Ecology最新文献

{"title":"Early life stage bottleneck determines rates of coral recovery following severe disturbance","authors":"Kelly E. Speare,&nbsp;Lauren N. Enright,&nbsp;Allison Aplin,&nbsp;Thomas C. Adam,&nbsp;Peter J. Edmunds,&nbsp;Deron E. Burkepile","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4510","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4510","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Understanding how foundation species recover from disturbances is key for predicting the future of ecosystems in the Anthropocene. Coral reefs are dynamic ecosystems that can undergo rapid declines in coral abundance following disturbances. Understanding why some reefs recover quickly from these disturbances whereas others recover slowly (or not at all) gives insight into the drivers of community resilience. From 2006 to 2010 coral reefs on the fore reef of Moorea, French Polynesia, experienced severe disturbances that reduced coral cover from ~46% in 2005 to &lt;1% in 2010. Following these disturbances, coral cover increased from 2010 to 2018. Although there was a rapid and widespread recovery of corals, reefs at 17 m depth recovered more slowly than reefs at 10 m depth. We investigated the drivers of different rates of coral recovery between depths from 2010 to 2018 using a combination of time-series data on coral recruitment, density, growth, and mortality in addition to field experiments testing for the effects of predation. Propagule abundance did not influence recovery, as the density of coral recruits (spat &lt;6 months old) did not differ between depths. However, mortality of juvenile corals (≤5 cm diameter) was higher at 17 m, leading to densities of juvenile corals 3.5 times higher at 10 m than at 17 m depth. Yet, there were no differences in the growth of corals between depths. These results point to an early life stage bottleneck after settlement, resulting in greater mortality at 17 m than at 10 m as the likely driver of differential coral recovery between depths. We used experiments and time-series data to test mechanisms that could drive different rates of juvenile coral mortality across depths, including differences in predation, competition, and the availability of suitable substratum. The results of these experiments suggested that increased coral mortality at 17 m may have been influenced by higher intensity of fish predation, and higher mortality of corals attached to unfavorable substratum. In contrast, the abundance of macroalgae, a coral competitor, did not explain differences in coral survival. Our work suggests that top-down processes and substratum quality can create bottlenecks in corals that can drive rates of coral recovery after disturbance.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11771621/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143049202","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The influence of lightning on insect and fungal dynamics in a lowland tropical forest","authors":"Kane A. Lawhorn,&nbsp;Jeannine H. Richards,&nbsp;Evan M. Gora,&nbsp;Jeffrey C. Burchfield,&nbsp;Phillip M. Bitzer,&nbsp;Cesar Gutierrez,&nbsp;Stephen P. Yanoviak","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4521","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4521","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Lightning strikes are a common source of disturbance in tropical forests, and a typical strike generates large quantities of dead wood. Lightning-damaged trees are a consistent resource for tropical saproxylic (i.e., dead wood-dependent) organisms, but patterns of consumer colonization and succession following lightning strikes are not known. Here, we documented the occurrence of four common consumer taxa spanning multiple trophic levels—beetles, <i>Azteca</i> ants, termites, and fungi—in lightning strike sites and nearby undamaged control sites over time in a lowland forest of Panama. Beetle abundance was 10 times higher in lightning strike sites than in paired control sites, and beetle assemblages were compositionally distinct. Those in strike sites were initially dominated by bark and ambrosia beetles (Curculionidae: Platypodinae, Scolytinae); bark and ambrosia beetles, and predaceous taxa increased in abundance relatively synchronously. Beetle activity and fungal fruiting bodies, respectively, were 3.8 and 12.2 times more likely to be observed in lightning-damaged trees in strike sites versus undamaged trees in paired control sites, whereas the occurrence probabilities of <i>Azteca</i> ants and termites were similar between damaged trees in lightning strike sites and undamaged trees in control sites. Tree size also was important; larger dead trees in strike sites were more likely to support beetles, termites, and fungal fruiting bodies, and larger trees—regardless of mortality status—were more likely to host <i>Azteca</i>. Beetle presence was associated with higher rates of subsequent fungal presence, providing some evidence of beetle-associated priority effects on colonization patterns. These results suggest that lightning plays a key role in supporting tropical insect and fungal consumers by providing localized patches of suitable habitat. Any climate-driven changes in lightning frequency in tropical forests will likely affect a broad suite of consumer organisms, potentially altering ecosystem-level processes.