Perturbation and Recovery Patterns of Starfish-Dominated Intertidal Assemblages in Chile, New Zealand, and Washington State

Paine, Robert T.; Castillo, Juan Carlos; Cancino, Juan M.

doi:10.1086/284371

Cited by 179 publications

(134 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Our results may also explain the outcome of predator-removal experiments in which a lack of predator recovery has been attributed to the increase in average consumer size after predators were removed (28,29). The size-structured food chain model predicts such an increase in average size following predator extinction, when measured over all consumers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 58%

“…The results provide an individual-level explanation for the depensatory growth mechanism or Allee effect that may be behind the observed catastrophic collapses of top predators (4,9) and may have prevented the re-invasion of predators in removal experiments (28,29). In a more general context, they show that a food-web theory, based on individual life history and individual variation, may differ substantially from current theories about biological communities, because accounting for two of the most basic, size-dependent ecological processes already induce qualitatively different community patterns.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

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Size-dependent life-history traits promote catastrophic collapses of top predators

Roos

Persson

2002

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

240

237

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Catastrophic population collapses such as observed in many exploited fish populations have been argued to result from depensatory growth mechanisms (i.e., reduced reproductive success at low population densities, also known as Allee effect). Empirical support for depensation from population-level data is, however, hard to obtain and inconclusive. Using a size-structured, individualbased model we show that catastrophic population collapses may nonetheless be an intrinsic property of many communities, because of two general aspects of individual life history: size-and fooddependent individual growth and individual mortality decreasing with body size. Positive density dependence, characteristic for depensatory growth mechanisms and catastrophic behavior, results as a direct and robust consequence of the interplay between these individual life-history traits, which are commonly found in many species.R ecent studies on lakes, coral reefs, oceans, forests, and arid lands document drastic changes in the composition of the biological community and the functioning of the ecosystem (1, 2). One view is that these abrupt changes represent catastrophic shifts between contrasting states of the system that are both stable equilibria (1, 2). The collapse of several exploited fish stocks, which fail to recover after over-fishing and a closure of fisheries, could be interpreted as such a shift, if the community state without the exploited fish species represents a stable equilibrium (2-4). If the interpretation in terms of alternative stable equilibria is correct, our view of how these ecological systems function and how to manage them is heavily affected (5). Models of biological communities show that the extinct state may be stable if the exploited species exhibits a reduced population growth capacity at low densities (2, 6). Such depensatory growth (also known as Allee effect, positive or inverse densitydependence) will prevent rebound of the population after a crash. Population-level data do not unambiguously support or refute the presence of depensatory mechanisms in natural systems (6-9). Estimates of spawner abundance and the number of surviving progeny for 128 fish stocks indicated only 3 stocks with significant depensation (7). More advanced statistical testing of these stock-recruitment relations showed that the probability of depensation was nonetheless significant (8). Also, 15 years after a collapse of the population most of the exploited fish stocks have yet to recover. Assuming that management strategies have been implemented to reduce fishing mortality after a collapse, such a lack of recovery indicates a reduced capacity to rebound from low densities (9).Community models incorporating depensatory mechanisms do so as an assumption (7), which is justified by verbal arguments. For example, it is argued that depensatory growth may result from adult individuals negatively affecting competitors of their own juveniles (6), from reduced cooperative behavior at low densities (10), or predator swamping at high density (11)...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 58%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Size-dependent life-history traits promote catastrophic collapses of top predators

Roos

Persson

2002

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

240

237

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“…For example, in the western Pacific, abrupt temporal changes in mussel and macroalgal cover have been reported in response to experimental removal of seastars Pisaster ochraceus and to El Niño effects (Paine 1974, Paine et al 1985, Paine & Trimble 2004. The changes are well documented and matched against control conditions.…”

Section: Experimental Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple stable states and relationship between thresholds in processes and states

Petraitis

Hoffman²

2010

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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The concept of thresholds is applied broadly in ecology to both processes and states that exhibit step-like behavior. Thresholds are observed in parameters, equilibrium states, and in states over time, but presence or absence of thresholds at any of these levels does not provide information about the occurrence of thresholds at the other levels. Here we explore the relationship between thresholds and theory of multiple stable states. We present a 2-species Lotka-Volterra model of competition to illustrate that thresholds and hysteresis-like behavior are possible in linear systems. A grazing model is presented to show that multiple stable states are possible without thresholds in the underlying processes. The concept of thresholds within the context of multiple stable states is reviewed in an attempt to resolve some of the confusion that stems from the different meanings of thresholds.

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“…In addition, three species of Brachidontes (Brachidontes playasensis, Brachidontes puntarenensis, and Brachidontes semilaevis) and three species of Mytella (Mytella arciformis, M. guyanensis and M. speciosa) occur in the Peruvian coast (Sala et al 2002). In central and Southern Chile, south of 33°S, mussel beds of P. purpuratus cover more than 80% of the substratum in the mid intertidal zone (Castilla 1981;Paine et al 1985). North of 32°S mussel beds are scarce, but appear again as dominant components of the mid intertidal zone north of 20°S and up to subtropical areas in Peru.…”

Section: Ecologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Linking fisheries management and conservation in bioengineering species: the case of South American mussels (Mytilidae)

Carranza

Defeo

Beck

et al. 2009

Rev Fish Biol Fisheries

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We examined a complete list of South American mussels (Mytilidae) to identify species with current or potential needs for management and conservation actions. Based on ecological/ecosystem (aggregations, beds or banks affecting ecosystem functioning) and socio-economic (artisanal fisheries or aquaculture systems) attributes species with high relevance were identified. At least 14 species exhibited large ecosystem level effects at local scales. Further, most of them also sustain important fisheries: nearly one/third of these fisheries showed characteristics that may contribute to their lack of sustainability and overexploitation, while half are either in the initial exploitation phase or in the stabilization of extraction and institutionalization phase. Invading species are modifying the structure of mussel habitats. Allocation of spatially explicit management tools, notably Territorial User Rights in Fisheries and Marine Reserves, together with comanagement initiatives, are suggested as relevant tools to fulfill management and conservation objectives for these key bioengineering species.

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Perturbation and Recovery Patterns of Starfish-Dominated Intertidal Assemblages in Chile, New Zealand, and Washington State

Cited by 179 publications

References 19 publications

Size-dependent life-history traits promote catastrophic collapses of top predators

Size-dependent life-history traits promote catastrophic collapses of top predators

Multiple stable states and relationship between thresholds in processes and states

Linking fisheries management and conservation in bioengineering species: the case of South American mussels (Mytilidae)

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