Environmental and morphological factors influencing predatory behaviour by invasive non-indigenous gammaridean species

Abstract

Predatory behaviour seems to be more frequent in invasive gammaridean species than in native ones. This results in the exclusion of other, mostly native gammaridean species and a change in benthic communities. The present study analysed the influence of environmental factors (water temperature) and morphological factors (sex, body parts involved in catching and holding prey) on the predatory behaviour of Dikerogammarus villosus. A diet study of invasive relatives of D. villosus showed that predation intensity is especially high in spring and summer, that is, at increasing and high temperatures. Experiments with D. villosus in climate rooms at various temperatures, using the native Gammarus fossarum as prey, showed that the average predation rate by both sexes gradually increased over the temperature range from 5 to 30°C. Natural mortality during the experiments was negligible compared to losses due to predation. At each temperature, the predation rate by females was lower than that by males. Males showed a steep allometric growth of body parts involved in the process of catching and holding prey, compared to females at increasing body size in a number of measurements. This may explain the difference in predatory behaviour between males and females, which plays a role in intraguild predation a supposed mechanism for species displacement. © The Author(s) 2009.