A review on the effects of alien rodents in the Balearic (Western Mediterranean Sea) and Canary Islands (Eastern Atlantic Ocean)

Traveset, Anna; Nogales, Manuel; Alcover, Josep Antoni; Delgado, Juan D.; López-Darias, Marta; Godoy, D.; Igual, José Manuel; Bover, Pere Rosselló

doi:10.1007/s10530-008-9395-y

Cited by 78 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 70 publications

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“…Past observations highlight the lack of ripe fruits on Lepidorrhachis plants unless mesh caging was applied to exclude rats from developing fruits (Moore 1966;Pickard 1980). The paucity of small juvenile plants in areas which have not been baited for rat control, both in our study plots and more generally throughout this unbaited area, supports the more general contention that the introduction of rats affects plant recruitment in a range of island ecosystems (Campbell and Atkinson 2002;Delgado García 2002;Towns et al 2006;Meyer and Butaud 2009;Traveset et al 2009). It is possible that rats also reduce seedling and juvenile growth as they have been observed eating palm leaf sheaths and causing leaf fall in both juvenile and adult palms consistent with similar damage observed on plants elsewhere (Traveset et al 2009).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 76%

Disruption of recruitment in two endemic palms on Lord Howe Island by invasive rats

Auld¹,

Hutton²,

Ooi

et al. 2010

Biol Invasions

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Invasive species may have negative impacts on many narrow range endemics and species restricted to oceanic islands. Predicting recent impacts of invasive species on long-lived trees is difficult because the presence of adult plants may mask population changes. We examined the impact of introduced black rats (Rattus rattus) on two palm species restricted to cloud forests and endemic to Lord Howe Island, a small oceanic island in the southern Pacific. We combined estimates of the standing size distribution of these palms with the proximal impacts of rats on fruit survival in areas baited to control rats and in unbaited areas. The size distribution of palms with trunks was comparable across baited and unbaited sites. Small juvenile palms lacking a trunk (\50 cm tall) were abundant in baited areas, but rare in unbaited sites for Lepidorrhachis mooreana, and rare or absent in 3 out of 4 unbaited Hedyscepe canterburyana sites. All ripe fruits were lost to rats in the small fruited L. mooreana. Fruitremoval was widespread but less (20-54%) in H. canterburyana. Both palms showed evidence of a reduced capacity to maintain a juvenile bank of palms through regular recruitment as a consequence of over 90 years of rat impact. This will limit the ability of these species to take advantage of episodic canopy gaps. Baiting for rat control reduced fruit losses and resulted in the re-establishment of a juvenile palm bank. Conservation of both endemic palms necessitates control (or eradication) of rat populations on the unique cloud forest summits of the island. Abstract Invasive species may have negative impacts on many narrow range endemics and species restricted to oceanic islands. Predicting recent impacts of invasive species on long-lived trees is difficult because the presence of adult plants may mask population changes. We examined the impact of introduced black rats (Rattus rattus) on two palm species restricted to cloud forests and endemic to Lord Howe Island, a small oceanic island in the southern Pacific. We combined estimates of the standing size distribution of these palms with the proximal impacts of rats on fruit survival in areas baited to control rats and in unbaited areas. The size distribution of palms with trunks was comparable across baited and unbaited sites. Small juvenile palms lacking a trunk (\50 cm tall) were abundant in baited areas, but rare in unbaited sites for Lepidorrhachis mooreana, and rare or absent in 3 out of 4 unbaited Hedyscepe canterburyana sites. All ripe fruits were lost to rats in the small fruited L. mooreana. Fruit removal was widespread but less (20-54%) in H. canterburyana. Both palms showed evidence of a reduced capacity to maintain a juvenile bank of palms through regular recruitment as a consequence of over 90 years of rat impact. This will limit the ability of these species to take advantage of episodic canopy gaps. Baiting for rat control reduced fruit losses and resulted in the re-establishment of a juvenile palm bank. Conservation of both endemic palms necessitates con...

