Mesopredator trophodynamics on thermally stressed coral reefs

Hempson, Tessa N.; Graham, Nicholas A. J.; MacNeil, M. Aaron; Hoey, Andrew S.; Almany, Glenn R.

doi:10.1007/s00338-017-1639-9

Cited by 8 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…Changes in the coral community can lead to changes in composition of the closely associated reef fish communities (Hempson et al. ), which may regain pre‐disturbance abundances but have altered species composition (Berumen and Pratchett ). Shifts in the composition of the reef fish community may represent a change in the prey base available to piscivorous mesopredators, requiring them to adapt their diets and alter their trophic niche (Hempson et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The fact that the fish communities on recovering reefs have not yet reverted to their pre-disturbance state 16 yrs post-bleaching, despite the recovery of high coral cover, suggests that there may be a shift in the composition of the coral assemblages (Wilson et al 2012). Changes in the coral community can lead to changes in composition of the closely associated reef fish communities (Hempson et al 2017b), which may regain pre-disturbance abundances but have altered species composition (Berumen and Pratchett 2006). Shifts in the composition of the reef fish community may represent a change in the prey base available to piscivorous mesopredators, requiring them to adapt their diets and alter their trophic niche (Hempson et al 2017c).…”

Section: Table 2 Multinomial Regression Model Coefficients and 95%mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecosystem regime shifts disrupt trophic structure

Hempson

Graham

MacNeil

et al. 2017

Ecological Applications

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Regime shifts between alternative stable ecosystem states are becoming commonplace due to the combined effects of local stressors and global climate change. Alternative states are characterised as substantially different in form and function to pre-disturbance states, disrupting the delivery of ecosystem services and functions. On coral reefs, regime shifts are typically characterised by a change Accepted ArticleThis article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.in the benthic composition from coral-to macroalgal-dominance. Such fundamental shifts in the benthos are anticipated to impact associated fish communities that are reliant on the reef for food andshelter, yet there is limited understanding of how regime shifts propagate through the fish community over time, relative to initial or recovery conditions. This study addresses this knowledge gap using long-term data of coral reef regime shifts and recovery on Seychelles reefs following the 1998 mass bleaching event. It shows how trophic structure of the reef fish community becomes increasingly dissimilar between alternative reef ecosystem states (regime-shifted vs recovering) with time since disturbance. Regime-shifted reefs developed a concave trophic structure, with increased biomass in base trophic levels as herbivorous species benefitted from increased algal resources. Mid trophic level species, including specialists such as corallivores, declined with loss of coral habitat, while biomass was retained in upper trophic levels by large-bodied, generalist invertivores. Recovering reefs also experienced an initial decline in mid trophic level biomass, but moved towards a bottom-heavy pyramid shape, with a wide range of feeding groups (e.g. planktivores, corallivores, omnivores) represented at mid trophic levels. Given the importance of coral reef fishes in maintaining the ecological function of coral reef ecosystems and their associated fisheries, understanding the effects of regime shifts on these communities is essential to inform decisions that enhance ecological resilience and economic sustainability.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Table 2 Multinomial Regression Model Coefficients and 95%mentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecosystem regime shifts disrupt trophic structure

Hempson

Graham

MacNeil

et al. 2017

Ecological Applications

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“…These altered configurations are predicted to persist into the future due to increased incidence and severity of disturbances, as well as differential recovery potential and adaptation capacity among corals (Pandolfi et al, 2011). The composition of coral assemblages and associated structure of reef habitats exerts considerable influence over the structure of reef fish assemblages (Darling et al, 2017;Friedlander & Parrish, 1998;Luckhurst & Luckhurst, 1978;Roberts & Ormond, 1987), important ecosystem processes such as herbivory (Cvitanovic & Hoey, 2010), predator-prey dynamics (Hempson, Graham, MacNeil, Hoey, & Almany, 2017), and other intraspecific and interspecific fish species interactions (Kok, Graham, & Hoogenboom, 2016). Indeed, shifts in coral assemblage composition have also shaped novel reef fish assemblages, where despite regaining predisturbance coral cover in some instances, populations of some fish species show little evidence of recovery generations later (Bellwood et al, 2012;Berumen & Pratchett, 2006).…”

