scholarly journals Predator–prey body size relationships when predators can consume prey larger than themselves

2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 20121193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takefumi Nakazawa ◽  
Shin-ya Ohba ◽  
Masayuki Ushio
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Prey Size ◽  
The Other ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Species Identity ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Size Dependent ◽  
Fish Predators ◽  
Body Sizes ◽  
Prey Mass

As predator–prey interactions are inherently size-dependent, predator and prey body sizes are key to understanding their feeding relationships. To describe predator–prey size relationships (PPSRs) when predators can consume prey larger than themselves, we conducted field observations targeting three aquatic hemipteran bugs, and assessed their body masses and those of their prey for each hunting event. The data revealed that their PPSR varied with predator size and species identity, although the use of the averaged sizes masked these effects. Specifically, two predators had slightly decreased predator–prey mass ratios (PPMRs) during growth, whereas the other predator specialized on particular sizes of prey, thereby showing a clear positive size–PPMR relationship. We discussed how these patterns could be different from fish predators swallowing smaller prey whole.

Size-dependent predation in piscivores: interactions between predator foraging and prey avoidance abilities

1999 ◽  
Vol 56 (7) ◽  
pp. 1285-1292 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Lundvall ◽  
Richard Svanbäck ◽  
Lennart Persson ◽  
Pär Byström
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Prey Size ◽  
Perca Fluviatilis ◽  
Prey Refuge ◽  
Eurasian Perch ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Size Dependent ◽  
Prey Vulnerability ◽  
Perch Perca Fluviatilis ◽  
Predator Foraging

Body size is known to play a crucial role in predator-prey interactions. For a given predator size, it has been suggested that prey mortality should be a dome-shaped function dependent on prey body size. In this study, we experimentally tested (i) the suggested mechanisms responsible for the dome-shaped prey vulnerability function and (ii) whether a prey refuge affected the form of this function. As prey, we used young-of-the-year Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis), and as predator, larger Eurasian perch. The prey mortality as a function of prey size was dome shaped for large and medium predators but decreased monotonically with prey size for small predators. Capture success of predators decreased monotonically with increasing prey size and was lower for small predators. In refuge trials, the mortality of prey declined monotonically with prey size for all predator sizes. Refuge use of prey increased with the sizes of both prey and predator. Our results suggest that the hypothesized dome-shaped relationship on prey vulnerability can be altered by the presence of an absolute prey refuge. Our results further suggest that the ability to perform more flexible foraging behaviors is of increasing importance when prey size increases.

scholarly journals The impact of large terrestrial carnivores on Pleistocene ecosystems

2015 ◽  
Vol 113 (4) ◽  
pp. 862-867 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blaire Van Valkenburgh ◽  
Matthew W. Hayward ◽  
William J. Ripple ◽  
Carlo Meloro ◽  
V. Louise Roth
Keyword(s):  
Prey Size ◽  
Habitat Degradation ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Growth Data ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Body Sizes ◽  
Population Sizes ◽  
Potential Impact ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Ground Sloths

Large mammalian terrestrial herbivores, such as elephants, have dramatic effects on the ecosystems they inhabit and at high population densities their environmental impacts can be devastating. Pleistocene terrestrial ecosystems included a much greater diversity of megaherbivores (e.g., mammoths, mastodons, giant ground sloths) and thus a greater potential for widespread habitat degradation if population sizes were not limited. Nevertheless, based on modern observations, it is generally believed that populations of megaherbivores (>800 kg) are largely immune to the effects of predation and this perception has been extended into the Pleistocene. However, as shown here, the species richness of big carnivores was greater in the Pleistocene and many of them were significantly larger than their modern counterparts. Fossil evidence suggests that interspecific competition among carnivores was relatively intense and reveals that some individuals specialized in consuming megaherbivores. To estimate the potential impact of Pleistocene large carnivores, we use both historic and modern data on predator–prey body mass relationships to predict size ranges of their typical and maximum prey when hunting as individuals and in groups. These prey size ranges are then compared with estimates of juvenile and subadult proboscidean body sizes derived from extant elephant growth data. Young proboscideans at their most vulnerable age fall within the predicted prey size ranges of many of the Pleistocene carnivores. Predation on juveniles can have a greater impact on megaherbivores because of their long interbirth intervals, and consequently, we argue that Pleistocene carnivores had the capacity to, and likely did, limit megaherbivore population sizes.

