Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance
The role of predators in controlling herbivores and indirectly affecting plant abundance is controversial, and some have argued that such trophic cascades are rare in terrestrial habitats. To examine the potential of trophic cascades in a shrubby tundra ecosystem, vole densities, plant damage and pl...
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crwiley:10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.13029.x 2024-04-21T08:12:53+00:00 Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance Hambäck, Peter A. Oksanen, Lauri Ekerholm, Per Lindgren, Åsa Oksanen, Tarja Schneider, Michael 2004 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.13029.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.0030-1299.2004.13029.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.13029.x en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Oikos volume 106, issue 1, page 85-92 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics journal-article 2004 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.13029.x 2024-03-28T08:28:54Z The role of predators in controlling herbivores and indirectly affecting plant abundance is controversial, and some have argued that such trophic cascades are rare in terrestrial habitats. To examine the potential of trophic cascades in a shrubby tundra ecosystem, vole densities, plant damage and plant cover were examined in areas with and without small mammal predators. On islands without predators, vole densities and plant damage were upto five times higher compared with predator‐rich mainland habitats. As a consequence, the abundance of three out of five dwarf shrub species was substantially reduced on predator‐free islands, providing evidence for strong cascading effects in a rather large‐scale terrestrial system. Herbs on the other hand were not affected by the increased herbivory on islands. This suggests that the strength of trophic cascades also depends on the interaction between plant type and seasonality. Article in Journal/Newspaper Tundra Wiley Online Library Oikos 106 1 85 92 |
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Open Polar |
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Wiley Online Library |
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crwiley |
language |
English |
topic |
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
spellingShingle |
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Hambäck, Peter A. Oksanen, Lauri Ekerholm, Per Lindgren, Åsa Oksanen, Tarja Schneider, Michael Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance |
topic_facet |
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
description |
The role of predators in controlling herbivores and indirectly affecting plant abundance is controversial, and some have argued that such trophic cascades are rare in terrestrial habitats. To examine the potential of trophic cascades in a shrubby tundra ecosystem, vole densities, plant damage and plant cover were examined in areas with and without small mammal predators. On islands without predators, vole densities and plant damage were upto five times higher compared with predator‐rich mainland habitats. As a consequence, the abundance of three out of five dwarf shrub species was substantially reduced on predator‐free islands, providing evidence for strong cascading effects in a rather large‐scale terrestrial system. Herbs on the other hand were not affected by the increased herbivory on islands. This suggests that the strength of trophic cascades also depends on the interaction between plant type and seasonality. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hambäck, Peter A. Oksanen, Lauri Ekerholm, Per Lindgren, Åsa Oksanen, Tarja Schneider, Michael |
author_facet |
Hambäck, Peter A. Oksanen, Lauri Ekerholm, Per Lindgren, Åsa Oksanen, Tarja Schneider, Michael |
author_sort |
Hambäck, Peter A. |
title |
Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance |
title_short |
Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance |
title_full |
Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance |
title_fullStr |
Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance |
title_full_unstemmed |
Predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance |
title_sort |
predators indirectly protect tundra plants by reducing herbivore abundance |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2004 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.13029.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.0030-1299.2004.13029.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.13029.x |
genre |
Tundra |
genre_facet |
Tundra |
op_source |
Oikos volume 106, issue 1, page 85-92 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.13029.x |
container_title |
Oikos |
container_volume |
106 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
85 |
op_container_end_page |
92 |
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1796933116186591232 |