Life history strategies differentiate established from failed non‐native freshwater fish in peninsular Florida

Abstract

Aim Non‐native fishes threaten native biodiversity worldwide. Life history traits have been used to predict the risk of establishment for non‐native fish in several regions of the world and parts of the United States, but not yet for Florida despite the elevated risk of establishment in the state due to many invasion pathways and favourable climate. Our goal was to identify which life history traits may be useful for predicting which non‐native freshwater fishes might successfully establish populations in Peninsular Florida. Location Peninsular Florida, USA. Methods We conducted a factor analysis to evaluate 21 life history traits for 125 fishes in three different groups: native fishes, non‐native fish species currently established in Florida and introduced fishes that failed to establish in Florida. We also modelled overall life history traits of those fishes according to the triangular model by Winemiller and Rose to compare overall strategies among the three different groups and tested for significant trait differences between failed and established fishes. Results Our analyses of life history traits showed that successful species have a high investment in their offspring and tend to be larger bodied. Parental care was particularly important, with only one of the established species lacking parental care. Triangular life history model results showed that most successfully established species such as those in the family Cichlidae are equilibrium strategists with a high degree of parental care, low‐to‐intermediate fecundity and a larger maturation size. Main conclusions Understanding the life history strategies and traits that aid in the prediction of non‐native fish invasiveness is key for effective risk assessment and management. Further analysis of these traits as predictors of establishment and invasion success is needed, and regional risk assessments of non‐native fishes will benefit from inclusion of several traits highlighted in this study.

Relative importance of exotic species traits in determining invasiveness across levels of establishment: Example of freshwater fish

“…This behaviour has been positively selected in the ornamental industry and is thus more represented among introduced species worldwide. This result corroborates the findings of previous studies at more local scales, which observed a higher establishment success for exotic fish with a high level of parental care (Lawson & Hill, 2022; Marchetti et al, 2004), although they were unable to demonstrate a specific link between the location of establishment and parental care. For terrestrial vertebrates, parental care is often associated with slow life history.…”

“…This behaviour has been positively selected in the ornamental industry and is thus more represented among introduced species worldwide. This result corroborates the findings of previous studies at more local scales, which observed a higher establishment success for exotic fish with a high level of parental care (Lawson & Hill, 2022;Marchetti et al, 2004), although they were unable to F I G U R E 4 Trait comparison between the four groups of fish. The four groups correspond to the establishment levels: species introduced inside their native bioregion in four basins or less (In < 4), inside their native bioregion in more than four basins (In > 4), outside their native bioregion in four basins or less (Out < 4) and outside their native bioregion in more than four basins (Out > 4).…”

“…50% that perform better than others) compared to the rest of fish and to test if some traits are associated with levels of establishment. More precisely, we expect fish with a high establishment level to have good swimming abilities, a broad temperature tolerance, a high level of parental care and a generalist diet (Bernery, Bellard, Courchamp, Brosse, Gozlan, et al, 2022; Carvajal‐Quintero et al, 2019; Lawson & Hill, 2022; Ruesink, 2005; Snyder et al, 2014; Su et al, 2020; Tonella et al, 2018).…”

Species invasiveness and community invasibility of North American freshwater fish fauna revealed via trait-based analysis

“…Specifically, studies considering morphological differences between natives and non-natives at the river basin scale showed that non-native species had larger size and less elongated bodies than the native counterparts 9 , 28 , 29 . Furthermore, growing evidence suggests non-native species have different traits than native species within river basins 5 , 10 , 11 , 30 . Our regional (watershed) approach over the continental US revealed that functional traits, including morphological, physiological, and life-historical aspects differ between native and non-native species (including translocated and exotic species), therefore paralleling previous studies at both local and global scales.…”

Spatiotemporal Characteristics of Fish Larvae and Juveniles in the Waters around Taiwan from 2007 to 2019

“…From 2010 onward, we observed markedly different responses to the disruption in species in the three different zones. Compared to highly migratory pelagic species (such as mackerel and tuna) that have high growth and reproductive rates, demersal fish are mostly sedentary K-selection species and exhibit slow growth, a long lifespan, and a low reproductive rate [ 67 ], which may be even more disadvantageous in extreme climates.…”