Cloudy with a chance of mesopredator release: Turbidity alleviates top-down control on intermediate predators through sensory disruption

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dc.contributor.authorReustle, Joseph W.
dc.contributor.authorSmee, Delbert L.
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/ 0000-0001-7307-9993en_US
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/ 0000-0003-1161-6807en_US
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7307-9993
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1161-6807
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7307-9993
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1161-6807https://orcid.org/ 0000-0001-7307-9993
dc.creator.orcidhttps://orcid.org/ 0000-0003-1161-6807
dc.date.accessioned2022-02-24T14:47:53Z
dc.date.available2022-02-24T14:47:53Z
dc.date.issued2020-04-23
dc.description.abstractMesopredator release following top predator loss may reduce biodiversity and harm foundation species. We investigated the potential for moderate environmental changes to trigger mesopredator release by disrupting the foraging ability of top predators without affecting their abundance by performing an in situ experiment designed to isolate the magnitude of mesopredator effects on oyster reefs (Crassostrea virginica). In estuaries, fishes occupy upper trophic levels. Most are visual foragers and become less effective predators in high turbidity. Communities were 10% more diverse, fish predation was 20% higher, and oyster recruitment four times higher in low turbidity. Crab mesopredators were 10% larger and 260% more abundant in high turbidity. Caging treatments to exclude mesopredators significantly affected communities in high but not low turbidity. Oysters had 150% stronger shells in turbid areas, a known response to crabs that was indicative of higher crab abundance. These findings indicated that increased turbidity attenuated fish foraging ability without disrupting the foraging ability of mesopredators (e.g., crabs) that forage by chemoreception. Larger and more numerous crab mesopredators significantly affected oyster reef community structure as well as the survival and growth of oysters in turbid environments. In environments where apex predators and mesopredators utilize different sensory mechanisms, sensory-mediated mesopredator release may occur when conditions affect the foraging ability of higher order predators but not their prey.en_US
dc.identifier.citationReustle, J.W. and Smee, D.L., 2020. Cloudy with a chance of mesopredator release: Turbidity alleviates top‐down control on intermediate predators through sensory disruption. Limnology and Oceanography, 65(10), pp.2278-2290.en_US
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1002/lno.11452
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1969.6/90195
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.publisherASLOen_US
dc.titleCloudy with a chance of mesopredator release: Turbidity alleviates top-down control on intermediate predators through sensory disruptionen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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