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Moore SE, Siwertsson A, Lafferty KD, Kuris AM, Soldánová M, Morton D, Primicerio R, Amundsen PA. Parasites alter food-web topology of a subarctic lake food web and its pelagic and benthic compartments. Oecologia 2024; 204:257-277. [PMID: 38326516 PMCID: PMC10907417 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-023-05503-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/10/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
We compared three sets of highly resolved food webs with and without parasites for a subarctic lake system corresponding to its pelagic and benthic compartments and the whole-lake food web. Key topological food-web metrics were calculated for each set of compartments to explore the role parasites play in food-web topology in these highly contrasting webs. After controlling for effects from differences in web size, we observed similar responses to the addition of parasites in both the pelagic and benthic compartments demonstrated by increases in trophic levels, linkage density, connectance, generality, and vulnerability despite the contrasting composition of free-living and parasitic species between the two compartments. Similar effects on food-web topology can be expected with the inclusion of parasites, regardless of the physical characteristics and taxonomic community compositions of contrasting environments. Additionally, similar increases in key topological metrics were found in the whole-lake food web that combines the pelagic and benthic webs, effects that are comparable to parasite food-web analyses from other systems. These changes in topological metrics are a result of the unique properties of parasites as infectious agents and the links they participate in. Trematodes were key contributors to these results, as these parasites have distinct characteristics in aquatic systems that introduce new link types and increase the food web's generality and vulnerability disproportionate to other parasites. Our analysis highlights the importance of incorporating parasites, especially trophically transmitted parasites, into food webs as they significantly alter key topological metrics and are thus essential for understanding an ecosystem's structure and functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon E Moore
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
| | - Anna Siwertsson
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Kevin D Lafferty
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, at Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Armand M Kuris
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Miroslava Soldánová
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, Branišovská 31, 370 05, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Dana Morton
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Raul Primicerio
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Per-Arne Amundsen
- Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
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Warren DA, Burgess AL, Prati S, Bacela-Spychalska K, S J Rogers M, Bojko J. Histopathological screening of Pontogammarus robustoides (Amphipoda), an invader on route to the United Kingdom. J Invertebr Pathol 2023; 200:107970. [PMID: 37422088 DOI: 10.1016/j.jip.2023.107970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2023] [Revised: 07/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/10/2023]
Abstract
Biological invasions may act as conduits for pathogen introduction. To determine which invasive non-native species pose the biggest threat, we must first determine the symbionts (pathogens, parasites, commensals, mutualists) they carry, via pathological surveys that can be conducted in multiple ways (i.e., molecular, pathological, and histological). Whole animal histopathology allows for the observation of pathogenic agents (virus to Metazoa), based on their pathological effect upon host tissue. Where the technique cannot accurately predict pathogen taxonomy, it does highlight pathogen groups of importance. This study provides a histopathological survey of Pontogammarus robustoides (invasive amphipod in Europe) as a baseline for symbiont groups that may translocate to other areas/hosts in future invasions. Pontogammarus robustoides (n = 1,141) collected throughout Poland (seven sites), were noted to include a total of 13 symbiotic groups: a putative gut epithelia virus (overall prevalence = 0.6%), a putative hepatopancreatic cytoplasmic virus (1.4%), a hepatopancreatic bacilliform virus (15.7%), systemic bacteria (0.7%), fouling ciliates (62.0%), gut gregarines (39.5%), hepatopancreatic gregarines (0.4%), haplosporidians (0.4%), muscle infecting microsporidians (6.4%), digeneans (3.5%), external rotifers (3.0%), an endoparasitic arthropod (putatively: Isopoda) (0.1%), and Gregarines with putative microsporidian infections (1.4%). Parasite assemblages partially differed across collection sites. Co-infection patterns revealed strong positive and negative associations between five parasites. Microsporidians were common across sites and could easily spread to other areas following the invasion of P. robustoides. By providing this initial histopathological survey, we hope to provide a concise list of symbiont groups for risk-assessment in the case of a novel invasion by this highly invasive amphipod.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel A Warren
- Animal and Plant Health Agency, Sand Hutton, York YO41 1LZ, England
| | - Amy L Burgess
- National Horizons Centre, Teesside University, Darlington DL1 1HG, United Kingdom; School of Health and Life Sciences, Teesside University, Middlesbrough TS1 3BX, United Kingdom
| | - Sebastian Prati
- Aquatic Ecology and Centre for Water and Environmental Research, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitaetsstr. 5, 45141 Essen, Germany
| | - Karolina Bacela-Spychalska
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, Faculty of Biology & Environmental Protection, University of Łódź, 90-237 Łódź, Poland
| | - Martin S J Rogers
- Artifical Intelligence Laboratory, British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge CB3 0ET, UK
| | - Jamie Bojko
- National Horizons Centre, Teesside University, Darlington DL1 1HG, United Kingdom; School of Health and Life Sciences, Teesside University, Middlesbrough TS1 3BX, United Kingdom.