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143054593","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Plant growth strategies and microbial contributions to ecosystem nitrogen retention along a soil acidification gradient","authors":"Ying Zhang,&nbsp;Ruzhen Wang,&nbsp;Baitao Gu,&nbsp;Heyong Liu,&nbsp;Feike A. Dijkstra,&nbsp;Xingguo Han,&nbsp;Yong Jiang","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4515","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4515","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Nitrogen (N) retention is a critical ecosystem function associated with sustainable N supply. Lack of experimental evidence limits our understanding of how grassland N retention can vary with soil acidification. A ¹⁵N-labeling experiment was conducted for 2 years to quantify N retention by soil pathways and plant functional groups across a soil-acidification gradient in a meadow. The ¹⁵N added to the ecosystem was mainly intercepted by the soil (up to 87.3%). Within the soil, ¹⁵N recovery in ammonium, dissolved organic N, microbial biomass, and amino sugars (a proxy for microbial necromass) represented approximately 46% of soil-retained ¹⁵N. ¹⁵N recovery in these N fractions increased with acidification, highlighting the complexity of microbial N transformations that affect ecosystem N retention. Plant ¹⁵N-retention increased in sedges, decreased in forbs, and was unaffected in grasses with acidification, reflecting their divergent associations with mycorrhizas and sensitivities to soil acidification. Soil microbial biomass was the key variable delineating soil N retention, while sedges were critical for plant N retention, resulting in a clear trade-off and competition in ¹⁵N retention between the two compartments. Overall, acidification might curb N losses by strengthening microbial retention and shifting plant N retention among different plant growth strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143049203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Nitrogen fixation may not alleviate stoichiometric imbalances that limit primary production in eutrophic lake ecosystems","authors":"Isabelle M. Andersen,&nbsp;Jason M. Taylor,&nbsp;Patrick T. Kelly,&nbsp;Alexa K. Hoke,&nbsp;Caleb J. Robbins,&nbsp;J. Thad Scott","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4516","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4516","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Ecosystem-scale primary production may be proximately limited by nitrogen (N) but ultimately limited by phosphorus (P) because N₂ fixation contributes new N that accumulates relative to P at ecosystem scales. However, the duration needed to transition between proximate N limitation and ultimate P limitation remains unknown for most ecosystems, including lakes. Here we present the results of a fully replicated, multi-annual lake mesocosm experiment that permitted full air-water-sediment interactions that mimicked lake ecosystem ecology. We manipulated N supply relative to P to achieve a gradient of N:P stoichiometry. Despite N₂ fixation contributing as much as 80% of reactive N in the low N treatments, phytoplankton biomass in these treatments was not different from the unfertilized controls. This suggests that primary production remained N limited in the lowest N treatments, even when N₂ fixation was substantial. Although fixed N inputs reduced the N imbalance relative to P in the low N treatments seasonally, fixed N did not accumulate over multiple years. Additionally, reactive N did not readily accumulate in the high N treatments. Instead, water column stoichiometry was proportional to the experimental N and P additions, suggesting a strong influence from external nutrient loading. Thus, we found no evidence that N accumulation from N₂ fixation was sufficient to trigger a transition to ultimate P limitation seasonally or across our 3-year experiment. Rather, our results indicate that proximate N limitation perpetuates in eutrophic lakes, likely due to N export being proportional to its inputs. These findings offer new insight regarding the biogeochemical controls on ecosystem stoichiometry and their influence on the timeframe for proximate N limitation and ultimate P limitation in freshwater, marine, and terrestrial ecosystems.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecy.4516","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143030737","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Costs and benefits of maternal nest choice: Trade-offs between brood survival and thermal stress in bees","authors":"Jessie L. deHaan,&nbsp;Jesse Maretzki,&nbsp;Adonis Skandalis,&nbsp;Glenn J. Tattersall,&nbsp;Miriam H. Richards","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4525","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4525","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Optimal nest site selection is crucial in animals whose offspring are completely dependent on the shelter of a nest. Parental decisions influencing nest thermal conditions are particularly important because temperature strongly influences juvenile activity, metabolism, growth, developmental rate, survival, and adult body size. In small ectotherms such as bees, maternal decisions to nest in sun-exposed or shady sites can lead to marked differences in thermal microenvironments inside nests. Small carpenter bees (<i>Ceratina