Ashton Gail V, Freestone Amy L, Duffy J Emmett, Torchin Mark E, Sewall Brent J, Tracy Brianna, Albano Mariano, Altieri Andrew H, Altvater Luciana, Bastida-Zavala Rolando, Bortolus Alejandro, Brante Antonio, Bravo Viviana, Brown Norah, Buschmann Alejandro H, Buskey Edward, Barrera Rosita Calderón, Cheng Brian, Collin Rachel, Coutinho Ricardo, De Gracia Luis, Dias Gustavo M, DiBacco Claudio, Flores Augusto A V, Haddad Maria Angélica, Hoffman Zvi, Erquiaga Bruno Ibañez, Janiak Dean, Campeán Analí Jiménez, Keith Inti, Leclerc Jean-Charles, Lecompte-Pérez Orlando Pedro, Longo Guilherme Ortigara, Matthews-Cascon Helena, McKenzie Cynthia H, Miller Jessica, Munizaga Martín, Naval-Xavier Lais P D, Navarrete Sergio A, Otálora Carlos, Palomino-Alvarez Lilian A, Palomo Maria Gabriela, Patrick Chris, Pegau Cormack, Pereda Sandra V, Rocha Rosana M, Rumbold Carlos, Sánchez Carlos, Sanjuan-Muñoz Adolfo, Schlöder Carmen, Schwindt Evangelina, Seemann Janina, Shanks Alan, Simoes Nuno, Skinner Luis, Suárez-Mozo Nancy Yolimar, Thiel Martin, Valdivia Nelson, Velez-Zuazo Ximena, Vieira Edson A, Vildoso Bruno, Wehrtmann Ingo S, Whalen Matt, Wilbur Lynn, Ruiz Gregory M
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Tiburon, CA and Edgewater, MD, USA.
Department of Biology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Science. 2022 Jun 10;376(6598):1215-1219. doi: 10.1126/science.abc4916. Epub 2022 Jun 9.
Early naturalists suggested that predation intensity increases toward the tropics, affecting fundamental ecological and evolutionary processes by latitude, but empirical support is still limited. Several studies have measured consumption rates across latitude at large scales, with variable results. Moreover, how predation affects prey community composition at such geographic scales remains unknown. Using standardized experiments that spanned 115° of latitude, at 36 nearshore sites along both coasts of the Americas, we found that marine predators have both higher consumption rates and consistently stronger impacts on biomass and species composition of marine invertebrate communities in warmer tropical waters, likely owing to fish predators. Our results provide robust support for a temperature-dependent gradient in interaction strength and have potential implications for how marine ecosystems will respond to ocean warming.
早期的博物学家认为，捕食强度向热带地区增加，按纬度影响基本的生态和进化过程，但实证支持仍然有限。几项研究在大尺度上测量了不同纬度的消费率，结果各不相同。此外，在这样的地理尺度上，捕食如何影响猎物群落组成仍然未知。我们利用跨越115°纬度、位于美洲两岸36个近岸地点的标准化实验发现，海洋捕食者在温暖的热带水域对海洋无脊椎动物群落的生物量和物种组成不仅有更高的消费率，而且影响始终更强，这可能是由于鱼类捕食者。我们的结果为相互作用强度中温度依赖梯度提供了有力支持，并对海洋生态系统将如何应对海洋变暖具有潜在影响。
