Experimental evidence that ecological effects of an invasive fish are reduced at high densities.

ABSTRACT: Understanding the relationship between invasive species density and ecological impact is a pressing topic in ecology, with implications for environmental management and policy. Although it is widely assumed that invasive species impact will increase with density, theory suggests interspecific competition may diminish at high densities due to increased intraspecific interactions. To test this theory, we experimentally examined intra- and interspecific interactions between a globally invasive fish, round goby (Neogobius melanostomus), and three native species at different round goby densities in a tributary of the Laurentian Great Lakes. Eighteen 2.25 m(2) enclosures were stocked with native fish species at natural abundances, while round gobies were stocked at three different densities: 0 m

SUBMITTER: Kornis MS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3992221 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature