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- Title
Growing through predation windows: effects on body size development in young fish.
- Authors
Huss, Magnus; Byström, Pär; Persson, Lennart
- Abstract
The degree to which growth in early life stages of animals is regulated via density-dependent feedbacks through prey resources is much debated. Here we have studied the influence of size- and density-dependent mechanisms as well as size-selective predation pressure by cannibalistic perch Perca fluviatilis on growth patterns of young-of-the-year (YOY) perch covering several lakes and years. We found no influence of initial size or temperature on early body size development of perch. In contrast, there was a negative relationship between reproductive output and the length of YOY perch at five weeks of age. However, rather than an effect of density-dependent growth mediated via depressed resources the relationship was driven by positive size-selective cannibalism removing large individuals. Hence, given a positive correlation between the density of victims and predation pressure by cannibals, size-dependent interactions between cannibals and their victims may wrongly be interpreted as patterns of density-dependent growth in the victim cohort. Overall, our results support the view that density-dependent resource-limitation in early life stages is rare. Still, patterns of density-dependent growth may emerge, but from variation in size-selective predation pressure rather than density as such. This illustrates the importance of taking overall population demography and predatory interactions into account when studying growth patterns among recruiting individuals.
- Subjects
PREDATION; FISH communities; BODY size; EUROPEAN perch; CANNIBALISM in animals; PARASITISM
- Publication
Oikos, 2010, Vol 119, Issue 11, p1796
- ISSN
0030-1299
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18475.x