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Trophic niche changes associated with the eradication of invasive mammals in an insular lizard: an assessment using isotopes
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Orientador(es)
Resumo(s)
Invasive species are a major threat to island biodiversity, and their eradications have substantially
contributed to the conservation of island endemics. However, the consequences of eradications on the
trophic ecology of native taxa are largely unexplored. Here, we used the eradication of invasive black rats
Rattus rattus and European rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus from the Berlenga Island, in the western coast
of Portugal, as a whole-ecosystem experiment to investigate the effects of the eradication of invasive
mammals on the trophic niche and body dimensions of the island-restricted Berlenga wall lizard
Podarcis carbonelli berlengensis over a 2-year period. Our results suggest an expansion of the isotopic
niche and an intensification of the sexual dimorphism of the lizard following mammal eradication.
Additionally, we found considerable variability in isotopic niche across the island and detected evidence
of sex-specific and season-modulated nutritional requirements of this threatened reptile. Our findings
support that the eradication of 2 of the planets most problematic invasive vertebrates led to changes
in the lizard trophic niche and sexual dimorphism in just 2 years. This suggests that the ecological
pressuresfor example, prey availability and habitat structureto which lizards are exposed have
substantially changed post-eradication. Our study emphasizes the scientific value of island eradications
as experiments to address a wide range of ecological questions and adds to the increasing body of
evidence supporting substantial conservation gains associated with these restoration interventions.
Descrição
Palavras-chave
food-webs invasive species eradication Oryctolagus cuniculus Podarcis carbonelli berlengensis Rattus rattus trophic seasonality
Contexto Educativo
Citação
Sara F Nunes, Mário Mota-Ferreira, Marta Sampaio, Joana Andrade, Nuno Oliveira, Rui Rebelo, Ricardo Rocha, Trophic niche changes associated with the eradication of invasive mammals in an insular lizard: an assessment using isotopes, Current Zoology, 2021
Editora
Oxford University Press