Effects of Predator Hunting Mode on Grassland Ecosystem Function

The way predators control their prey populations is determined by the interplay between predator hunting mode and prey antipredator behavior. It is uncertain, however, how the effects of such interplay control ecosystem function. A 3-year experiment in grassland mesocosms revealed that actively hunt...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2008-02, Vol.319 (5865), p.952-954
Main Author: Schmitz, Oswald J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal behavior
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Araneae
Behavior, Animal
Biodiversity
Biological and medical sciences
Connecticut
Ecological function
Ecology
Ecosystem
Ecosystems
Feeding Behavior
Food Chain
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Grasses
Grasshoppers
Grasslands
Herbivores
Herbs
Hunting
Nitrogen - analysis
Photosynthesis
Plant communities
Plants
Plants - metabolism
Poaceae - metabolism
Predation
Predators
Predatory Behavior
Random Allocation
Solidago - metabolism
Species
Spiders
Synecology
Terrestrial ecosystems
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Summary:The way predators control their prey populations is determined by the interplay between predator hunting mode and prey antipredator behavior. It is uncertain, however, how the effects of such interplay control ecosystem function. A 3-year experiment in grassland mesocosms revealed that actively hunting spiders reduced plant species diversity and enhanced aboveground net primary production and nitrogen mineralization rate, whereas sit-and-wait ambush spiders had opposite effects. These effects arise from the different responses to the two different predators by their grasshopper prey--the dominant herbivore species that controls plant species composition and accordingly ecosystem functioning. Predator hunting mode is thus a key functional trait that can help to explain variation in the nature of top-down control of ecosystems.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.1152355