When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations
Abstract Predator–prey interaction is a major force driving natural selection. Yet, the identification of species preying on, or consuming, aposematic species is largely unknown. Here, I conduct a study evaluating the role of the exotic Rattus rattus as a consumer and possible predator of the aposem...
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crwiley:10.1002/ece3.11229 2024-06-23T07:56:23+00:00 When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations Velo‐Antón, Guillermo 2024 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11229 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ece3.11229 en eng Wiley http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ecology and Evolution volume 14, issue 5 ISSN 2045-7758 2045-7758 journal-article 2024 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11229 2024-06-04T06:40:50Z Abstract Predator–prey interaction is a major force driving natural selection. Yet, the identification of species preying on, or consuming, aposematic species is largely unknown. Here, I conduct a study evaluating the role of the exotic Rattus rattus as a consumer and possible predator of the aposematic and toxic Salamandra salamandra . I used camera traps to investigate the response of R. rattus towards S. salamandra carcasses in two insular populations, Ons and San Martiño (NW Spain), which show remarkable contrasting behaviour (nocturnal vs. diurnal activity) and demographic and phenotypic differences. This study unveils R. rattus consumes S. salamandra despite its aposematic colour pattern and toxicity. The high number of salamander carcasses consumed or taken by rats throughout each island (90%–100%) and the lack of other possible predator–prey interactions points to R. rattus as an efficient consumer of S. salamandra in these insular environments, which might exert a high predation pressure on both islands. Yet, the drivers underlying the behavioural and phenotypic differences in these insular populations should be further investigated. Article in Journal/Newspaper Rattus rattus Wiley Online Library Ecology and Evolution 14 5 |
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Wiley Online Library |
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English |
description |
Abstract Predator–prey interaction is a major force driving natural selection. Yet, the identification of species preying on, or consuming, aposematic species is largely unknown. Here, I conduct a study evaluating the role of the exotic Rattus rattus as a consumer and possible predator of the aposematic and toxic Salamandra salamandra . I used camera traps to investigate the response of R. rattus towards S. salamandra carcasses in two insular populations, Ons and San Martiño (NW Spain), which show remarkable contrasting behaviour (nocturnal vs. diurnal activity) and demographic and phenotypic differences. This study unveils R. rattus consumes S. salamandra despite its aposematic colour pattern and toxicity. The high number of salamander carcasses consumed or taken by rats throughout each island (90%–100%) and the lack of other possible predator–prey interactions points to R. rattus as an efficient consumer of S. salamandra in these insular environments, which might exert a high predation pressure on both islands. Yet, the drivers underlying the behavioural and phenotypic differences in these insular populations should be further investigated. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Velo‐Antón, Guillermo |
spellingShingle |
Velo‐Antón, Guillermo When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations |
author_facet |
Velo‐Antón, Guillermo |
author_sort |
Velo‐Antón, Guillermo |
title |
When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations |
title_short |
When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations |
title_full |
When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations |
title_fullStr |
When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations |
title_full_unstemmed |
When aposematism is not enough: Exotic Rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of Salamandra salamandra in insular populations |
title_sort |
when aposematism is not enough: exotic rattus rattus shows no mercy for carcasses of salamandra salamandra in insular populations |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11229 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ece3.11229 |
genre |
Rattus rattus |
genre_facet |
Rattus rattus |
op_source |
Ecology and Evolution volume 14, issue 5 ISSN 2045-7758 2045-7758 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.11229 |
container_title |
Ecology and Evolution |
container_volume |
14 |
container_issue |
5 |
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1802649441912487936 |