scholarly journals Perch Selection by Three Cooccurring Species ofCelithemis(Odonata: Libellulidae): Testing for a Competitive Hierarchy among Similar Species

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wade B. Worthen ◽  
Parker H. Morrow
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Open Water ◽  
The Other ◽  
Similar Species ◽  
Male Body ◽  
Size Dependent ◽  
Anatomical Characters ◽  
Relative Abundances ◽  
Imagej Software

In many communities of perching dragonflies (Odonata: Libellulidae), a size-dependent competitive hierarchy creates a positive relationship between male body size and perch height. We tested for this pattern among three similar-sized species:Celithemis elisa,C. fasciata, andC. ornata.Males were caught and photographed from May to July 2015 at Ashmore Heritage Preserve, Greenville County, SC, USA, and perch heights and perch distance to open water were measured. Five indices of body size were measured with ImageJ software: abdomen length, forewing length, hindwing length, area of forewing, and area of hindwing.Celithemis fasciatawas significantly larger than the other two species for all five anatomical characters and used perches that were significantly taller and closer to open water than the other species, though these differences changed over the summer. Aggressive interactions between and within species were tallied and compared to expected distributions based on mean relative abundances derived from hourly abundance counts. Patterns of interspecific aggression were also consistent with a size-dependent hierarchy: the largeC. fasciatawas attacked less frequently, and the smallC. ornatamore frequently, than predicted by their relative abundances. We conclude that even small differences in body size may contribute to niche partitioning in perch selection.

The direct and indirect effects of temperature on a predator–prey relationship

2001 ◽  
Vol 79 (10) ◽  
pp. 1834-1841 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael T Anderson ◽  
Joseph M Kiesecker ◽  
Douglas P Chivers ◽  
Andrew R Blaustein
Keyword(s):  
Indirect Effects ◽  
Prey Capture ◽  
Prey Size ◽  
Abiotic Factors ◽  
Biotic Interactions ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Prey Mass ◽  
Effects Of Temperature ◽  
Logistic Regression Equation ◽  
Probability Of Capture

Abiotic factors may directly influence community structure by influencing biotic interactions. In aquatic systems, where gape-limited predators are common, abiotic factors that influence organisms' growth rates potentially mediate predator–prey interactions indirectly through effects on prey size. We tested the hypothesis that temperature influences interactions between aquatic size-limited insect predators (Notonecta kirbyi) and their larval anuran prey (Hyla regilla) beyond its indirect effect on prey size. Notonecta kirbyi and H. regilla were raised and tested in predator–prey trials at one of three experimentally maintained temperatures, 9.9, 20.7, or 25.7°C. Temperature strongly influenced anuran growth and predator success; mean tadpole mass over time was positively related to temperature, while the number of prey caught was negatively related. At higher temperatures tadpoles attained greater mass more quickly, allowing them to avoid capture by notonectids. However, the probability of capture is a function of both mass and temperature; temperature was a significant explanatory variable in a logistic regression equation predicting prey capture. For a given prey mass, tadpoles raised in warmer water experienced a higher probability of capture by notonectids. Thus, rather than being static, prey size refugia are influenced directly by abiotic factors, in this case temperature. This suggests that temperature exerts differential effects on notonectid and larval anurans, leading to differences in the probability of prey capture for a given prey mass. Therefore, temperature can influence predator–prey interactions via indirect effects on prey size and direct effects on prey.

