O'Gorman, Eoin J and Zhao, Lei and Kordas, Rebecca L and Dudgeon, Steve and Woodward, Guy (2023) Warming indirectly simplifies food webs through effects on apex predators. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 7 (12). pp. 1983-1992. DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-023-02216-4
O'Gorman, Eoin J and Zhao, Lei and Kordas, Rebecca L and Dudgeon, Steve and Woodward, Guy (2023) Warming indirectly simplifies food webs through effects on apex predators. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 7 (12). pp. 1983-1992. DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-023-02216-4
O'Gorman, Eoin J and Zhao, Lei and Kordas, Rebecca L and Dudgeon, Steve and Woodward, Guy (2023) Warming indirectly simplifies food webs through effects on apex predators. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 7 (12). pp. 1983-1992. DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-023-02216-4
Abstract
Warming alters ecosystems through direct physiological effects on organisms and indirect effects via biotic interactions, but their relative impacts in the wild are unknown due to the difficulty in warming natural environments. Here we bridge this gap by embedding manipulative field experiments within a natural stream temperature gradient to test whether warming and apex fish predators have interactive effects on freshwater ecosystems. Fish exerted cascading effects on algal production and microbial decomposition via both green and brown pathways in the food web, but only under warming. Neither temperature nor the presence of fish altered food web structure alone, but connectance and mean trophic level declined as consumer species were lost when both drivers acted together. A mechanistic model indicates that this temperature-induced trophic cascade is determined primarily by altered interactions, which cautions against extrapolating the impacts of warming from reductionist approaches that do not consider the wider food web.
Item Type: | Article |
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Uncontrolled Keywords: | Animals; Ecosystem; Food Chain; Rivers; Temperature |
Divisions: | Faculty of Science and Health Faculty of Science and Health > Life Sciences, School of |
SWORD Depositor: | Unnamed user with email elements@essex.ac.uk |
Depositing User: | Unnamed user with email elements@essex.ac.uk |
Date Deposited: | 18 Jan 2024 10:02 |
Last Modified: | 16 May 2024 22:04 |
URI: | http://repository.essex.ac.uk/id/eprint/37470 |
Available files
Filename: Warming indirectly simplifies food webs through effects on apex predators.pdf