Invasive catfish in northern Italy and their impacts on waterbirds
Milardi, M., Green, A. J., Mancini, M., Trotti, P., Kiljunen, M., Torniainen, J., & Castaldelli, G. (2022). Invasive catfish in northern Italy and their impacts on waterbirds. NeoBiota, 72, 109-128. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.72.80500
Published in
NeoBiotaAuthors
Date
2022Discipline
MuseoResurssiviisausyhteisöAkvaattiset tieteetMuseumSchool of Resource WisdomAquatic SciencesCopyright
© Marco Milardi et al.
Predatory fish have occasionally been observed preying on birds, sometimes repeatedly, but few studies were able to unravel the overall significance of avian prey in fish diet and the predation impacts on bird populations. We used a control/impact study setup, using a Nature Reserve in northern Italy and a nearby control area, to determine: 1) the contribution of waterbirds to wels catfish diet in the Reserve, 2) the population density of wels catfish in the Reserve and control area and 3) the potential impacts of waterbird depredation by wels catfish on waterbird population trends. Our stable isotope Bayesian mixing model indicated that birds contributed 12.2% (5–27.9%, 50% confidence interval) of the diet of large wels catfish (> 98 cm in total length). Large individuals constituted the majority of the population in the shoreline areas of the reserve in 2013–2019, where the population was stable despite control efforts. Numbers were below detectable levels in the control area. Large wels catfish consumed an average of 224, 148 and 187 kg of birds during the 2019 chick growing period, as estimated through three different bioenergetic models. Compared to the control area, mallard reproductive success was diminished in the Reserve, likely due to higher rates of fish predation, although effects were variable in different years. Overall, our data suggest that high densities of invasive wels catfish might impact waterbird reproductive success through predation on bird chicks, but further studies would be needed to reduce uncertainties related to the intrinsic variability of field ecology data. Our study constitutes a preliminary attempt to assess the potential of introduced wels catfish to affect the conservation value of waterbird protection areas, and should be repeated at broader spatial and temporal scales.
...
Publisher
Pensoft PublishersISSN Search the Publication Forum
1314-2488Keywords
Publication in research information system
https://converis.jyu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/117640840
Metadata
Show full item recordCollections
Additional information about funding
This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.License
Related items
Showing items with similar title or keywords.
-
The Ghost of the Hawk : Top Predator Shaping Bird Communities in Space and Time
Burgas, Daniel; Ovaskainen, Otso; Blanchet, F. Guillaume; Byholm, Patrik (Frontiers Media SA, 2021)Despite the wide recognition that strongly interacting species can influence distributions of other species, species interactions are often disregarded when assessing or projecting biodiversity distributions. In particular, ... -
Not just the sum of its parts : Geographic variation and nonadditive effects of pyrazines in the chemical defence of an aposematic moth
Ottocento, Cristina; Winters, Anne E.; Rojas, Bibiana; Mappes, Johanna; Burdfield‐Steel, Emily (Wiley, 2023)Chemical defences often vary within and between populations both in quantity and quality, which is puzzling if prey survival is dependent on the strength of the defence. We investigated the within- and between-population ... -
Manipulating Individual Decisions and Environmental Conditions Reveal Individual Quality in Decision-Making and Non-Lethal Costs of Predation Risk
Thomson, Robert; Tomás, Gustavo; Forsman, Jukka; Mönkkönen, Mikko (Public Library of Science, 2012)Habitat selection is a crucial decision for any organism. Selecting a high quality site will positively impact survival and reproductive output. Predation risk is an important component of habitat quality that is known to ... -
Influence of colour, smell and taste on the survival of the wood tiger moth (Arctia plantaginis) adults during predation event
Lommi, Jenna (2021)Saalistajien torjumiseksi saalis voi käyttää erilaisia puolustusmekanismeja, jotka stimuloivat useita eri aisteja (ts. multimodaalista signalointia). Esimerkiksi aposemaattiset eliöt puolustautuvat varoitussignaalin lisäksi ... -
Does taste matter? : the effect of taste perception on avoidance learning in avian predators
Karttunen, Kaijamari (2016)Optimoidakseen ravinnonhankintansa yksilön tulisi hankkia mahdollisimman paljon energiaa, samalla minimoiden käytetyn ajan, vaivan ja riskit. Yksi ravinnonhankintakykyyn vaikuttavista ominaisuuksista on makuaisti, jonka ...