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 76%

Disruption of recruitment in two endemic palms on Lord Howe Island by invasive rats

Auld¹,

Hutton²,

Ooi

et al. 2010

Biol Invasions

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“…are among the most problematic invasive species, especially for native island birds (Atkinson 1985;Towns et al 2006). The direct effects of invasive rats on native island species (through predation and nest predation) have been well documented (Towns 2009;Traveset et al 2009), while indirect effects (i.e., competition for common resources) have been given less attention. Here we report on the potential indirect effects of invasive rats in the Falkland Islands on native island birds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative isotopic natural history of two native passerines (Troglodytes cobbi and Cinclodes antarcticus) and the invasive rats (Rattus norvegicus) that extirpate them

et al. 2016

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While several studies have shown that invasive rats can have negative effects on island birds through predation (both direct predation and nest predation), other mechanisms for the effects of invasives on island biota have been given less attention. Here we explore another potential mechanism by which invasive rats can affect native island birds: the competitive use of common resources. We used stable isotope analyses to estimate the fraction of marine and terrestrial sources incorporated into the tissues of two species of passerines (Troglodytes cobbi, Troglodytidae; and Cinclodes antarcticus, Furnariidae) and Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus, Muridae) in the Falkland Islands. These two passerines are absent on islands where rats are present. We found significant incorporation of marine resources in the three species, with the highest incorporation in tissues of T. cobbi. This species appears to be one of the passerines most reliant on marine sources and the most marine member of the family Troglodytidae. We also used the results of these isotopic analyses to estimate the isotopic niche breadth of each of these species and the isotopic niche overlap among them. Rattus norvegicus had a large isotopic niche that overlapped broadly with those of the two passerine species. We propose that different ways of both depicting and estimating isotopic niche widths are complementary rather than alternative.Our results are consistent with the notion that invasive rats might have an impact on these two species of Falkland Island passerines by using common resources, but do not rule out the possibility that part of their effect is through direct predation.

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“…Non-native mammals that consume seeds and plants can also reduce native seedling recruitment (Reaser et al 2007;Traveset et al 2009;Murphy et al 2014). They can dramatically alter vegetation structure and prevent seedling regeneration, causing population declines -and even extinctions -of native plant species (Courchamp et al 2003;Gurevitch & Padilla 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Native woody plant recruitment in lowland forests invaded by non-native ground cover weeds and mammals

McAlpine¹,

Lamoureaux²,

Timmins³

et al. 2017

NZ J Ecol

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Globally, lowland forests have been depleted, fragmented, and degraded by land clearance and conversion by humans. Many remnants are also invaded by non-native plants and mammals, which can exacerbate biodiversity loss and impede ecosystem recovery. We examined the effects of non-native ground cover weeds and mammals on the seedling recruitment of native woody plants in lowland forests in northern New Zealand by following establishment over 2 years at sites experiencing different levels of weed cover, with or without supplemental seed addition, and with or without mammal exclusion. In general, native seedling recruitment was highest where seeds had been added and mammals excluded. Native seedling recruitment was negatively correlated with weed cover at sites invaded by Asparagus scandens or Tradescantia fluminensis, but only where seeds had been added. These results suggest that attempts to facilitate native seedling recruitment by sowing native seeds will be most successful where ground cover weeds and introduced mammals are low in abundance. Seedling recruitment was highest for Piper excelsum, Myrsine australis and Melicytus ramiflorus, so these species could be good options for lowland-forest restoration projects where ground cover weeds are present.

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A review on the effects of alien rodents in the Balearic (Western Mediterranean Sea) and Canary Islands (Eastern Atlantic Ocean)

Cited by 78 publications

References 70 publications

Disruption of recruitment in two endemic palms on Lord Howe Island by invasive rats

Disruption of recruitment in two endemic palms on Lord Howe Island by invasive rats

Comparative isotopic natural history of two native passerines (Troglodytes cobbi and Cinclodes antarcticus) and the invasive rats (Rattus norvegicus) that extirpate them

Native woody plant recruitment in lowland forests invaded by non-native ground cover weeds and mammals

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