calcarata</i>) strongly prefer to nest in sun but also prefer nesting substrates more frequently found in shade, suggesting that nest site selection is based on a trade-off between costs and benefits of warmer versus cooler nest sites. We investigated the consequences of sun and shade nesting for mothers and their offspring using a field experiment in which mothers and newly founded nests were placed in sunny or shady habitats. Maternal costs and benefits in each treatment were quantified by comparing maternal foraging effort, nest size, number of brood provisioned, and number and size of live offspring. These demographic measures allowed us to estimate fitness for mothers nesting in sun versus shade. For juvenile bees from sun and shade nests, we quantified two thermal traits, high-temperature tolerance (CT_max) and metabolic rate. Mothers in sun nests had significantly higher nesting success, with 59% of all nests producing brood, while mothers in shade nests experienced only 32% success. Successful sun nests actually contained fewer live brood (5.2 ± 3.0, mean ± SD) than shade nests (6.9 ± 3.3), but their higher success rates meant that maternal fitness was higher in sun than in shade. However, sun nesting entailed clear costs to brood, which were significantly smaller, less likely to survive to adulthood, and had significantly elevated CT_max, suggesting that thermal stress during development necessitated them to shunt resources from growth to thermoprotection. The maternal preferences for sun nesting optimize maternal fitness despite the evident costs to juveniles developing in sun-exposed nests.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11755220/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143026258","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Canopy complexity drives positive effects of tree diversity on productivity in two tree diversity experiments","authors":"Catherine Fahey,&nbsp;Dennis Choi,&nbsp;Jianmin Wang,&nbsp;Grant M. Domke,&nbsp;Joseph D. Edwards,&nbsp;Songlin Fei,&nbsp;Stephanie N. Kivlin,&nbsp;Elizabeth A. LaRue,&nbsp;Melissa K. McCormick,&nbsp;William J. McShea,&nbsp;Richard P. Phillips,&nbsp;Jamie Pullen,&nbsp;John D. Parker","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4500","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4500","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Forest canopy complexity (i.e., the three-dimensional structure of the canopy) is often associated with increased species diversity as well as high primary productivity across natural forests. However, canopy complexity, tree diversity, and productivity are often confounded in natural forests, and the mechanisms of these relationships remain unclear. Here, we used two large tree diversity experiments in North America to assess three hypotheses: (1) increasing tree diversity leads to increased canopy complexity, (2) canopy complexity is positively related to tree productivity, and (3) the relationship between tree diversity and tree productivity is indirect and driven by the positive effects of canopy complexity. We found that increasing tree diversity from monocultures to mixtures of 12 species increases canopy complexity and productivity by up to 71% and 73%, respectively. Moreover, structural equation modeling indicates that the effects of tree diversity on productivity are indirect and mediated primarily by changes in internal canopy complexity. Ultimately, we suggest that increasing canopy complexity can be a major mechanism by which tree diversity enhances productivity in young forests.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecy.4500","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143026177","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Predictive models are indeed useful for causal inference","authors":"James D. Nichols,&nbsp;Evan G. Cooch","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4517","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4517","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The subject of investigating causation in ecology has been widely discussed in recent years, especially by advocates of a structural causal model (SCM) approach. Some of these advocates have criticized the use of predictive models and model selection for drawing inferences about causation. We argue that the comparison of model-based predictions with observations is a key step in hypothetico-deductive (H-D) science and remains a valid approach for assessing causation. We draw a distinction between two approaches to inference based on predictive modeling. The first approach is not guided by causal hypotheses and focuses on the relationship between a (typically) single response variable and a potentially large number of covariates. We agree that this approach does not yield useful inferences about causation and is primarily useful for hypothesis generation. The second approach follows a H-D framework and is guided by specific hypotheses about causal relationships. We believe that this has been, and continues to be, a useful approach to causal inference. Here, we first define different kinds of causation, arguing that a “probability-raisers-of-processes” definition is especially appropriate for many ecological systems. We outline different scientific “designs” for generating the observations used to investigate causation. We briefly outline some relevant components of the SCM and H-D approaches to investigating causation, emphasizing a H-D approach that focuses on modeling causal effects on vital rate (e.g., rates of survival, recruitment, local extinction, colonization) parameters underlying system dynamics. We consider criticisms of predictive modeling leveled by some SCM proponents and provide two example analyses of ecological systems that use predictive modeling and avoid these criticisms. We conclude that predictive models have been, and can continue to be, useful for providing inferences about causation.