Dependence of stream predators on terrestrial prey fluxes: food web responses to subsidized predation
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| Authors: | Atlas, WI; Palen, WJ; Courcelles, DM; Munshaw, RG; Monteith, ZL |
| Year: | 2013 |
| Journal: | Ecosphere 4 Article Link (DOI) |
| Title: | Dependence of stream predators on terrestrial prey fluxes: food web responses to subsidized predation |
| Abstract: | Resource subsidies in the form of energy, materials, and organisms can support the productivity of recipient ecosystems. When subsidies increase the abundance of top predators, theory predicts that top-down interactions will be strengthened. However, the degree to which subsidies intensify predation should be constrained by the strength of interactions between predators and their prey. To test the potential for subsidies to drive strong top-down control by two stream predators, steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and Pacific giant salamander (Dicamptodon tenebrosus) we reduced terrestrial prey and manipulated the presence of predators in 32 stream reaches. Prey subsidies supported elevated growth of predatory steelhead in our study system and in the absence of allochthonous prey steelhead experienced a 187% reduction in growth. Despite the high biomass of subsidized predators, there was little support for strong top-down control of herbivore biomass, or a trophic cascade as measured by changes in AFDM and chlorophyll-a. This result was consistent across subsidy treatments, suggesting that predatory steelhead are unable to increase exploitation of aquatic prey in the absence of terrestrial prey subsidies. The potential for top-down control was apparently limited by the fact that most (82%) herbivores in our study system were armored and relatively invulnerable to predation. These results demonstrate the potential importance of behavioral and morphological adaptations that can temper predator prey interactions in highly subsidized ecosystems. |
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