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Impact of abiotic factors on predator-prey interactions: DNA-based gut content analysis in a microcosm experiment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2008

K. von Berg ,
M. Traugott ,
W.O.C. Symondson  and
S. Scheu
K. von Berg*
Affiliation:
Animal Ecology, Darmstadt University of Technology, Schnittspahnstrasse 3, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany
M. Traugott
Affiliation:
Institute of Ecology, Mountain Agriculture Research Unit, University of Innsbruck, Technikerstrasse 25, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Biomedical Sciences Building, Museum Avenue, Cardiff CF10 3US, UK
W.O.C. Symondson
Affiliation:
Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Biomedical Sciences Building, Museum Avenue, Cardiff CF10 3US, UK
S. Scheu
Affiliation:
Animal Ecology, Darmstadt University of Technology, Schnittspahnstrasse 3, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany
*
*Author for correspondence Fax: +49 6151 166111 E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

The effects of predators on prey populations can be modified by a number of abiotic factors. Here, we investigated the combined and separate effects of rain and ground-dwelling predators on aphid populations in a microcosm experiment lasting for 21 days, using PCR to analyse the gut content of the predators. Rain significantly dislodged aphids from shoots and ears by 57% and 25%, respectively. The gut content analysis showed that more predators consumed aphids in the rain treatment than without rain, indicating higher availability of aphids to ground-dwelling predators after rain. However, no synergistic effects of rain and ground-dwelling predators on aphid population development could be demonstrated. Rain alone significantly decreased aphid populations by 27%, suggesting that this is a significant mortality factor. Predators alone had no significant effect on aphid numbers, but the gut content analyses showed aphid consumption also in the no-rain treatments, indicating that aphids were available to the predators on the soil surface even without rain. Our results suggest that weather conditions such as rain can modify predator-prey interactions in the field. Employing PCR-based predator gut content analyses proved to be useful as trophic links could be directly verified.

Keywords

aphidsCarabidaePCRpredator-preyrainsynergistic effectswheat
Type
Research Paper
Information
Bulletin of Entomological Research , Volume 98 , Issue 3 , June 2008 , pp. 257 - 261
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 Cambridge University Press

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