Interpopulational variation in sexual dimorphism, reproductive output, and parasitism of Liophis miliaris (Colubridae) in the Atlantic forest of Brazil

2006 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lígia Pizzatto ◽  
Otavio Marques
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Sexual Dimorphism ◽  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Reproductive Output ◽  
Sexual Size Dimorphism ◽  
The Other ◽  
Female Body Size ◽  
Body Sizes ◽  
Northern Atlantic ◽  
Males And Females

AbstractSexual maturity, sexual dimorphism, reproductive output, and parasitism of the colubrid snake Liophis miliaris were compared among populations inhabiting four regions of Brazil: (1) northern coastal Atlantic forest, (2) southern coastal Atlantic forest, (3) northern inland Atlantic forest (4) southern inland Atlantic forest. Females delayed maturity and attained larger body sizes than males in all regions. Males and females from northern Atlantic forest were smaller and attained maturity with a smaller body size than males of other regions. The sexual size dimorphism index ranged from 0.19 to 0.23 and was lowest in the northern Atlantic forest. There was no sexual dimorphism in head length in any of the populations studied. Clutch size was similar in all populations and increased with maternal body size. The reproductive frequency was lower in the northern coastal Atlantic forest and in contrast to the other regions, tended to increase with female body size. The nematoda Ophidiascaris sp. and cystacanths of Oligacanthorynchus spira (Acanthocephala) occurred equally in both sexes. Fewer snakes from the northern coastal Atlantic forest were infested by parasites compared to the other regions and parasitism apparently did not influence reproduction.

Predator–prey mass ratio revisited: does preference of relative prey body size depend on individual predator size?

2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (12) ◽  
pp. 1979-1987 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheng‐Han Tsai ◽  
Chih‐hao Hsieh ◽  
Takefumi Nakazawa
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Mass Ratio ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Predator Size ◽  
Prey Mass

scholarly journals Running the gauntlet: the predation environment of small fish in the northern Gulf of St Lawrence, Canada

2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 412-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel E. Duplisea
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Prey Size ◽  
Small Fish ◽  
Size Spectra ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
The North ◽  
Prefer Prey ◽  
Seal Population ◽  
The North Sea

Abstract Predation size spectra were constructed for the northern Gulf of St Lawrence, covering prey size ranges that include pre-recruit cod. Predation by fish and harp seals was modelled with a log-normally distributed predator–prey size ratio along with a relationship between predator body size and the energy required. Fish concentrate predation on prey of weight 0.5–2 g, whereas harp seals prefer prey of 60–125 g. It is speculated that predation caused by harp seals on pre-recruits could be a major factor limiting cod recruitment in the system. The northern Gulf of St Lawrence is a cold boreal system with a large predatory seal population, and cod recruit older than elsewhere. Therefore, cod recruitment may be more strongly affected by predation in the northern Gulf of St Lawrence than in warmer systems such as the North Sea, where recruitment is strongly influenced by temperature.

scholarly journals Body size dependent dispersal influences stability in heterogeneous metacommunities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kurt E. Anderson ◽  
Ashkaan K. Fahimipour
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Food Web ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Dispersal Rate ◽  
Ecological Stability ◽  
Size Dependent ◽  
Heterogeneous Habitat ◽  
Body Sizes ◽  
Demographic Processes ◽  
The Stability

AbstractBody size affects key biological processes across the tree of life, with particular importance for food web dynamics and stability. Traits influencing movement capabilities depend strongly on body size, yet the effects of allometrically-structured dispersal on food web stability are less well understood than other demographic processes. Here we study the stability properties of spatially-arranged model food webs in which larger bodied species occupy higher trophic positions, while species’ body sizes also determine the rates at which they traverse spatial networks of heterogeneous habitat patches. Our analysis shows an apparent stabilizing effect of positive dispersal rate scaling with body size compared to negative scaling relationships or uniform dispersal. However, as the global coupling strength among patches increases, the benefits of positive body size-dispersal scaling disappear. A permutational analysis shows that breaking allometric dispersal hierarchies while preserving dispersal rate distributions rarely alters qualitative aspects of metacommunity stability. Taken together, these results suggest that the oft-predicted stabilizing effects of large mobile predators may, for some dimensions of ecological stability, be attributed to increased patch coupling per se, and not necessarily coupling by top trophic levels in particular.

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