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Dulude-de Broin F, Clermont J, Beardsell A, Ouellet LP, Legagneux P, Bêty J, Berteaux D. Predator home range size mediates indirect interactions between prey species in an arctic vertebrate community. J Anim Ecol 2023; 92:2373-2385. [PMID: 37814584 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023]
Abstract
Indirect interactions are widespread among prey species that share a common predator, but the underlying mechanisms driving these interactions are often unclear, and our ability to predict their outcome is limited. Changes in behavioural traits that impact predator space use could be a key proximal mechanism mediating indirect interactions, but there is little empirical evidence of the causes and consequences of such behavioural-numerical response in multispecies systems. Here, we investigate the complex ecological relationships between seven prey species sharing a common predator. We used a path analysis approach on a comprehensive 9-year data set simultaneously tracking predator space use, prey densities and prey mortality rate on key species of a simplified Arctic food web. We show that high availability of a clumped and spatially predictable prey (goose eggs) leads to a twofold reduction in predator (arctic fox) home range size, which increases local predator density and strongly decreases nest survival of an incidental prey (American golden plover). On the contrary, a scattered cyclic prey with potentially lower spatial predictability (lemming) had a weaker effect on fox space use and an overall positive impact on the survival of incidental prey. These contrasting effects underline the importance of studying behavioural responses of predators in multiprey systems and to explicitly integrate behavioural-numerical responses in multispecies predator-prey models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frédéric Dulude-de Broin
- Département de Biologie, Centre d'Études Nordiques and Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, Quebec, Quebec, Canada
| | - Jeanne Clermont
- Chaire de Recherche du Canada en Biodiversité Nordique, Centre d'Études Nordiques, and Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, Quebec, Canada
| | - Andréanne Beardsell
- Chaire de Recherche du Canada en Biodiversité Nordique, Centre d'Études Nordiques, and Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, Quebec, Canada
| | - Louis-Pierre Ouellet
- Chaire de Recherche du Canada en Biodiversité Nordique, Centre d'Études Nordiques, and Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, Quebec, Canada
| | - Pierre Legagneux
- Département de Biologie, Centre d'Études Nordiques and Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, Quebec, Quebec, Canada
- Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Joël Bêty
- Chaire de Recherche du Canada en Biodiversité Nordique, Centre d'Études Nordiques, and Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, Quebec, Canada
| | - Dominique Berteaux
- Chaire de Recherche du Canada en Biodiversité Nordique, Centre d'Études Nordiques, and Centre de la Science de la Biodiversité du Québec, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, Quebec, Canada
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Anderson CM, Fahrig L, Rausch J, Martin J, Daufresne T, Smith PA. Climate-related range shifts in Arctic-breeding shorebirds. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e9797. [PMID: 36778838 PMCID: PMC9905660 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2022] [Revised: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Aim To test whether the occupancy of shorebirds has changed in the eastern Canadian Arctic, and whether these changes could indicate that shorebird distributions are shifting in response to long-term climate change. Location Foxe Basin and Rasmussen Lowlands, Nunavut, Canada. Methods We used a unique set of observations, made 25 years apart, using general linear models to test if there was a relationship between changes in shorebird species' occupancy and their species temperature Index, a simple version of a species climate envelope. Results Changes in occupancy and density varied widely across species, with some increasing and some decreasing. This is despite that overall population trends are known to be negative for all of these species based on surveys during migration. The changes in occupancy that we observed were positively related to the species temperature index, such that the warmer-breeding species appear to be moving into these regions, while colder-breeding species appear to be shifting out of the regions, likely northward. Main Conclusions Our results suggest that we should be concerned about declining breeding habitat availability for bird species whose current breeding ranges are centered on higher and colder latitudes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine M. Anderson
- Department of Biology, Geomatics and Landscape Ecology LaboratoryCarleton UniversityOttawaOntarioCanada
| | - Lenore Fahrig
- Department of Biology, Geomatics and Landscape Ecology LaboratoryCarleton UniversityOttawaOntarioCanada
| | - Jennie Rausch
- Canadian Wildlife ServiceEnvironment and Climate Change CanadaYellowknifeNorthwest TerritoriesCanada
| | - Jean‐Louis Martin
- Centre d'Écologie Fonctionnelle et ÉvolutiveCNRSMontpellier Cedex 5France
| | | | - Paul A. Smith
- Wildlife Research DivisionEnvironment and Climate Change CanadaOttawaOntarioCanada
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EcoQBNs: First Application of Ecological Modeling with Quantum Bayesian Networks. ENTROPY 2021; 23:e23040441. [PMID: 33918806 PMCID: PMC8069849 DOI: 10.3390/e23040441] [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] [Received: 03/10/2021] [Revised: 03/31/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