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confidence: 99%

Mass coral bleaching causes biotic homogenization of reef fish assemblages

Richardson

Graham

Pratchett

et al. 2018

Global Change Biology

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Global climate change is altering community composition across many ecosystems due to nonrandom species turnover, typically characterized by the loss of specialist species and increasing similarity of biological communities across spatial scales. As anthropogenic disturbances continue to alter species composition globally, there is a growing need to identify how species responses influence the establishment of distinct assemblages, such that management actions may be appropriately assigned. Here, we use trait-based analyses to compare temporal changes in five complementary indices of reef fish assemblage structure among six taxonomically distinct coral reef habitats exposed to a system-wide thermal stress event. Our results revealed increased taxonomic and functional similarity of previously distinct reef fish assemblages following mass coral bleaching, with changes characterized by subtle, but significant, shifts toward predominance of small-bodied, algal-farming habitat generalists. Furthermore, while the taxonomic or functional richness of fish assemblages did not change across all habitats, an increase in functional originality indicated an overall loss of functional redundancy. We also found that prebleaching coral composition better predicted changes in fish assemblage structure than the magnitude of coral loss. These results emphasize how measures of alpha diversity can mask important changes in the structure and functioning of ecosystems as assemblages reorganize. Our findings also highlight the role of coral species composition in structuring communities and influencing the diversity of responses of reef fishes to disturbance. As new coral species configurations emerge, their desirability will hinge upon the composition of associated species and their capacity to maintain key ecological processes in spite of ongoing disturbances.

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“…Recently, marine fish communities underwent a climate‐driven functional switch from fast to slow life‐history species dominance (McLean, Mouillot, Goascoz, Schlaich, & Auber, ). In coral reefs, shifts from species with small body size and fast lifespan to large‐bodied and slow life‐history dominance can disrupt food chains (Hempson, Graham, MacNeil, Hoey, & Almany, ) and severely decrease ecosystem productivity (Brandl et al, ). Therefore, understanding the impacts of habitat changes in coral reefs fish communities from fine to coarse spatial scales is critical for predicting how the ecological process will respond to increasing large‐scale disturbances.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Body size mediates predation and mortality rates (Werner & Gilliam, 1984); thus, refuge availability plays an essential role in regulating trophic interactions (Almany, 2004b). Given that more than a half of small fish individuals tend to remain in a vulnerable size during their entire lives (Goatley & Bellwood, 2016), changes in shelter availability due to a functional reorganization of coral assemblages can poten- (Hempson, Graham, MacNeil, Hoey, & Almany, 2018) and severely decrease ecosystem productivity (Brandl et al, 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate‐driven shift in coral morphological structure predicts decline of juvenile reef fishes

Fontoura

Zawada

D’agata

et al. 2019

Global Change Biology

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Rapid intensification of environmental disturbances has sparked widespread decline and compositional shifts in foundation species in ecosystems worldwide. Now, an emergent challenge is to understand the consequences of shifts and losses in such habitat‐forming species for associated communities and ecosystem processes. Recently, consecutive coral bleaching events shifted the morphological makeup of habitat‐forming coral assemblages on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Considering the disparity of coral morphological growth forms in shelter provision for reef fishes, we investigated how shifts in the morphological structure of coral assemblages affect the abundance of juvenile and adult reef fishes. We used a temporal dataset from shallow reefs in the northern GBR to estimate coral convexity (a fine‐scale quantitative morphological trait) and two widely used coral habitat descriptors (coral cover and reef rugosity) for disentangling the effects of coral morphology on reef fish assemblages. Changes in coral convexity, rather than live coral cover or reef rugosity, disproportionately affected juvenile reef fishes when compared to adults, and explained more than 20% of juvenile decline. The magnitude of this effect varied by fish body size with juveniles of small‐bodied species showing higher vulnerability to changes in coral morphology. Our findings suggest that continued large‐scale shifts in the relative abundance of morphological groups within coral assemblages are likely to affect population replenishment and dynamics of future reef fish communities. The different responses of juvenile and adult fishes according to habitat descriptors indicate that focusing on coarse‐scale metrics alone may mask fine‐scale ecological responses that are key to understand ecosystem functioning and resilience. Nonetheless, quantifying coral morphological traits may contribute to forecasting the structure of reef fish communities on novel reef ecosystems shaped by climate change.

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Mesopredator trophodynamics on thermally stressed coral reefs

Cited by 8 publications

References 72 publications

Ecosystem regime shifts disrupt trophic structure

Ecosystem regime shifts disrupt trophic structure

Mass coral bleaching causes biotic homogenization of reef fish assemblages

Climate‐driven shift in coral morphological structure predicts decline of juvenile reef fishes

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