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Link M, Schreiner VC, Graf N, Szöcs E, Bundschuh M, Battes KP, Cîmpean M, Sures B, Grabner D, Buse J, Schäfer RB. Pesticide effects on macroinvertebrates and leaf litter decomposition in areas with traditional agriculture. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 828:154549. [PMID: 35302011 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2022] [Revised: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Traditional forms of agriculture have created and preserved heterogeneous landscapes characterized by semi-natural meadows and pastures, which have high conversation value for biodiversity. Landscapes in Central and Eastern European countries with traditional agriculture are a stronghold for pollinators, butterflies and amphibians, which have declined in other parts of Europe. Despite different landscape structures, agriculture-associated pesticide exposure in streams can be similarly high as in Western Europe. This raises the question whether the heterogeneous landscape can buffer a temporary water quality decline by agriculture. We investigated the influence of landscape heterogeneity and water quality, in particular pesticide exposure, on macroinvertebrate communities in 19 small streams in Central Romania. We sampled the macroinvertebrate community, assessed the ecosystem function of leaf litter decomposition and analyzed the parasite prevalence in Baetis sp. and Gammarus balcanicus. No association between pesticide toxicity towards macroinvertebrates and several macroinvertebrate metrics was found. However, the level of pesticide toxicity was generally high, constituting a rather short gradient, and the pesticide indicator SPEARpesticides implied pesticide-driven community change in all sites. Landscape heterogeneity and forested upstream sections were among the most important drivers for the macroinvertebrate metrics, indicating increased dispersal and recolonization success. Agricultural land use in the catchment was negatively associated with vulnerable macroinvertebrate taxa such as Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera. G. balcanicus dominated the shredder taxa and its abundance was positively associated with the pesticide indicator SPEARpesticides. Parasite prevalence in G. balcanicus increased with extensive land use (pastures and forests), whereas it decreased with arable land. Our results suggest that heterogeneous landscapes with structures of low-intensive land use may buffer the effects of agricultural land use and facilitate dispersal and recolonization processes of pesticide-affected macroinvertebrate communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moritz Link
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau in der Pfalz, Germany.
| | - Verena C Schreiner
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau in der Pfalz, Germany
| | - Nadin Graf
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau in der Pfalz, Germany
| | - Eduard Szöcs
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau in der Pfalz, Germany
| | - Mirco Bundschuh
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau in der Pfalz, Germany
| | - Karina P Battes
- Department of Taxonomy and Ecology, Babeş-Bolyai University, 5-7 Clinicilor Str., 400006 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Mirela Cîmpean
- Department of Taxonomy and Ecology, Babeş-Bolyai University, 5-7 Clinicilor Str., 400006 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Bernd Sures
- Aquatic Ecology and Center for Water and Environmental Research, University of Duisburg Essen, Universitätsstraße 5, 45141 Essen, Germany
| | - Daniel Grabner
- Aquatic Ecology and Center for Water and Environmental Research, University of Duisburg Essen, Universitätsstraße 5, 45141 Essen, Germany
| | - Jörn Buse
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau in der Pfalz, Germany
| | - Ralf B Schäfer
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, University Koblenz-Landau, Fortstraße 7, 76829 Landau in der Pfalz, Germany
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Li J, Zhou J, Chen S, Shen H, Peng Y, Zhang K, Huang W, Liang X, Liu B, Zhang C. Characterization of the complete mitogenome of Gammarus lacustris (G.O. Sars, 1863) (Amphipoda: Gammaridae) and its phylogenetic position within Amphipoda. MITOCHONDRIAL DNA PART B-RESOURCES 2021; 6:2501-2502. [PMID: 34377806 PMCID: PMC8330746 DOI: 10.1080/23802359.2021.1958083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Gammarus lacustris is native to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP), widely distributed in alpine lakes. The complete mitochondrial DNA sequence of G. lacustris was 15,349 base pairs in length and comprised 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes, and 1 control region. The BI tree showed that G. lacustris was most closely related to Gammarus duebeni, and indicated that Gammarus, Gmelinoides, Brachyuropus, Pallaseopsis, and Eulimnogammarus evolved from a common ancestor. The mitogenome of G. lacustris provides new molecular data for further taxonomic and phylogenetic studies of Amphipoda.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiasheng Li
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Jianshe Zhou
- Institute of Fisheries Science, Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Sciences, Lhasa, P. R. China
| | - Shiyi Chen
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Haodi Shen
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Ying Peng
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Kun Zhang
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Wenhua Huang
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Xudong Liang
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Bingjian Liu
- National Engineering Research Center for Marine Aquaculture, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, China
| | - Chi Zhang
- Institute of Fisheries Science, Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Sciences, Lhasa, P. R. China
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