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The Impacts of a Nonindigenous Marine Predator in a California Bay

2000; Wiley; Volume: 81; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.2307/177202

1939-9170

Edwin D. Grosholz, Gregory M. Ruiz, Cheryl A. Dean, Kim A. Shirley, John L. Maron, Peter G. Connors,

Marine Biology and Ecology Research

EcologyVolume 81, Issue 5 p. 1206-1224 Article THE IMPACTS OF A NONINDIGENOUS MARINE PREDATOR IN A CALIFORNIA BAY Edwin D. Grosholz, Edwin D. Grosholz Center for Population Biology, University of California, Davis, California 95616 USA Present address: Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, California 95616 USA.Search for more papers by this authorGregory M. Ruiz, Gregory M. Ruiz Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, P.O. Box 28, Edgewater, Maryland 21037 USASearch for more papers by this authorCheryl A. Dean, Cheryl A. Dean Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this authorKim A. Shirley, Kim A. Shirley Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this authorJohn L. Maron, John L. Maron Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this authorPeter G. Connors, Peter G. Connors Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this author Edwin D. Grosholz, Edwin D. Grosholz Center for Population Biology, University of California, Davis, California 95616 USA Present address: Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, California 95616 USA.Search for more papers by this authorGregory M. Ruiz, Gregory M. Ruiz Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, P.O. Box 28, Edgewater, Maryland 21037 USASearch for more papers by this authorCheryl A. Dean, Cheryl A. Dean Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this authorKim A. Shirley, Kim A. Shirley Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this authorJohn L. Maron, John L. Maron Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this authorPeter G. Connors, Peter G. Connors Bodega Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923 USASearch for more papers by this author First published: 01 May 2000 https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9658(2000)081[1206:TIOANM]2.0.CO;2Citations: 245 Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Abstract Coastal marine ecosystems worldwide are being altered rapidly by the invasion of nonindigenous species. Unlike terrestrial and freshwater systems, the impacts of an invading species have never been quantified on multiple trophic levels for a marine food web. We measured the impact of the nonindigenous green crab, Carcinus maenas, on a coastal marine food web in central California and found that this predator exerted strong "top-down" control, significantly reducing the abundances of several of the 20 invertebrate species monitored over a 9-yr period. Densities of native clams, Nutricola tantilla and Nutricola confusa, and native shore crabs, Hemigrapsus oregonensis, showed 5-fold to 10-fold declines within 3 yr of the arrival of green crabs. Field and laboratory experiments indicated that green crab predation caused these declines. We also tested for indirect responses of invertebrates and vertebrates to green crab predation. There were significant increases in the abundances of two polychaete taxa, Lumbrineris sp. and Exogene sp., and tube-building tanaid crustaceans, Leptochelia dubia, most likely due to the removal of co-occurring green crab prey. However, we observed no changes in shorebird abundances (13 species) over a 9-yr period suggesting that green crabs have had no "bottom-up" effect on shorebirds, which subsist on benthic invertebrate prey. We predict that such bottom-up control will occur as the local effects and geographic range of green crabs increase. The 2-yr temporal scale of direct and indirect responses of the invertebrates in this low energy, soft-substrate system was also in agreement with the results of perturbation experiments by others on rocky shores, which showed that most direct and indirect responses also occur within a 2-yr time frame. Citing Literature Volume81, Issue5May 2000Pages 1206-1224 RelatedInformation