Click
here to close Hello! We notice that
you are using Internet Explorer, which is not supported by Echinobase
and may cause the site to display incorrectly. We suggest using a
current version of Chrome,
FireFox,
or Safari.
Ecol Evol
2023 Mar 01;133:e9929. doi: 10.1002/ece3.9929.
Show Gene links
Show Anatomy links
Nutrient conditions determine the strength of herbivore-mediated stabilizing feedbacks in barrens.
Illa-López L
,
Aubach-Masip À
,
Alcoverro T
,
Ceccherelli G
,
Piazzi L
,
Kleitou P
,
Santamaría J
,
Verdura J
,
Sanmartí N
,
Mayol E
,
Buñuel X
,
Minguito-Frutos M
,
Bulleri F
,
Boada J
.
Abstract
Abiotic environmental conditions can significantly influence the way species interact. In particular, plant-herbivore interactions can be substantially dependent on temperature and nutrients. The overall product of these relationships is critical for the fate and stability of vegetated ecosystems like marine forests. The last few decades have seen a rapid spread of barrens on temperate rocky reefs mainly as a result of overgrazing. The ecological feedbacks that characterize the barren state involve a different set of interactions than those occurring in vegetated habitats. Reversing these trends requires a proper understanding of the novel feedbacks and the conditions under which they operate. Here, we explored the role of a secondary herbivore in reinforcing the stability of barrens formed by sea urchin overgrazing under different nutrient conditions. Combining comparative and experimental studies in two Mediterranean regions characterized by contrasting nutrient conditions, we assessed: (i) if the creation of barren areas enhances limpet abundance, (ii) the size-specific grazing impact by limpets, and (iii) the ability of limpets alone to maintain barrens. Our results show that urchin overgrazing enhanced limpet abundance. The effects of limpet grazing varied with nutrient conditions, being up to five times more intense under oligotrophic conditions. Limpets were able to maintain barrens in the absence of sea urchins only under low-nutrient conditions, enhancing the stability of the depauperate state. Overall, our study suggests a greater vulnerability of subtidal forests in oligotrophic regions of the Mediterranean and demonstrates the importance of environment conditions in regulating feedbacks mediated by plant-herbivore interactions.
Boada,
Immanent conditions determine imminent collapses: nutrient regimes define the resilience of macroalgal communities.
2017, Pubmed,
Echinobase
Boada,
Immanent conditions determine imminent collapses: nutrient regimes define the resilience of macroalgal communities.
2017,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Bulleri,
Grazing by two species of limpets on artificial reefs in the northwest Mediterranean.
2000,
Pubmed
Creese,
Distribution and abundance of the acmaeid limpet, Patelloida latistrigata, and its interaction with barnacles.
1982,
Pubmed
Estes,
Sea otters: their role in structuring nearshore communities.
1974,
Pubmed
Hughes,
Catastrophes, phase shifts, and large-scale degradation of a Caribbean coral reef.
1994,
Pubmed
Jenkins,
Food supply, grazing activity and growth rate in the limpet Patella vulgata L.: a comparison between exposed and sheltered shores.
2001,
Pubmed
Ling,
Overfishing reduces resilience of kelp beds to climate-driven catastrophic phase shift.
2009,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Pagès,
The Mediterranean benthic herbivores show diverse responses to extreme storm disturbances.
2013,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Pagès,
Contrasting effects of ocean warming on different components of plant-herbivore interactions.
2018,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Pessarrodona,
Consumptive and non-consumptive effects of predators vary with the ontogeny of their prey.
2019,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Pessarrodona,
Homogenization and miniaturization of habitat structure in temperate marine forests.
2021,
Pubmed
Petersen,
Regime shift in a coastal marine ecosystem.
2008,
Pubmed
Piazzi,
Limpets compensate sea urchin decline and enhance the stability of rocky subtidal barrens.
2016,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Pinna,
Macroalgal forest vs sea urchin barren: Patterns of macro-zoobenthic diversity in a large-scale Mediterranean study.
2020,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Ripple,
Status and ecological effects of the world's largest carnivores.
2014,
Pubmed
Sala,
The structure of Mediterranean rocky reef ecosystems across environmental and human gradients, and conservation implications.
2012,
Pubmed
Sala,
Alien marine fishes deplete algal biomass in the Eastern Mediterranean.
2011,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Sanchez-Vidal,
Impacts on the deep-sea ecosystem by a severe coastal storm.
2012,
Pubmed
Scheffer,
Alternative equilibria in shallow lakes.
1993,
Pubmed
Scheffer,
Catastrophic shifts in ecosystems.
2001,
Pubmed
Shears,
Marine reserves demonstrate top-down control of community structure on temperate reefs.
2002,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
Stinca,
Regime shift by an exotic nitrogen-fixing shrub mediates plant facilitation in primary succession.
2015,
Pubmed
Underwood,
Effects of interactions between algae and grazing gastropods on the structure of a low-shore intertidal algal community.
1981,
Pubmed
Vergés,
Long-term empirical evidence of ocean warming leading to tropicalization of fish communities, increased herbivory, and loss of kelp.
2016,
Pubmed
Vergés,
The tropicalization of temperate marine ecosystems: climate-mediated changes in herbivory and community phase shifts.
2014,
Pubmed
Wolf,
Hydrologic regime and herbivory stabilize an alternative state in Yellowstone National Park.
2007,
Pubmed
Yeruham,
Collapse of the echinoid Paracentrotus lividus populations in the Eastern Mediterranean--result of climate change?
2015,
Pubmed
,
Echinobase
de Caralt,
Differential effects of pollution on adult and recruits of a canopy-forming alga: implications for population viability under low pollutant levels.
2020,
Pubmed
