thus, empirical quantification of the relative importance of direct and indirect impacts of omnivores is needed, especially the impacts of invas...
متن کاملHabitat Simulation Technique as a Powerful Tool for Instream Flow Needs Assessment and River Ecosystem Management
Instream flow needs (IFN) assessment studies are performed to provide guidelines for stream water management and to assess the impacts of different water projects such as weirs, dams and stream diversions on the available fish habitat. The physical habitat simulation is one of the IFN assessment methods and also a powerful tool in management of river ecosystem that has not become a common metho...
متن کاملExperimental Evidence of an Eco-evolutionary Feedback during Adaptive Divergence
Differences in how organisms modify their environment can evolve rapidly and might influence adaptive population divergence. In a common garden experiment in aquatic mesocosms, we found that adult stickleback from a recently diverged pair of lake and stream populations had contrasting effects on ecosystem metrics. These modifications were caused by both genetic and plastic differences between p...
متن کاملRapid response of a grassland ecosystem to an experimental manipulation of a keystone rodent and domestic livestock.
Megaherbivores and small burrowing mammals commonly coexist and play important functional roles in grassland ecosystems worldwide. The interactive effects of these two functional groups of herbivores in shaping the structure and function of grassland ecosystems are poorly understood. In North America's central grasslands, domestic cattle (Bos taurus) have supplanted bison (Bison bison), and now...
متن کامل