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143026265","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Putting seedlings on the map: Trade-offs in demographic rates between ontogenetic size classes in five tropical forests","authors":"Stephan Kambach,&nbsp;Helge Bruelheide,&nbsp;Liza S. Comita,&nbsp;Richard Condit,&nbsp;S. Joseph Wright,&nbsp;Salomón Aguilar,&nbsp;Chia-Hao Chang-Yang,&nbsp;Yu-Yun Chen,&nbsp;Nancy C. Garwood,&nbsp;Stephen P. Hubbell,&nbsp;Pei-Jen Luo,&nbsp;Margaret R. Metz,&nbsp;Musalmah Bt. Nasardin,&nbsp;Rolando Pérez,&nbsp;Simon A. Queenborough,&nbsp;I-Fang Sun,&nbsp;Nathan G. Swenson,&nbsp;Jill Thompson,&nbsp;María Uriarte,&nbsp;Renato Valencia,&nbsp;Tze Leong Yao,&nbsp;Jess K. Zimmerman,&nbsp;Nadja Rüger","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4527","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4527","url":null,"abstract":"<p>All species must partition resources among the processes that underly growth, survival, and reproduction. The resulting demographic trade-offs constrain the range of viable life-history strategies and are hypothesized to promote local coexistence. Tropical forests pose ideal systems to study demographic trade-offs as they have a high diversity of coexisting tree species whose life-history strategies tend to align along two orthogonal axes of variation: a growth–survival trade-off that separates species with fast growth from species with high survival and a stature–recruitment trade-off that separates species that achieve large stature from species with high recruitment. As these trade-offs have typically been explored for trees ≥1 cm dbh, it is unclear how species' growth and survival during earliest seedling stages are related to the trade-offs for trees ≥1 cm dbh. Here, we used principal components and correlation analyses to (1) determine the main demographic trade-offs among seed-to-seedling transition rates and growth and survival rates from the seedling to overstory size classes of 1188 tree species from large-scale forest dynamics plots in Panama, Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Taiwan, and Malaysia and (2) quantify the predictive power of maximum dbh, wood density, seed mass, and specific leaf area for species' position along these demographic trade-off gradients. In four out of five forests, the growth–survival trade-off was the most important demographic trade-off and encompassed growth and survival of both seedlings and trees ≥1 cm dbh. The second most important trade-off separated species with relatively fast growth and high survival at the seedling stage from species with relatively fast growth and high survival ≥1 cm dbh. The relationship between seed-to-seedling transition rates and these two trade-off aces differed between sites. All four traits were significant predictors for species' position along the two trade-off gradients, albeit with varying importance. We concluded that, after accounting for the species' position along the growth–survival trade-off, tree species tend to trade off growth and survival at the seedling with later life stages. This ontogenetic trade-off offers a mechanistic explanation for the stature–recruitment trade-off that constitutes an additional ontogenetic dimension of life-history variation in species-rich ecosystems.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11755001/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143026266","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pointed-snout wrasse builds nest on Sarcotragus foetidus sponges","authors":"Francesca Strano,&nbsp;Francesco Tiralongo,&nbsp;Valerio Micaroni","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4531","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4531","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;Fishes belonging to the genus &lt;i&gt;Symphodus&lt;/i&gt;, commonly called wrasses (Labridae family), exhibit diverse nesting behaviors among different species, ranging from elaborate to rudimentary nests, and in some cases no nests at all (Hanel et al., &lt;span&gt;2002&lt;/span&gt;; Warner &amp; Lejeune, &lt;span&gt;1985&lt;/span&gt;). The nests, when built, are primarily constructed using algae of various species, which provide a secure environment for egg deposition and protection, playing a crucial role in the reproductive success of these species (Quignard &amp; Pras, &lt;span&gt;1986&lt;/span&gt;). The Pointed-snout wrasse (&lt;i&gt;Symphodus rostratus&lt;/i&gt;), a common Mediterranean species, exhibits complex nesting behaviors (Hanel et al., &lt;span&gt;2002&lt;/span&gt;), which are essential for mate selection (Alonzo &amp; Heckman, &lt;span&gt;2010&lt;/span&gt;).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;During a rebreather training dive along the Apulian coast (Santa Caterina, Ionian Sea; 40°08′15.4″ N, 17°58′52.3″ E), the 20th of March 2024, at a depth between 12 and 17 m, we encountered large specimens (40 cm in diameter) of the sponge &lt;i&gt;Sarcotragus foetidus&lt;/i&gt; with systematically arranged mounds of biogenic material, including shell, sea urchin test, and bryozoan fragments on their surface (Figure 1). In this context, we observed a mature male of the Pointed-snout wrasse actively transporting these fragments and placing them on one of these sponges (Video S1), engaging in nest-building behavior (Taborsky et al., &lt;span&gt;1987&lt;/span&gt;). Throughout our dive, we documented nine instances of &lt;i&gt;S. rostratus&lt;/i&gt; nests constructed on &lt;i&gt;S. foetidus&lt;/i&gt;, each between 30 and 40 cm in diameter. In one case, we observed and filmed (GoPro HERO 8 Black) a female engaging in mating behavior with a reproductive male (Video S2). This observation is significant, as the use of calcareous biogenic materials and the selection of sponges as a nesting substrate in &lt;i&gt;S. rostratus&lt;/i&gt; had never been reported until now. The Pointed-snout wrasse indeed, typically builds its nets using algae as the primary material, selecting areas rich in vegetation. This species is commonly observed constructing nests among algal beds, which provide both camouflage and structural support to eggs. The finding of several nests on different sponges within the same site suggests the possibility of observational learning or “copy-cat” behavior among reproductive male &lt;i&gt;S. rostratus&lt;/i&gt;. Copying behavior have been documented in Ocellated wrasse (&lt;i&gt;Symphodus ocellatus&lt;/i&gt;), where female mate choice copying can influence sexual selection (Alonzo, &lt;span&gt;2008&lt;/span&gt;), and if confirmed, this would represent a novel example of observational learning in the nesting behaviors of &lt;i&gt;S. rostratus&lt;/i&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Sponges play crucial ecological functions in marine ecosystems, often providing habitats for other organisms at various spatial scales (Bell et al., &lt;span&gt;2023&lt;/span&gt;). Deep-sea glass sponge reefs are known to be refuge and nursery grounds for demersal fish (Barthel, &lt;span&gt;1997&lt;/span&gt;; Maldonado ","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11751700/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143017698","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Seagrass wasting disease prevalence and lesion area increase with invertebrate grazing across the northeastern Pacific","authors":"Lillian R. Aoki,&nbsp;Carmen J. Ritter,&nbsp;Deanna S. Beatty,&nbsp;Lia K. Domke,&nbsp;Ginny L. Eckert,&nbsp;Olivia J. Graham,&nbsp;Carla P. Gomes,&nbsp;Collin Gross,&nbsp;Timothy L. Hawthorne,&nbsp;Eliza Heery,&nbsp;Margot Hessing-Lewis,&nbsp;Kevin Hovel,&nbsp;Karl Koehler,&nbsp;Zachary L. Monteith,&nbsp;Ryan S. Mueller,&nbsp;Angeleen M. Olson,&nbsp;Carolyn Prentice,&nbsp;Brendan Rappazzo,&nbsp;John J. Stachowicz,&nbsp;Fiona Tomas,&nbsp;Bo Yang,&nbsp;C. Drew Harvell,&nbsp;J. Emmett Duffy","doi":"10.1002/ecy.4532","DOIUrl":"10.1002/ecy.4532","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Disease is a key driver of community and ecosystem structure, especially when it strikes foundation species. In the widespread marine foundation species eelgrass (<i>Zostera marina</i>), outbreaks of wasting disease have caused large-scale meadow collapse in the past, and the causative pathogen, <i>Labyrinthula zosterae</i>, is commonly found in meadows globally. Research to date has mainly focused on abiotic environmental drivers of seagrass wasting disease, but there is strong evidence from other systems that biotic interactions such as herbivory can facilitate plant diseases. How biotic interactions influence seagrass wasting disease in the field is unknown but is potentially important for understanding dynamics of this globally valuable and declining habitat. Here, we investigated links between epifaunal grazers and seagrass wasting disease using a latitudinal field study across 32 eelgrass meadows distributed from southeastern Alaska to southern California. From 2019 to 2021, we conducted annual surveys to assess eelgrass shoot density, morphology, epifauna community, and the prevalence and lesion area of wasting disease infections. We integrated field data with satellite measurements of sea surface temperature and used structural equation modeling to test the magnitude and direction of possible drivers of wasting disease. Our results show that grazing by small invertebrates was associated with a 29% increase in prevalence of wasting disease infections and that both the prevalence and lesion area of disease increased with total epifauna abundances. Furthermore, these relationships differed among taxa; disease levels increased with snail (<i>Lacuna</i> spp.) and idoteid isopod abundances but were not related to abundance of ampithoid amphipods. This field study across 23° of latitude suggests a prominent role for invertebrate consumers in facilitating disease outbreaks with potentially large impacts on coastal seagrass ecosystems.</p>","PeriodicalId":11484,"journal":{"name":"Ecology","volume":"106 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-01-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11754935/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143024811","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}