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Body size explains patterns of fish dominance in streams

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Abstract

Even after more than a century of research, the processes underlying species abundance distribution patterns are controversial. Here, we gathered abundance and size (standard length) data of fish species in 54 streams in the Midwest of Brazil to test whether subordinate species abundances (i.e., any species that is not dominant in a community) in each stream are correlated with the absolute size difference between dominant and subordinate species. A negative relationship between these variables would suggest a predominant role of environmental filtering because those species that differ more from the dominant species (the one with the optimum trait value) would become progressively less abundant. On the other hand, a positive relationship would suggest a limit to the similarity as the abundances of subordinate species that differ more from the dominant species would increase. Our results clearly indicated that subordinate species were those that most differed from the dominant species in terms of size. In addition, we found that the subordinate species were larger than the dominant species. Taken together, we infer that environmental filters favoring small body sizes (e.g., shallow water depth and scarcity of large shelters) are the main processes determining species abundance distributions in the streams we studied.

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Data availability

The datasets of this study are available upon request.

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Acknowledgements

We thank two anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments. FJMO was supported by a fellowship from the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES). We are grateful to the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Mato Grosso (FAPEMAT) for the financial support (227925/2015). DPLJ and LMB are supported by the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) (448823/2014-4 and 308974/2020-4, respectively). This paper was developed in the context of National Institutes for Science and Technology (INCT) in Ecology, Evolution, and Biodiversity Conservation supported by MCTIC/CNPq (465610/2014‐5) and FAPEG (201810267000023).

Funding

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Mato Grosso (FAPEMAT Notice 002/2015, Process 155509/2015) and Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (Finance Code 001). This work was also developed in the context of the National Institutes for Science and Technology (INCT) in Ecology, Evolution and Biodiversity Conservation, supported by MCTIC/CNPq (proc. 465610/20145) and FAPEG.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia de Ecossistemas Aquáticos Continentais, Universidade Estadual de Maringá, Avenida Colombo No 5790, Maringá, Paraná, CEP 87.020-900, Brazil

    Fagner Junior M. Oliveira

  2. Laboratório de Ecologia E Conservação de Ecossistemas Aquáticos, Universidade Federal Do Mato Grosso, Campus Universitário do Araguaia, Avenida Universitária No 3500, Pontal do Araguaia, Mato Grosso, CEP 78.698-000, Brazil

    Dilermando P. Lima Junior

  3. Departamento de Biologia Geral, ICB, Universidade Federal de Goiás, CP 131, Goiânia, Goiás, CEP 74.001-970, Brazil

    Luis Mauricio Bini

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  1. Fagner Junior M. Oliveira
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  3. Luis Mauricio Bini
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Contributions

LMB and FJMO conceived and designed the study. FJMO and DPLJr performed data collection in the field. FJMO and LMB performed the analyses and wrote the manuscript with the support of DPLJr. FJMO, DPLJr, and LMB reviewed the manuscript and approved the publication.

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Correspondence to Fagner Junior M. Oliveira.

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Animal Use Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Mato Grosso (CEUA/UFMT – Nº 23108.152116).

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Oliveira, F.J.M., Lima Junior, D.P. & Bini, L.M. Body size explains patterns of fish dominance in streams. Hydrobiologia 849, 2241–2251 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-022-04860-6

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