Latitude, temperature, and habitat complexity predict predation pressure in eelgrass beds across the Northern Hemisphere

Type Article
Date 2018-01
Language English
Author(s) Reynolds Pamela L.1, 2, 3, Stachowicz John J.2, Hovel Kevin4, Bostrom Christoffer5, Boyer KatharynORCID6, Cusson MathieuORCID7, Eklof Johan S.8, Engel Friederike G.9, 10, Engelen Aschwin H.11, Eriksson Britas KlemensORCID9, Fodrie F. Joel12, Griffin John N.13, Hereu Clara M.14, Hori Masakazu15, Hanley Torrance C.16, Ivanov MikhailORCID17, Jorgensen PabloORCID14, 18, Kruschel Claudia19, Lee Kun-Seop20, McGlathery Karen21, Moksnes Per-Olav22, Nakaoka MasahiroORCID23, O'Connor Mary I.24, O'Connor Nessa E.25, Orth Robert J.3, Rossi Francesca26, Ruesink Jennifer27, Sotka Erik E.28, Thormar JonasORCID29, Tomas FionaORCID30, 31, Unsworth Richard K. F.13, Whalen Matthew A.2, Duffy J. Emmett3, 32
Affiliation(s) 1 : Univ Calif Davis, Data Sci Initiat, Davis, CA 95616 USA.
2 : Univ Calif Davis, Dept Ecol & Evolut, Davis, CA 95616 USA.
3 : Coll William & Mary, Virginia Inst Marine Sci, Gloucester Point, VA 23062 USA.
4 : San Diego State Univ, Coastal & Marine Inst, Dept Biol, San Diego, CA 92182 USA.
5 : Abo Akad Univ, Turku, Finland.
6 : San Francisco State Univ, San Francisco, CA 94132 USA.
7 : Univ Quebec Chicoutimi, Quebec City, PQ G7H 2B1, Canada.
8 : Stockholm Univ, Stockholm, Sweden.
9 : Univ Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
10 : GEOMAR Helmholtz Ctr Ocean Res, Kiel, Germany.
11 : Univ Algarve, CCMAR, Faro, Portugal.
12 : Univ North Carolina Chapel Hill, Inst Marine Sci, Morehead City, NC 28557 USA.
13 : Swansea Univ, Coll Sci, Singleton Pk, Swansea SA2 8PP, W Glam, Wales.
14 : Univ Autonoma Baja California, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico.
15 : Japan Fisheries Res & Educ Agcy FRA, Natl Res Inst Fisheries & Environm Inland Sea FEI, Hiroshima 7390452, Japan.
16 : Northeastern Univ, Ctr Marine Sci, Nahant, MA 01908 USA.
17 : St Petersburg State Univ, St Petersburg, Russia.
18 : Geomare, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico.
19 : Univ Zadar, Zadar, Croatia.
20 : Pusan Natl Univ, Busan, South Korea.
21 : Univ Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903 USA.
22 : Univ Gothenburg, Dept Marine Sci, Gothenburg, Sweden.
23 : Hokkaido Univ, Field Sci Ctr Northern Biosphere, Akkeshi Marine Stn, Akkeshi, Hokkaido 0881113, Japan.
24 : Univ British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada.
25 : Trinity Coll Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
26 : Univ Montpellier, CNRS, UMR 9190 MARBEC, Montpellier, France.
27 : Univ Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 USA.
28 : Coll Charleston, Charleston, SC 29412 USA.
29 : Inst Marine Res, Bergen, Norway.
30 : Oregon State Univ, Corvallis, OR 97331 USA.
31 : CSIC, Illes Balears UIB, Inst Mediterraneo Estudios Avanzados, Palma De Mallorca, Spain.
32 : Smithsonian Inst, Tennenbaum Marine Observ Network, Edgewater, MD 21037 USA.
Source Ecology (0012-9658) (Wiley), 2018-01 , Vol. 99 , N. 1 , P. 29-35
DOI 10.1002/ecy.2064
WOS© Times Cited 57
Keyword(s) biogeography, latitude, mesograzer, predation, seagrass, species interactions, temperature, Zostera
Abstract

Latitudinal gradients in species interactions are widely cited as potential causes or consequences of global patterns of biodiversity. However, mechanistic studies documenting changes in interactions across broad geographic ranges are limited. We surveyed predation intensity on common prey (live amphipods and gastropods) in communities of eelgrass (Zostera marina) at 48 sites across its Northern Hemisphere range, encompassing over 37 degrees of latitude and four continental coastlines. Predation on amphipods declined with latitude on all coasts but declined more strongly along western ocean margins where temperature gradients are steeper. Whereas insitu water temperature at the time of the experiments was uncorrelated with predation, mean annual temperature strongly positively predicted predation, suggesting a more complex mechanism than simply increased metabolic activity at the time of predation. This large-scale biogeographic pattern was modified by local habitat characteristics; predation declined with higher shoot density both among and within sites. Predation rates on gastropods, by contrast, were uniformly low and varied little among sites. The high replication and geographic extent of our study not only provides additional evidence to support biogeographic variation in predation intensity, but also insight into the mechanisms that relate temperature and biogeographic gradients in species interactions.

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Reynolds Pamela L., Stachowicz John J., Hovel Kevin, Bostrom Christoffer, Boyer Katharyn, Cusson Mathieu, Eklof Johan S., Engel Friederike G., Engelen Aschwin H., Eriksson Britas Klemens, Fodrie F. Joel, Griffin John N., Hereu Clara M., Hori Masakazu, Hanley Torrance C., Ivanov Mikhail, Jorgensen Pablo, Kruschel Claudia, Lee Kun-Seop, McGlathery Karen, Moksnes Per-Olav, Nakaoka Masahiro, O'Connor Mary I., O'Connor Nessa E., Orth Robert J., Rossi Francesca, Ruesink Jennifer, Sotka Erik E., Thormar Jonas, Tomas Fiona, Unsworth Richard K. F., Whalen Matthew A., Duffy J. Emmett (2018). Latitude, temperature, and habitat complexity predict predation pressure in eelgrass beds across the Northern Hemisphere. Ecology, 99(1), 29-35. Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2064 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00610/72246/