Stickleback increase in the Baltic Sea – A thorny issue for coastal predatory fish

Bergström, Ulf; Olsson, Jens; Casini, Michèle; Eriksson, Britas Klemens; Fredriksson, Ronny; Wennhage, Håkan; Appelberg, Magnus

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2015.06.017

Cited by 87 publications

(135 citation statements)

References 53 publications

(74 reference statements)

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“…We therefore consider the threespine stickleback to be by far the most important resident predator with a PI probably closer to the upper limit of the margin given above. Regardless of the discrepancy in predation estimates, the results of the present study suggest that the recent increase in the size of the stickleback population in the Baltic Sea (Bergström et al ) will likely increase the predation impact on herring eggs in future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 59%

Predation on Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) eggs by the resident predator community in coastal transitional waters

Kotterba

Moll²,

Hammer

et al. 2017

Limnology & Oceanography

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Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) migrates from offshore to coastal areas to spawn and their eggs and larvae may substantially increase prey resources for resident predators. We combined an in situ predator exclusion experiment using eggs naturally spawned on submerged aquatic vegetation and field observations of predator abundance to estimate the magnitude of predation mortality of herring eggs. During our predator exclusion experiment, performed in an important spawning ground in the southwest Baltic Sea, 20% of the herring eggs were consumed resulting in an extrapolated predation of 42% of all eggs between spawning and hatch. Abundance and stomach content analyses indicated that one predator (threespine stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus) was responsible for the majority of the predation impact. Predation mortality estimates from this in situ study were more than 10-fold higher than those of an empirical egg predation model for the same predator in the same region. Our findings highlight the potential of resident predators to regulate the survival of early life stages of ocean-going fishes that rely on the nursery functions of inshore transitional waters.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 59%

Predation on Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) eggs by the resident predator community in coastal transitional waters

Kotterba

Moll²,

Hammer

et al. 2017

Limnology & Oceanography

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“…Previous research has revealed that migratory timing in pike varies both among individuals and populations and that it is associated with fitness (Larsson et al., ; Tibblin, Forsman et al., ). In this context, our present results indicate that stickleback predation may be an important selective driver shaping the timing of migratory events such that it should favour early breeding and subsequent emigration prior to stickleback arrival (Bergström et al., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 66%

“…Here, we add to this knowledge by investigating the interaction between pike, a top predatory fish species with declining populations, and the mesopredatory stickleback in the Baltic Sea. The role of the stickleback in influencing the abundances of predatory fish is under debate, but firm evidence to such effects is still lacking and the underlying mechanism eluding (Bergström et al., ; Byström et al., ; Ljunggren et al., ). In this study, we combine field and laboratory studies to suggest that sticklebacks negatively impact the recruitment success of pike by intense size‐selective predation, structured by gape‐limitations, on early life stages of pike about to leave their recruitment habitat.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The decline of pike has been attributed to increased interspecific resource competition during early life stages, habitat exploitation and high fishing pressure (Larsson et al., ; Ljunggren et al., ). Sticklebacks have consequently been favoured by predator release partly constituted by declining pike populations (Bergström et al., , ; Donadi et al., ; Sieben, Ljunggren, Bergström, & Eriksson, ). Many efforts, including fisheries regulation and habitat restoration, have been directed towards remediating the underlying causes for the decline, aid the recovery of pike and ultimately improve the coastal ecosystem (Engstedt, Nilsson, & Larsson, ; Nilsson, Engstedt, & Larsson, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predator–prey role reversal may impair the recovery of declining pike populations

Nilsson

Flink

Tibblin

2019

Journal of Animal Ecology

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Many fish populations have experienced declines in recent decades due to anthropogenic disturbances, such as overfishing and habitat exploitation. Despite management actions, many populations show a limited capacity to recover. This may be attributed to reversal of predator–prey roles, yet empirical evidence to that effect remains scarce. Here, we combine field and laboratory studies to investigate the interaction between pike (Esox lucius), a large keystone top predatory fish, and the small‐bodied mesopredatory threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) in the Baltic Sea where pike populations have declined. Our data suggest that stickleback predation on pike larvae depletes a large proportion of the recruitment and influences the size distribution through size‐selective predation, which is corroborated by a gape‐limitation experiment and diet analysis of wild‐captured sticklebacks. The effects of stickleback predation are present across several populations and years, and our data suggest that early arrival of sticklebacks has stronger effects on juvenile pike survival. Finally, we use data on pike gape‐limitation and the size distribution of sticklebacks to illustrate the process of role reversal. These findings suggest that mesopredator behaviour can reduce recruitment of a top predator species and impair the capacity of populations to recover. This emphasizes predator–prey role reversal as an important ecological and evolutionary driver that influences the outcome of restoration and management actions.

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“…The threespine stickleback population has increased in the Baltic Sea, which is suggested as a consequence of overfishing of their predators (Bergström et al, 2015). The stickleback is found in a wide range of habitats, showing high tolerance to changes in water chemistry and temperature (Östlund-Nilsson et al, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Development of the Threespine Stickleback in Relation to Water pH

et al. 2017

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Ocean acidification is a growing environmental problem, and there is a need to investigate how the decreasing pH will affect marine organisms. Here we studied the effects of lowered pH on the growth and development of the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) eggs. Adult fish, collected from the natural environment, were allowed to mate in aquaria and the newly produced eggs were incubated in an experiment. Eggs and larvae from ambient conditions (produced in the laboratory) were reared at three different pH concentrations (control: pH 7.8; and reduced pH treatments: pH 7.5 and 7.0) for 21 days in the laboratory. Dissolved oxygen concentration (8.1 ± 0.1 mg l −1 ) and temperature (18.6 ± 0.02 • C) were monitored regularly. Then, egg diameter, larval length, weight and survival were measured. There was no relationship between egg diameter and pH or oxygen, but a negative relationship was found with temperature. Survival of larvae was not affected by pH or temperature, whereas dissolved oxygen concentration had a positive effect on number of survivors. The pH did not have a significant effect on the final larval length on day 21, but interacted significantly with dissolved oxygen. Higher temperatures were found to have a positive effect on the final larval length and weight. Larval weight, on the other hand, was not related to pH nor oxygen. Coastal zones are characterized by pH levels that fluctuate due to natural processes, such as upwelling and river runoff. Our results suggest that the threespine stickleback larvae are well adapted to the different pHs tested, and egg development will likely not be affected by decreasing pH, but even slight temperature and oxygen changes can have a great impact on the threespine stickleback development.

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Stickleback increase in the Baltic Sea – A thorny issue for coastal predatory fish

Cited by 87 publications

References 53 publications

Predation on Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) eggs by the resident predator community in coastal transitional waters

Predation on Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) eggs by the resident predator community in coastal transitional waters

Predator–prey role reversal may impair the recovery of declining pike populations

Early Development of the Threespine Stickleback in Relation to Water pH

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