Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Inter- and intra-specific patterns of density dependence and population size variability in Salmoniformes

  • Population ecology - Original research
  • Published:
Oecologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

An Erratum to this article was published on 08 September 2012

Abstract

Population dynamics are typically affected by a combination of density-independent and density-dependent factors, the latter of which have been conceptually and theoretically linked with how variable population sizes are over time—which in turn has been tied to how prone populations are to extinction. To address evidence for the occurrence of density dependence and its relationship with population size variability (pv), we quantified each of these for 126 populations of 8 species of Salmoniformes. Using random-effects models, we partitioned variation in the strength of density dependence and the magnitude of pv between and within species and estimated the correlation of density dependence and population size variability at both the between- and within-species levels. We found that variation in the strength of density dependence was predominately within species (I 2 = 0.47). In contrast, variation in population size variability was distributed both between and within species (I 2 = 0.40). Contrary to theoretical and conceptual expectations, the strength of density dependence and the magnitude of population size variability were positively correlated at the between species level (r = 0.90), although this estimate had 95 % credibility intervals (Bayesian analogues to confidence intervals) that overlapped zero. The within-species correlation between density dependence and population size variability was not distinguishable from zero. Given that density dependence for Salmoniformes was highly variable within species, we next determined the joint effects of intrinsic (density-dependent) and extrinsic (density-independent) factors on the population dynamics of a threatened salmonid, the Lahontan cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii henshawi). We found that density-dependent and -independent factors additively contributed to population dynamics. This finding suggests that the observed within-species variability in density dependence might be attributable to local differences in the strength of density-independent factors.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bengtsson J, Milbrink G (1995) Predicting extinctions: interspecific competition, predation and population variability in experimental Daphnia populations. Oecologia 101:397–406

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brook BW, Bradshaw CJA (2006) Strength of evidence for density dependence in abundance time series of 1198 species. Ecology 87:1445–1451

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brown JS (1989) Desert rodent community structure: a test of 4 mechanisms of coexistence. Ecol Monogr 59:1–20

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown JH, Fox BJ, Kelt DA (2000) Assembly rules: desert rodent communities are structured at scales from local to continental. Am Nat 156:314–321

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown JH, Kelt DA, Fox BJ (2002) Assembly rules and competition in desert rodents. Am Nat 160:815–818

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Burnham KP, Anderson DR (2002) Model selection and multimodel inference: a practical information-theoretic approach, 2nd edn. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Chevan A, Sutherland M (1991) Hierarchical partitioning. Am Stat 45:90–96

    Google Scholar 

  • Coffin PD, Cowan WF (1995) Lahontan cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki henshawi) recovery plan. US Fish and Wildlife Service, Portland, OR

    Google Scholar 

  • Connell JH, Sousa WP (1983) On the evidence needed to judge ecological stability or persistence. Am Nat 121:789–824

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davidson J, Andrewartha HG (1948) The influence of rainfall, evaporation and atmospheric temperature on fluctuations in the size of a natural population of Thrips imaginis (Thysanoptera). J Anim Ecol 17:200–222

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dennis B, Ponciano JM, Lele SR, Taper ML, Staples DF (2006) Estimating density dependence, process noise, and observation error. Ecol Monogr 76:323–341

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dennis B, Ponciano JM, Taper ML (2010) Replicated sampling increases efficiency in monitoring biological populations. Ecology 91:610–620

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dickerson BR, Vinyard GL (1999) Effects of high levels of total dissolved solids in Walker Lake, Nevada, on survival and growth of Lahontan cutthroat trout. Trans Am Fish Soc 128:507–515

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dochtermann NA, Peacock MM (2010) Differences in population size variability among populations and species of the family Salmonidae. J Anim Ecol 79:888–896

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dunham JB, Vinyard GL (1997) Incorporating stream level variability into analyses of site level fish habitat relationships: some cautionary examples. Trans Am Fish Soc 126:323–329

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunham JB, Peacock MM, Rieman BE, Schroeter RE, Vinyard GL (1999) Local and geographic variability in the distribution of stream-living Lahontan cutthroat trout. Trans Am Fish Soc 128:875–889

