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Effects of a predatory fish on a tropical detritus-based food web

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Ecological Research

Abstract

In contrast to that for grazing systems, relatively little information exists for trophic cascades in detritus-based stream food webs, which are predominant in forested headwater streams. Predator–prey interactions are thought to be weak in these systems, but studies are very scarce, their results are equivocal, and they do not separate the effect of direct consumption from a behavioural response of shredders. We examined the effect of predatory fish on leaf litter breakdown in headwater tropical Australian streams at three levels: (1) the behavioural response of shredder species to predator presence as indicated by chemical cues; (2) the rates of leaf breakdown resulting from shredder activity; and (3) the relationship between shredder species richness and leaf breakdown rates. Our results suggest that predatory fish can have a trait-mediated effect on detritus-based food webs in streams, by reducing consumer activity. We identified reductions in short-term overall activity in response to the presence of predatory fish cues, comparable to those found for grazers. We also observed a visible, albeit statistically non-significant, reduction in consumption rates. Shredder species richness did not affect leaf breakdown rates, and fish presence did not modify this relationship or the differences in breakdown rates among species, suggesting that the overall reduction in leaf breakdown caused by fish presence is due to a reduction in activity in every species. Thus, our laboratory studies have shown that there can be a behavioural basis for trait-mediated trophic cascades linked to fish presence in detrital food webs in streams. However, the strength of fish effects depends on environmental circumstances, and field studies of litter breakdown in streams with and without predatory fish are required if we are to elucidate the ecological significance of our observations.

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Acknowledgements

Regina Camacho helped in the field. Three anonymous referees provided valuable comments on the first version of the manuscript. The project was supported by a James Cook University (JCU) research grant. L.B. was supported by a postdoctoral grant from the Secretaría de Estado de Educación y Universidades (MECD, Spain) co-financed by the European Social Fund, and is now supported by a JCU postdoctoral fellowship. P.A.R. is supported by the Ramón y Cajal program from the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (Spain) and his stay at JCU was funded by the Consejería de Educación of the Comunidad de Madrid (Spain).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, 4811, Australia

    Luz Boyero & Richard G. Pearson

  2. Naos Freshwater Laboratory, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa-Ancon, Panama, Republic of Panama

    Luz Boyero

  3. Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, Spain

    Pedro A. Rincón

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  1. Luz Boyero
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  2. Pedro A. Rincón
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  3. Richard G. Pearson
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Correspondence to Luz Boyero.

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Boyero, L., Rincón, P.A. & Pearson, R.G. Effects of a predatory fish on a tropical detritus-based food web. Ecol Res 23, 649–655 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-007-0424-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-007-0424-6

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