1997
Kupferberg, Sarah J.
Bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) invasion of a California river: the role of larval competition Journal Article
In: Ecology, vol. 78, no. 6, pp. 1736-1751, 1997, ISSN: 0012-9658.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: algae, biological invasions, California, grazing, Hyla regilla, Rana boylii, Rana catesbeiana, rivers, size-structured competition
@article{Kupferberg1997,
title = {Bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) invasion of a California river: the role of larval competition},
author = {Sarah J. Kupferberg},
url = {https://angelo.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/59/Kupferberg_Ecology1997.pdf},
issn = {0012-9658},
year = {1997},
date = {1997-09-00},
journal = {Ecology},
volume = {78},
number = {6},
pages = {1736-1751},
abstract = {I studied the invasion of Rana catesbeiana (the bullfrog) into a northern California river system where bullfrogs are not native. Native yellow-legged frogs, Rana boylii, a species of special concern, were almost an order of magnitude less abundant in reaches where bullfrogs were well established. I assessed the potential role of larval competition in contributing to this displacement in a series of field manipulations of tadpole density and species composition. The impact of R. catesbeiana on native tadpoles in the natural community agreed with the outcome of more artificial experiments testing pairwise and three-way interactions. In 2-m(2) enclosures with ambient densities of tadpoles and natural river biota, bullfrog tadpoles caused a 48% reduction in survivorship of R. boylii, and a 24% decline in mass at metamorphosis. Bullfrog larvae had smaller impacts on Pacific treefrogs, Hyla regilla, causing 16% reduction in metamorph size, and no significant effect on survivorship. Bullfrog tadpoles significantly affected benthic algae, although effects varied across sites. Responses to bullfrogs in field settings were similar qualitatively to results seen in smaller-scale experiments designed to study size-structured competition among disparate age/size classes of species pairs and trios. Competition from large overwintering bullfrog larvae significantly decreased survivorship and growth of native tadpoles. Competition from recently hatched bullfrog larvae also decreased survivorship of R. boylii and H. regilla. Native species competed weakly, both interspecifically and intraspecifically. The only suggestion of a negative impact of a native species on bullfrogs was a weak effect of H. regilla on recent hatchlings. Competition appeared to be mediated by algal resources, and there was no evidence for behavioral or chemical interference. These results indicate that, through larval interactions, bullfrogs can exert differential effects on native frogs and perturb aquatic community structure.},
keywords = {algae, biological invasions, California, grazing, Hyla regilla, Rana boylii, Rana catesbeiana, rivers, size-structured competition},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
I studied the invasion of Rana catesbeiana (the bullfrog) into a northern California river system where bullfrogs are not native. Native yellow-legged frogs, Rana boylii, a species of special concern, were almost an order of magnitude less abundant in reaches where bullfrogs were well established. I assessed the potential role of larval competition in contributing to this displacement in a series of field manipulations of tadpole density and species composition. The impact of R. catesbeiana on native tadpoles in the natural community agreed with the outcome of more artificial experiments testing pairwise and three-way interactions. In 2-m(2) enclosures with ambient densities of tadpoles and natural river biota, bullfrog tadpoles caused a 48% reduction in survivorship of R. boylii, and a 24% decline in mass at metamorphosis. Bullfrog larvae had smaller impacts on Pacific treefrogs, Hyla regilla, causing 16% reduction in metamorph size, and no significant effect on survivorship. Bullfrog tadpoles significantly affected benthic algae, although effects varied across sites. Responses to bullfrogs in field settings were similar qualitatively to results seen in smaller-scale experiments designed to study size-structured competition among disparate age/size classes of species pairs and trios. Competition from large overwintering bullfrog larvae significantly decreased survivorship and growth of native tadpoles. Competition from recently hatched bullfrog larvae also decreased survivorship of R. boylii and H. regilla. Native species competed weakly, both interspecifically and intraspecifically. The only suggestion of a negative impact of a native species on bullfrogs was a weak effect of H. regilla on recent hatchlings. Competition appeared to be mediated by algal resources, and there was no evidence for behavioral or chemical interference. These results indicate that, through larval interactions, bullfrogs can exert differential effects on native frogs and perturb aquatic community structure.
1987
Hill, W. R.; Knight, A. W.