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunham JB, Rahn ME, Schroeter RE, Breck SW (2000) Diets of sympatric Lahontan cutthroat trout and nonnative brook trout: implications for species interactions. West N Am Nat 60:304–310

    Google Scholar 

  • Dunham JB, Adams SB, Schroeter RE, Novinger DC (2002) Alien invasions in aquatic ecosystems: toward an understanding of brook trout invasions and potential impacts on inland cutthroat trout in western North America. Rev Fish Biol Fish 12:373–391

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunham J, Schroeter R, Rieman B (2003) Influence of maximum water temperature on occurrence of Lahontan cutthroat trout within streams. N Am J Fish Manag 23:1042–1049

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Erman DC, Andrews ED, Yoderwilliams M (1988) Effects of winter floods on fishes in the Sierra-Nevada. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 45:2195–2200

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fagan WF, Meir E, Prendergast J, Folarin A, Karieva P (2001) Characterizing population vulnerability for 758 species. Ecol Lett 4:132–138

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garland T, Bennett AF, Rezende EL (2005) Phylogenetic approaches in comparative physiology. J Exp Biol 208:3015–3035

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hadfield JD (2010) MCMC methods for multi-response generalized linear mixed models: the MCMCglmm R package. J Stat Softw 33:1–22

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanski I (1990) Density dependence, regulation and variability in animal populations. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B 330:141–150

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heath JP (2006) Quantifying temporal variability in population abundances. Oikos 115:573–581

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Henson SS, Ahearn DS, Dahlgren RA, Van Nieuwenhuyse E, Tate KW, Fleenor WE (2007) Water quality response to a pulsed-flow event on the Mokelumne River, California. River Res App 23:185–200

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holling CS (1973) Resilience and stability of ecological systems. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 4:1–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holyoak M, Lawton JH (1992) Detection of density dependence from annual censuses of bracken-feeding insects. Oecologia 91:425–430

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hox JJ (2010) Multilevel analysis: techniques and applications, 2nd edn. Routledge, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Inchausti P, Halley J (2001) Investigating long-term ecological variability using the global population dynamics database. Science 293:655–657

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Inchausti P, Halley J (2002) The long-term temporal variability and spectral colour of animal populations. Evol Ecol Res 4:1033–1048

    Google Scholar 

  • Inchausti P, Halley J (2003) On the relation between temporal variability and persistence time in animal populations. J Anim Ecol 72:899–908

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keeley ER, Grant JWA (2001) Prey size of salmonid fishes in streams, lakes and oceans. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 58:1122–1132

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Knape J (2008) Estimability of density dependence in models of time series data. Ecology 89:2994–3000

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Knape J, de Valpine P (2012) Are patterns of density dependence in the global population dynamics database driven by uncertainty about population abundance? Ecol Lett 15:17–23

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Knape J, Jonzen N, Skold M (2011) On observation distributions for state space models of population survey data. J Anim Ecol 80:1269–1277

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Latterell JJ, Fausch KD, Gowan C, Riley SC (1998) Relationship of trout recruitment to snowmelt runoff flows and adult trout abundance in six Colorado mountain streams. Rivers 6:240–250

    Google Scholar 

  • Lima M, Ernest SKM, Brown JH, Belgrano A, Stenseth NC (2008) Chihuahuan Desert kangaroo rats: nonlinear effects of population dynamics, competition, and rainfall. Ecology 89:2594–2603

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Matsuyama Y, Ohashi Y (1997) Mixed models for bivariate response repeated measures data using Gibbs sampling. Stat Med 16:1587–1601

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • May RM, Conway GR, Hassell MP, Southwood Tr (1974) Time delays, density dependence and single species oscillations. J Anim Ecol 43:747–770

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meeuwig MH, Dunham JB, Hayes JP, Vinyard GL (2004) Effects of constant and cyclical thermal regimes on growth and feeding of juvenile cutthroat trout of variable sizes. Ecol Freshw Fish 13:208–216

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Montgomery DR, Beamer EM, Pess GR, Quinn TP (1999) Channel type and salmonid spawning distribution and abundance. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 56:377–387