A recent advancement in modeling was the development of quantum Bayesian networks (QBNs). QBNs generally differ from BNs by substituting traditional Bayes calculus in probability tables with the quantum amplification wave functions. QBNs can solve a variety of problems which are unsolvable by, or are too complex for, traditional BNs. These include problems with feedback loops and temporal expansions; problems with non-commutative dependencies in which the order of the specification of priors affects the posterior outcomes; problems with intransitive dependencies constituting the circular dominance of the outcomes; problems in which the input variables can affect each other, even if they are not causally linked (entanglement); problems in which there may be >1 dominant probability outcome dependent on small variations in inputs (superpositioning); and problems in which the outcomes are nonintuitive and defy traditional probability calculus (Parrondo’s paradox and the violation of the Sure Thing Principle). I present simple examples of these situations illustrating problems in prediction and diagnosis, and I demonstrate how BN solutions are infeasible, or at best require overly-complex latent variable structures. I then argue that many problems in ecology and evolution can be better depicted with ecological QBN (EcoQBN) modeling. The situations that fit these kinds of problems include noncommutative and intransitive ecosystems responding to suites of disturbance regimes with no specific or single climax condition, or that respond differently depending on the specific sequence of the disturbances (priors). Case examples are presented on the evaluation of habitat conditions for a bat species, representing state-transition models of a boreal forest under disturbance, and the entrainment of auditory signals among organisms. I argue that many current ecological analysis structures—such as state-and-transition models, predator–prey dynamics, the evolution of symbiotic relationships, ecological disturbance models, and much more—could greatly benefit from a QBN approach. I conclude by presenting EcoQBNs as a nascent field needing the further development of the quantum mathematical structures and, eventually, adjuncts to existing BN modeling shells or entirely new software programs to facilitate model development and application.
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LeTourneux F, Grandmont T, Dulude-de Broin F, Martin MC, Lefebvre J, Kato A, Bêty J, Gauthier G, Legagneux P. COVID19-induced reduction in human disturbance enhances fattening of an overabundant goose species. BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION 2021; 255:108968. [PMID: 33518770 PMCID: PMC7825943 DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2021.108968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2020] [Revised: 01/04/2021] [Accepted: 01/11/2021] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Overabundant species can have major impacts on their habitat and induce trophic cascades within ecosystems. In North America, the overabundant greater snow goose (Anser caerulescens atlanticus) has been successfully controlled through special spring hunting regulations since 1999. Hunting is a source of mortality but also of disturbance, which affects the behavior and nutrient storage dynamics of staging snow geese. In 2020, the lockdown imposed by the COVID19 pandemic reduced hunting activity during their migratory stopover in Québec by at least 31%. This provided a unique opportunity to assess the effects of a sudden reduction in hunting disturbance on geese. We used long-term data on body mass combined with movement data from GPS-tracked birds in 2019 and 2020 to assess the effects of the 2020 lockdown on the spring body condition and behavior of greater snow geese. Body condition was higher in 2020 than in all years since the inception of spring hunting in 1999, except for 2019. However, in 2020 geese reached maximal body condition earlier during the staging period than in any other year and reduced by half time spent feeding in highly profitable but risky agricultural habitat in late spring compared to 2019. Although our study was not designed to evaluate the effects of the lockdown, the associated reduction in disturbance in 2020 supports the hypothesis that hunting-related disturbance negatively affects foraging efficiency and body condition in geese. Since spring body condition is related to subsequent breeding success, the lockdown could increase productivity in this overabundant population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frédéric LeTourneux
- Département de Biologie & Centre d'Études Nordiques, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Thierry Grandmont
- Département de Biologie & Centre d'Études Nordiques, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Frédéric Dulude-de Broin
- Département de Biologie & Centre d'Études Nordiques, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Marie-Claude Martin
- Département de Biologie & Centre d'Études Nordiques, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Josée Lefebvre
- Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 1550 Avenue d'Estimauville, Québec, QC G1J 0C3, Canada
| | - Akiko Kato
- Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Joël Bêty
- Département de Biologie & Centre d'Études Nordiques, UQAR, 300, allée des Ursulines, C.P. 3300, succ. A, Rimouski, QC G5L 3A1, Canada
| | - Gilles Gauthier
- Département de Biologie & Centre d'Études Nordiques, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Pierre Legagneux
- Département de Biologie & Centre d'Études Nordiques, Université Laval, Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon, 1045 Avenue de la Médecine, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
- Centre d'Études Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
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