Thakur Madhav P, Künne Tom, Griffin John N, Eisenhauer Nico
German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Deutscher Platz 5e, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
Institute of Biology, Leipzig University, Johannisallee 21, 04103 Leipzig, Germany.
Proc Biol Sci. 2017 Mar 29;284(1851). doi: 10.1098/rspb.2016.2570.
Climate warming can destabilize interactions between competitors as smaller organisms gain advantages in warmer environments. Whether and how warming-induced effects on competitive interactions are modified by predation remains unknown. We hypothesized that predation will offset the competitive advantage of smaller prey species in warmer environments because of their greater vulnerability to predation. To test this, we assembled a litter arthropod community with two Collembola species ( and ) of different body sizes across a temperature gradient (three thermal environments) and in the presence and absence of predatory mites. Predatory mites reduced Collembola coexistence with increasing temperatures. Contradicting our hypothesis, the larger prey species always outperformed the smaller prey species in warmer environments with predators. Larger prey probably benefited as they expressed a greater trait (body length) plasticity to warming. Warming can thus magnify predation effects and reduce the probability of prey coexistence.
气候变暖会破坏竞争者之间的相互作用，因为较小的生物在温暖环境中更具优势。捕食是否以及如何改变变暖对竞争相互作用的影响仍是未知的。我们推测，由于较小猎物物种更容易被捕食，捕食将抵消它们在温暖环境中的竞争优势。为了验证这一点，我们在一个温度梯度（三种热环境）下，以及在有和没有捕食性螨类的情况下，组建了一个包含两种不同体型弹尾虫（和）的凋落物节肢动物群落。捕食性螨类随着温度升高降低了弹尾虫的共存。与我们的假设相反，在有捕食者的温暖环境中，较大的猎物物种总是比小猎物物种表现更好。较大的猎物可能因对变暖表现出更大的性状（体长）可塑性而受益。因此，气候变暖会放大捕食效应并降低猎物共存的可能性。