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nakagawa S, Santos ESA (2012) Methodological issues and advances in biological meta-analysis. Evol Ecol (in press)

  • NERC Centre for Population Biology IC (1999) The global population dynamics database. http://www.sw.ic.ac.uk/cpb/cpb/gpdd.html

  • Neville HM, Dunham JB, Peacock MM (2006) Landscape attributes and life history variability shape genetic structure of trout populations in a stream network. Landsc Ecol 21:901–916

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nicholson AJ (1933) Supplement: the balance of animal populations. J Anim Ecol 2:131–178

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peacock MM, Kirchoff V (2004) Assessing the conservation value of hybridized cutthroat trout populations in the Quinn River drainage, Nevada. Trans Am Fish Soc 133:309–325

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pimm SL, Jones HL, Diamond J (1988) On the risk of extinction. Am Nat 132:757–785

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Platts WS, Nelson RL (1988) Fluctuations in trout populations and their implications for land-use evaluation. Am J Fish Manag 8:333–345

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ray C, Peacock MM, Dunham JB (2007) Demography and population dynamics of Lahontan cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii henshawi) stream populations in Eastern Nevada. United States Fish and Wildlife Service. p 205

  • Reed DH, Hobbs GR (2004) The relationship between population size and temporal variability in population size. Anim Conserv 7:1–8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richards SA (2005) Testing ecological theory using the information-theoretic approach: examples and cautionary results. Ecology 86:2805–2814

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodenhouse NL, Sillett TS, Doran PJ, Holmes RT (2003) Multiple density-dependence mechanisms regulate a migratory bird population during the breeding season. Proc R Soc Lond B 270:2105–2110

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sæther BE, Tufto J, Engen S, Jerstad K, Rostad OW, Skatan JE (2000) Population dynamical consequences of climate change for a small temperate songbird. Science 287:854–856

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schoener TW (1985) Are lizard population sizes unusually constant through time? Am Nat 126:633–641

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seegrist DW, Gard R (1972) Effects of floods on trout in Sagehen Creek, California. Trans Am Fish Soc 101:478–482

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sibly RM, Hone J (2002) Population growth rate and its determinants: an overview. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B 357:1153–1170

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sibly RM, Barker D, Denham MC, Hone J, Pagel M (2005) On the regulation of populations of mammals, birds, fish, and insects. Science 309:607–610

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Strange EM, Moyle PB, Foin TC (1992) Interactions between stochastic and deterministic processes in stream fish community assembly. Environ Biol Fish 36:1–15

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turchin P (1990) Rarity of density dependence or population regulation with lags? Nature 344:660–663

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Deventer JS, Platts WS (1989) Microcomputer software system for generating population statistics from electrofishing data: user guide for microfish 3.0. USDA Gen. Technical Report. INT-254

  • Vucetich JA, Waite TA, Qvarnemark L, Ibarguen S (2000) Population variability and extinction risk. Conserv Biol 14:1704–1714

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • White TCR (2008) The role of food, weather and climate in limiting the abundance of animals. Biol Rev 83:227–248

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zuur AF, Ieno EN, Walker NJ, Saveliev AA, Smith GM (2009) Mixed effects models and extensions in ecology with R. Springer, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Lisa Heki, Project Leader, Lahontan National Fish Hatchery Complex, United States Fish and Wildlife Service for funding and Robbie Bear, Jason Dunham, Joel Hoffman, Jessica Kenzie, Anita Lahey, Michael Meeuwig, Helen Neville, Matt Rahn, Chris Rosamond, Robert Schroeder, and Gary Vinyard for indispensable help in the field. Marc Mangel, Sean Hayes, and an anonymous reviewer provided important critical feedback that greatly helped this paper.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Ned A. Dochtermann

    Present address: Department of Biological Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA

    Ned A. Dochtermann & Mary M. Peacock

Authors
  1. Ned A. Dochtermann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mary M. Peacock
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ned A. Dochtermann.

Additional information

Communicated by Marc Mangel.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (PDF 301 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Dochtermann, N.A., Peacock, M.M. Inter- and intra-specific patterns of density dependence and population size variability in Salmoniformes. Oecologia 171, 153–162 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-012-2402-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-012-2402-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation