eDNA confirms lower trophic interactions help to modulate population outbreaks of the notorious crown- of- thorns sea star

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Wolfe, Kennedy; Desbiens, Amelia A.; Patel, Frances; Kwong, Sarah; Fisher, Eric; Mumby, Peter J.; Uthicke, Sven
• 署名单位: University of Queensland; Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO); Australian Institute of Marine Science; James Cook University
• 刊物名称: PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0027-11065
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2424560122
• 发表日期: 2025-03-10
• 关键词: great-barrier-reef; acanthaster-planci; postsettlement processes; biological-control; biocontrol; mortality; DYNAMICS; rates

摘要

Variability in predator-prey interactions can modulate population dynamics with impacts scalable to entire ecosystems. As notorious corallivores, crown-of-thorns sea stars (CoTS; Acanthaster spp.) have caused extensive losses of coral habitat during unexplained population outbreaks across the Indo-Pacific. While predation of adult CoTS may help to suppress their outbreaks, it does not sufficiently explain their profound boom-bust dynamics and so remains equivocal. Factors influencing early postsettlement mortality are generally more impactful on population size, thus lower trophic interactions involving juvenile CoTS may better contribute to outbreak prevention. We evaluated the impact of key predatory decapods that interact with juvenile CoTS in their coral rubble nursery before they emerge as destructive corallivores. Decapod density was influenced by habitat complexity and varied regionally, inverse to spatial we confirmed seven species (similar to 12% of individuals) of wild-caught decapod, collected from two reefs separated by >1,000 km, as CoTS predatoring to spatial variation in predator abundance and community structure, we estimated potentias. Owl (previous were similar to 3-fold and similar to 1.6- fold lower, respectively, in outbreak hotspots. Through combination of field and molecular techniques, we demonstrated the appreciable impact of cryptic predators on early population success of this nuisance species, which expands understanding broader ecological outcomes.