Farrell Terence M
Department of Zoology, Oregon State University, 97331, Corvallis, OR, USA.
Oecologia. 1988 Mar;75(2):190-197. doi: 10.1007/BF00378596.
The stability of a high rocky intertidal community was assessed in a controlled field experiment in which the most common consumers, limpets, were temporarily removed. Compared to the unmanipulated plots, the exclusion plots developed greater algal abundance and altered species composition of both algae and barnacles. The community was not perturbed beyond its capacity to recover, since the community structure of the limpet-removal plots converged on the structure of the unmanipulated plots following limpet reintroduction. Different components of the community recovered at different rates, depending on whether or not the species had a size-related escape from the limpets. Algae had no size-related escape from limpets. The difference in algal abundance between manipulated and unmanipulated plots lasted less than six months after limpet reintroduction. Barnacles, however, had a size-related escape from limpets and therefore recovered more slowly. The difference in barnacle species composition between the perturbed and unperturbed plots lasted for 17 months after limpet reintroduction. The length of the limpet removal period (16 or 28 months) did not appear to affect the rate of community recovery.
在一项对照野外实验中，研究人员通过暂时移除潮间带高岩岸群落中最常见的消费者笠贝，评估了该群落的稳定性。与未进行处理的样地相比，排除笠贝的样地藻类丰度更高，藻类和藤壶的物种组成也发生了改变。由于在重新引入笠贝后，移除笠贝样地的群落结构趋近于未处理样地的结构，所以该群落并未受到超出其恢复能力的干扰。群落的不同组成部分恢复速度不同，这取决于物种是否因体型大小而免遭笠贝捕食。藻类无法因体型大小而免遭笠贝捕食。重新引入笠贝后，处理样地和未处理样地之间藻类丰度的差异持续不到六个月。然而，藤壶可以因体型大小而免遭笠贝捕食，因此恢复得更慢。重新引入笠贝后，受干扰样地和未受干扰样地之间藤壶物种组成的差异持续了17个月。移除笠贝的时间长度（16个月或28个月）似乎并未影响群落的恢复速度。