Experimental analysis of the grazing interaction between a mayfly and stream algae Journal Article
In: Ecology, vol. 68, no. 6, pp. 1955-1965, 1987.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: algae, Ameletus, assemblage structure, competition, diatoms, grazing, indirect effects, mayfly, periphyton, standing crop, streams
@article{Hill1987,
title = {Experimental analysis of the grazing interaction between a mayfly and stream algae},
author = {W. R. Hill and A. W. Knight},
url = {https://angelo.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/59/Hill_1987_Eco.pdf},
doi = {10.2307/1939886},
year = {1987},
date = {1987-12-01},
journal = {Ecology},
volume = {68},
number = {6},
pages = {1955-1965},
abstract = {The interaction between the grazing mayfly Ameletus validus and periphyton in a small, northern California stream was examined by manipulating the density of the mayfly in flow—through plexiglass channels. Containing natural cobble substrate and located in situ, the channels established an initial gradient of A. validus at 0, 0.5, 1, and 4 times the average density of the mayfly in Barnwell Creek. After 23 d, A. validus significantly depressed periphyton standing crop: ash—free dry mass (AFDM) at the 0, 0.5, 1, and 4 N grazer densities was 5.067 ± 1.389 (se), 1.829 ± 0.173, 1.741 ± 0.325, and 1.009 ± 0.199 g/m2 (ANOVA: P < .01). The mayfly also influenced two structural attributes of the periphyton, increasing the amount of chlorophyll a per unit biomass and decreasing the relative contribution of the loose, upper layer to total periphyton biomass. Principal component analysis of algal relative abundances contrasted the effect of grazing on two groups of diatoms. A group of species found primarily in the loose layer of periphyton (Nitzschia spp., Surirella spiralis, Cymatopleura elliptica, and Navicula cryptocephala) was disproportionately reduced in abundance, while an adnate group (Gomphonema clevei, Achnanthes minutissima, Synedra ulna, Rhoicosphenia curvata, and an undescribed species of Epithemia) increased its relative abundance with increasing grazing pressure. The decline in relative abundance of the loose layer diatoms did not appear to result from selective consumption by A. validus, but may have been mediated by a reduction of inorganic sediment in the periphyton by A. validus. Inorganic sediment was highly correlated with the relative abundances of the loose layer group of diatoms, a group of species that are adapted for locomotion on sediment substrates. A. validus growth in the experimental channels was strongly density dependent. Growth in length over 23 d for the 0.5, 1, and 4 N treatments was 2.24 ± 0.17, 1.80 ± 0.23, and 1.15 ± 0.25 mm (ANOVA: P < .01). The significantly greater growth of A. validus at subnormal densities in the experimental channels suggested that the A. validus population in Barnwell Creek was food—limited.},
keywords = {algae, Ameletus, assemblage structure, competition, diatoms, grazing, indirect effects, mayfly, periphyton, standing crop, streams},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
The interaction between the grazing mayfly Ameletus validus and periphyton in a small, northern California stream was examined by manipulating the density of the mayfly in flow—through plexiglass channels. Containing natural cobble substrate and located in situ, the channels established an initial gradient of A. validus at 0, 0.5, 1, and 4 times the average density of the mayfly in Barnwell Creek. After 23 d, A. validus significantly depressed periphyton standing crop: ash—free dry mass (AFDM) at the 0, 0.5, 1, and 4 N grazer densities was 5.067 ± 1.389 (se), 1.829 ± 0.173, 1.741 ± 0.325, and 1.009 ± 0.199 g/m2 (ANOVA: P < .01). The mayfly also influenced two structural attributes of the periphyton, increasing the amount of chlorophyll a per unit biomass and decreasing the relative contribution of the loose, upper layer to total periphyton biomass. Principal component analysis of algal relative abundances contrasted the effect of grazing on two groups of diatoms. A group of species found primarily in the loose layer of periphyton (Nitzschia spp., Surirella spiralis, Cymatopleura elliptica, and Navicula cryptocephala) was disproportionately reduced in abundance, while an adnate group (Gomphonema clevei, Achnanthes minutissima, Synedra ulna, Rhoicosphenia curvata, and an undescribed species of Epithemia) increased its relative abundance with increasing grazing pressure. The decline in relative abundance of the loose layer diatoms did not appear to result from selective consumption by A. validus, but may have been mediated by a reduction of inorganic sediment in the periphyton by A. validus. Inorganic sediment was highly correlated with the relative abundances of the loose layer group of diatoms, a group of species that are adapted for locomotion on sediment substrates. A. validus growth in the experimental channels was strongly density dependent. Growth in length over 23 d for the 0.5, 1, and 4 N treatments was 2.24 ± 0.17, 1.80 ± 0.23, and 1.15 ± 0.25 mm (ANOVA: P < .01). The significantly greater growth of A. validus at subnormal densities in the experimental channels suggested that the A. validus population in Barnwell Creek was food—limited.