Abstract
Trophic cascades have become a dominant paradigm in ecology, yet considerable debate remains about the relative strength of density- (consumptive) and trait-mediated (non-consumptive) effects in trophic cascades. This debate may, in part, be resolved by considering prey experience, which shapes prey traits (through genetic and plastic change) and influences prey survival (and therefore density). Here, we investigate the cascading role of prey experience through the addition of mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) from predator-experienced or predator-naïve sources to mesocosms containing piscivorous largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), zooplankton, and phytoplankton. These two sources were positioned along a competition-defense tradeoff. Results show that predator-naïve mosquitofish suffered higher depredation rates, which drove a density-mediated cascade, whereas predator-experienced mosquitofish exhibited higher survival but fed less, which drove a trait-mediated cascade. Both cascades were similar in strength, leading to indistinguishable top-down effects on lower trophic levels. Therefore, the accumulation of prey experience with predators can cryptically shift cascade mechanisms from density- to trait-mediated.
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The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
The authors thank Bruno Zicarelli and Joseph Centoni for help with data collection. The students in the Spring 2016 Freshwater Ecology Lab course at UC Santa Cruz helped with mesocosm setup and weekly mosquitofish counts. Hamish Grieg, Amanda Klemmer, Tim Waring, and Isaac SN Shepard provided feedback on data analysis and interpretation.
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This work was funded by the National Science Foundation (DEB 1457333 and DEB 1457112), UC Santa Cruz, and the Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station. ZTW received support through the University of Maine Janet Waldron Fellowship Program, DCF received supported through the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program, and EPP received support through the NOAA Cooperative Institute for Marine Ecosystems and Climate.
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DCF, EPP, and MTK designed the experiment. DCF, EPP, ZTW, MTK, KSS, and ERM carried out the experiment and collected the data. ZTW performed data analyses and led the writing of the manuscript.
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Communicated by Jonathan Shurin.
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Wood, Z.T., Fryxell, D.C., Moffett, E.R. et al. Prey adaptation along a competition-defense tradeoff cryptically shifts trophic cascades from density- to trait-mediated. Oecologia 192, 767–778 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-020-04610-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-020-04610-2