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Niche differentiation among invasive Ponto-Caspian Chelicorophium species (Crustacea, Amphipoda, Corophiidae) by food particle size

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A Correction to this article was published on 14 August 2018

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Abstract

After Chelicorophium curvispinum, two other Ponto-Caspian tube-dwelling, filter-feeding amphipod species (Chelicorophium robustum and Chelicorophium sowinskyi) have colonized several catchments in Central and Western Europe in recent decades. To reveal the mechanism of niche differentiation among them, we measured the mesh sizes of their filtering apparatus and analyzed multi-habitat sampling data from the River Danube using RDA-based variance partitioning between environmental and spatial explanatory variables. Morphometric data showed a clear differentiation among the species by filter mesh size (C. curvispinum > C. robustum > C. sowinskyi). Field data also indicated the relevance of suspended matter; however, the mere quantity of suspended solids included in the analysis could not explain the abundance patterns effectively. Current velocity, substrate types, and total nitrogen content also had a non-negligible effect; however, their role in the niche differentiation of the species is not evident. In summary, differences in their filter mesh sizes indicate a niche differentiation by food particle size among the invasive Chelicorophium species, allowing their stable coexistence given sufficient size variability in their food source. Consequently, the two recent invaders increase the effectiveness of resource utilization, resulting in a more intensive benthic–pelagic coupling in the colonized ecosystems.

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Change history

  • 14 August 2018

    A calibration mistake caused systematic error in the microscopic measurements; all filter mesh size values should be divided by a factor of 2.56. As our conclusions were based on the inter- and intraspecific variations of the trait, this systematic error does not influence them in any way.

    Filter mesh sizes ranged between 2.47 and 7.17 μm in C. curvispinum, between 1.83 and 5.09 μm in C. robustum, and between 1.03 and 2.68 μm in C. sowinskyi. Interspecific differences were estimated correctly as 1.12 μm (SE = 0.15) between C. curvispinum and C. robustum, and 1.37 μm (SE = 0.15) between C. robustum and C. sowinskyi. The correct version of Figure 2 and Table 3 are provided in this correction.

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Acknowledgements

Joint Danube Survey 3 was organized by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR). We would like to thank everyone involved in the organization, field work, and evaluation of the survey for their effort, and Zsuzsanna Trábert for her assistance during the microscopy. This work was supported by the MARS project (Managing Aquatic ecosystems and water Resources under multiple Stress) funded by the European Union under the 7th Framework Programme, grant agreement no: 603378, and the Economic Development and Innovation Operational Programme (GINOP) 2.3.2-15-2016-00019 grant. Péter Borza was supported by the Scholarship of the Scholarship Foundation of the Republic of Austria for Post-docs from October 2013 until March 2014 (funding organization: Österreichischer Austauschdienst GmbH on behalf of and financed by the Scholarship Foundation of the Republic of Austria).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group, MTA Centre for Ecological Research, Klebelsberg Kuno utca 3, Tihany, 8237, Hungary

    Péter Borza

  2. Danube Research Institute, MTA Centre for Ecological Research, Karolina út 29-31, Budapest, 1113, Hungary

    Péter Borza

  3. Department of Water, Atmosphere and Environment, Institute for Hydrobiology and Water Management, BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Gregor Mendel Strasse 33, 1180, Vienna, Austria

    Thomas Huber, Patrick Leitner & Wolfram Graf

  4. Info fauna – CSCF, Passage Maximilien-de-Meuron 6, 2000, Neuchâtel, Switzerland

    Nadine Remund

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  1. Péter Borza
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Correspondence to Péter Borza.

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Borza, P., Huber, T., Leitner, P. et al. Niche differentiation among invasive Ponto-Caspian Chelicorophium species (Crustacea, Amphipoda, Corophiidae) by food particle size. Aquat Ecol 52, 179–190 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10452-018-9653-8

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