Twig Cutting by the Black Rat, <i>Rattus rattus</i> (Rodentia: Muridae), on the Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands

Yabe, Tatsuo; Hashimoto, Takuma; Takiguchi, Masaaki; Aoki, Masanari; Fujita, Matthew K.

doi:10.2984/64.1.093

Cited by 10 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Alien rats (R. rattus) are harmful seed predators and twig cutters on Ogasawara Islands ( Fig. 2f; Abe 2007;Yabe et al 2010;Abe and Umeno 2011). In addition, grazing pressure of feral goats has great effects on insular vegetation (Coblentz 1978;Courchamp et al 2003;Hata et al 2007).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vegetation status on Nishi-jima Island (Ogasawara) before eradication of alien herbivore mammals: rapid expansion of an invasive alien tree,Casuarina equisetifolia(Casuarinaceae)

Abe

Yasui²,

Makino

2011

Journal of Forest Research

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Insular ecosystems can be dramatically affected by alien species, and records of pre-eradication status are essential to evaluate the effects of eradicating alien species. Nishi-jima Island is a small island of the Ogasawara group on which the first program of complete eradication of alien herbivorous mammals (black rats and feral goats) will be conducted. After eradication, the government plans to conduct ecosystem restoration on the island. This paper reports the angiosperm flora and vegetation of Nishi-jima Island before eradication of the rats and goats, with the objective of aiding ecosystem management after the eradication. Our surveys indicate that vegetation cover by the alien tree, Casuarina equisetifolia has expanded compared with its distribution in a 1974 aerial photograph of the island. The predominant vegetation in 2006 was C. equisetifolia forests and Zoysia tenuifolia grasslands, with fragmented native tree vegetation. The flora of the island comprised 69 angiosperm species (50 indigenous species) of which 30% were endemic, far less than for the Ogasawara Islands as a whole (45%). However, several populations of endangered plants remain. To restore the native ecosystem on Nishi-jima, eradication of C. equisetifolia is important in addition to eradication of alien herbivorous mammals.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vegetation status on Nishi-jima Island (Ogasawara) before eradication of alien herbivore mammals: rapid expansion of an invasive alien tree,Casuarina equisetifolia(Casuarinaceae)

Abe

Yasui²,

Makino

2011

Journal of Forest Research

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“…So the lack of the rats' primary food items could explain the frequent twig cutting in spring. Yabe et al (2010) also supposed that twigs would be supplemental foods in spring due to food shortage.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The aim of the twig-cutting behavior is not clear, but it could supply nutrients (Hansson 1991, Yabe 1998, 1999, Yabe et al 2010 or water (Taylor 1970) in tree sap. The water-intake hypothesis was proposed on the grounds that the behavior occurred in the dry season, but this did not apply in Ogasawara (Figure 7).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pattern of Twig Cutting by Introduced Rats in Insular Cloud Forests

Abe

Umeno

2011

Pacific Science

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We examined seasonal patterns of twig cutting by the introduced black rat, Rattus rattus, on Haha-jima Island, an island in the Ogasawara (Bonin) group of Japan. Censuses were conducted along seven routes to count the number of trees damaged by twig cutting in each month. Overall, 42.6% (23/54 species) of woody species were damaged. Twig cutting was greatest in spring (March-May). Probability of damage by twig cutting was not correlated with species frequency in the vegetation. This suggests that twig cutting is associated with particular characteristics of target species. Endemic plants experienced a significantly higher probability of twig cutting than alien plants. This may be due to an evolutionary loss of plant defense mechanisms in the absence of herbivorous mammals. Because the overall proportion of individuals damaged by twig cutting was not high, the behavior is unlikely to influence the population dynamics of trees and cause vegetation change. But intense twig cutting was also found on critically endangered plants, so twig cutting by black rats could be a threat to those species.

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“…Goats have also caused local extinctions and population declines in endangered plants, such as Lobelia boninensis and Crepidiastrum grandicollum, in the archipelago (Ono 1998). Furthermore, the introduced rat reportedly eats and/or damages the seeds, fruits, and twigs of many native plant species (Toyoda 2003;Watanabe et al 2003;Yamashita et al 2003;Abe 2007;Hashimoto 2010;Yabe et al 2010;Abe and Umeno 2011). Although reports on the negative impacts of introduced phytophagous insects on native plants are rare (Sugiura 2010a), the introduced weevil, Rhabdoscelus obscurus, reportedly damages the basal parts of leaves in the endemic palm Clinostigma savoryana (Karube et al 2008(Karube et al , 2009).…”

Section: Herbivorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of introduced species on the biota of an oceanic archipelago: the relative importance of competitive and trophic interactions

Sugiura

2016

Ecological Research

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Introduced species negatively impact native species through competitive and trophic interactions, particularly on oceanic islands that have never been connected to any continental landmass. However, there are few studies on the relative importance of competitive interactions (resource competition with introduced species) and trophic interactions (predation or herbivory by introduced species) with respect to the negative impacts on native organisms on oceanic islands. A literature review on introduced and native species of the oceanic Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands in the western Pacific Ocean indicated that many native species (e.g., bees, beetles, damselflies, butterflies, land snails, birds, and plants) have been negatively impacted by introduced predators and herbivores (e.g., lizards, rats, flatworms, and goats). Several native plants and bees have been negatively affected by introduced competitors. However, the native species that have competed with introduced species have also suffered from either intense herbivory or predation by other introduced species. Thus, introduced predators and herbivores have had greater impacts on native species than introduced competitors in the Ogasawara Islands.

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Twig Cutting by the Black Rat, Rattus rattus (Rodentia: Muridae), on the Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands

Cited by 10 publications

References 3 publications

Vegetation status on Nishi-jima Island (Ogasawara) before eradication of alien herbivore mammals: rapid expansion of an invasive alien tree,Casuarina equisetifolia(Casuarinaceae)

Vegetation status on Nishi-jima Island (Ogasawara) before eradication of alien herbivore mammals: rapid expansion of an invasive alien tree,Casuarina equisetifolia(Casuarinaceae)

Pattern of Twig Cutting by Introduced Rats in Insular Cloud Forests

Impacts of introduced species on the biota of an oceanic archipelago: the relative importance of competitive and trophic interactions

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