Community responses to variation in predation and prey recolonization: field experiments with bluegill sunfish and freshwater macroinvertebrates

摘要: Studies of variability in the processes that structure animal communities have focused on the impact of catastrophic physical disturbances, but have largely ignored the more subtle variability associated with biological phenomena, like predation and colonization. I addressed these questions in a North Florida lake using a bluegill sunfish--macroinvertebrate predator--prey system. Underwater time-lapse photography and diver observations provided estimates of predation within and among habitats, which were then incorporated in a unique set of caging experiments where predation fluctuated in one treatment. Prey community structure was then monitored for 1 year under variable, constant, ambient, and no predation treatments. Prey colonization rates were also monitored among habitats and seasons.