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The importance of predation and predator size on the development and structure of a subtropical fouling community

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Abstract

Predation plays a fundamental role in shaping marine fouling communities. However, its consequences for species diversity and community organization depend on several intrinsic properties of predators and prey. To evaluate how predators of different sizes affect the organization of sessile communities during their development, we deployed an experiment in which PVC plates were assigned to one of four predation exclusion treatments: partial exclusion cage (2.4 cm mesh), total exclusion cage (0.5 cm mesh), and two respective controls. We evaluated community richness and structure after 30, 90, and 150 days. Regardless of size, predation did not affect total species richness. After 30 days, communities on plates protected against all predators had less free space than any other treatments, but their structure was similar to those protected to large predators only. Therefore, the addition of predators smaller than 2.4 cm to the pool of consumers may intensify predation effects rather than change species dominance and composition. After 90 days, intensified consumption by smaller predators had no longer measurable effects. Our data suggest that the removal of dominant species by predation does not increase species richness but modulates the interaction among species. The removal of ascidians seems to facilitate the dominance of predator-resistant bryozoans.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Edson Vieira Filho for helpful suggestions while redrafting the manuscript and the staff at the Yacht Clube of Ilhabela for their logistic support. FTO thanks CAPES for the award of a Master scholarship. Financial support was also provided by the Fundação de Amaparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP), process number 2013/11286-2. This is a contribution of the Research Center for Marine Biodiversity of the University of São Paulo.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas, Universidade Federal do ABC, Rua Arcturus 03 Jd Antares, São Bernardo do Campo, SP, CEP 09606-070, Brazil

    Felipe T. Oricchio & Gustavo M. Dias

  2. Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Rua Prof. Artur Riedel, 275. Jd. Eldorado, Diadema, São Paulo, CEP 09972-270, Brazil

    Felipe T. Oricchio

  3. Centro de Biologia Marinha (CEBIMar), Universidade São Paulo (USP), Rodovia Manoel Hypólito do Rego, km. 131.5. Praia do Cabelo Gordo, São Sebastião, SP, CEP: 11600-000, Brazil

    Augusto A. V. Flores

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  1. Felipe T. Oricchio
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  2. Augusto A. V. Flores
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  3. Gustavo M. Dias
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Correspondence to Felipe T. Oricchio.

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Oricchio, F.T., Flores, A.A.V. & Dias, G.M. The importance of predation and predator size on the development and structure of a subtropical fouling community. Hydrobiologia 776, 209–219 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2752-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2752-4

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