Limitation of Collared Lemming Populations during a Population Cycle

Wilson, D.; Krebs, Charles J.; Sinclair, Tony

doi:10.2307/3546754

Cited by 56 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…15. Also working in Canada, Wilson, Krebs & Sinclair (1999) studied cyclic collared lemmings during the peak and decline years of lemmings. They used the same experimental design as Reid et al (1995).…”

Section: Exclusion Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental tests of the role of predation in the population dynamics of voles and lemmings

Sundell

2006

Mammal Review

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1. Reasons for fluctuating populations of small mammals have been intensively investigated since the early days of modern ecology. Particular interest has been taken in vole populations exhibiting multiannual oscillations. Much empirical and theoretical work has been accomplished to find out the key factor(s) driving these population cycles and many reviews have been written about the results. 2. One of the most plausible processes for explaining regular fluctuations in small mammals is predation. Here I review the existing literature on the experimental studies of the role of predation in vole population dynamics in the hope that a critical examination of these studies will help researchers improve the design of future experiments. 3. Most predation manipulations have been done in exclosures, but there are also studies that have attempted to reduce or increase predator numbers in non-fenced areas, islands and enclosures. 4. As the number of experimental studies has increased, their quality in terms of replication, use of controls and realistic spatial and temporal scales has also improved. 5. Most studies have found population-level effects of predator manipulations on prey populations. The effects have varied from very weak to very strong, reflecting dissimilar experimental designs and the great variety of predator-prey interactions among different kinds of species in different landscapes. Most of these studies show that predation limits population growth of voles, and in some circumstances even regulate vole population fluctuations, but none of them clearly demonstrates that predation consistently changes fluctuation patterns of voles. 6. To be able to assess more reliably the true role of predation on (cyclic) population fluctuations of voles, more competent experiments are still needed not only over the geographical range of cyclic population dynamics, but also in areas of weakly or non-cyclic populations of voles. INTRODUCTIONThere is no doubt that predation is one of the most important forces affecting the behaviour, population dynamics and evolution of prey species. It is also likely that the role and the impact of predation vary between communities, species, populations and individuals, and that the effect of predation is not constant over time and space (Lima & Bednekoff, 1999). This review is focused on predation on small rodents as a well-studied model system.

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Section: Exclusion Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental tests of the role of predation in the population dynamics of voles and lemmings

Sundell

2006

Mammal Review

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“…A simulation model based on these data produced population cycles of the appropriate length and amplitude, but the empirical data had two years of increase and two years of decline for each lemming cycle, whereas the model produced three years of increase and one year of decline (Gilg et al 2003). Experimental studies on collared lemmings in northern Canada confirmed predation as an important factor, although not necessarily the only factor, limiting population densities of lemmings (Reid et al 1995, Wilson et al 1999.…”

Section: Other Arvicoline Cyclesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population cycles of lemmings near Barrow, Alaska: a historical review

Pitelka

Batzli

2007

Acta Theriol

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“…If we hypothetically increase the P/B ratio for lemmings from 13.3 to 98, as would occur in a rapidly increasing population , the EEs fall to about 5%, which suggests no limitation by predation in this phase of the cycle. If we reduce the P/B ratio for lemmings to a low value (2.1) that would occur in a cyclic decline, the EEs for lemmings increase to over 62%, indicating a strong possibility of predator impacts during the decline phase (Korpimäki and Norrdahl 1998;Wilson et al 1999). If lemming predators increase with a time lag, predator numbers after a lemming peak will not be in an equilibrium and their impact could be significantly higher than we have observed, which would further increase the EE value during the decline phase of the cycle.…”

Section: 00mentioning

confidence: 99%

Terrestrial trophic dynamics in the Canadian Arctic

Krebs¹,

Danell²,

Angerbjörn³

et al. 2003

Can. J. Zool.

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Abstract:The Swedish Tundra Northwest Expedition of 1999 visited 17 sites throughout the Canadian Arctic. At 12 sites that were intensively sampled we estimated the standing crop of plants and the densities of herbivores and predators with an array of trapping, visual surveys, and faecal-pellet transects. We developed a trophic-balance model using ECOPATH to integrate these observations and determine the fate of primary and secondary production in these tundra ecosystems, which spanned an 8-fold range of standing crop of plants. We estimated that about 13% of net primary production was consumed by herbivores, while over 70% of small-herbivore production was estimated to flow to predators. Only 9% of large-herbivore production was consumed by predators. Organization of Canadian Arctic ecosystems appears to be more top-down than bottom-up. Net primary production does not seem to be herbivore-limited at any site. This is the first attempt to integrate trophic dynamics over the entire Canadian Arctic.Résumé : En 1999, l'Expédition suédoise de la toundra du nord-ouest à échantillonné 17 sites à travers l'arctique canadien. Nous avons utilisé différentes méthodes de trappage, des recensements visuels et des transects de décomptes de fèces pour estimer la biomasse végétale, ainsi que les densités des herbivores et des prédateurs aux 12 sites inventoriés plus en détail. Nous avons développé un modèle d'équilibre trophique à l'aide d'ECOPATH pour intégrer ces observations et déterminer le sort des productions primaire et secondaire de ces écosystèmes de toundra, entre lequels la biomasse végétale varie par un facteur de 8. Nous estimons qu'environ 13 % de la production primaire nette est consommée par les herbivores, tandis que plus de 70 % de la production des petits mammifères est consommée par les prédateurs. Seulement 9 % de la production des grands herbivores est consommée par les prédateurs. Ces écosystèmes semblent façonnés plus par les effets trophiques descendants (top-down) que par les effects trophiques ascendants (bottom-up). La production primaire nette de ces sites ne semble pas limitée par les herbivores. Notre étude constitue la première tentative pour intégrer les la dynamique trophique sur l'ensemble de l'arctique canadien. Krebs et al. 843

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Limitation of Collared Lemming Populations during a Population Cycle

Cited by 56 publications

References 47 publications

Experimental tests of the role of predation in the population dynamics of voles and lemmings

Experimental tests of the role of predation in the population dynamics of voles and lemmings

Population cycles of lemmings near Barrow, Alaska: a historical review

Terrestrial trophic dynamics in the Canadian Arctic

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