Indirect commensalism between an introduced apex predator and a native avian predator

Abstract

In ecosystems, some organisms facilitate others indirectly, by interacting with one or more common mediator organisms. Thus, the indirect effects of introducing or removing species can be resonant, sometimes leading to successional extinctions. The dingo (Canis dingo) is the apex predator in Australian deserts and was introduced to the continent between 3000 and 5000 years ago. Dingoes suppress the abundances of introduced mesopredators, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and feral cat (Felis catus) and in so doing mitigate small mammal declines wreaked by these mesopredators. Given the positive association between the abundances of dingoes and small mammals, we predicted that dingoes indirectly facilitate a specialised native predator of small mammals, the Barn owl, Tyto alba. We tested our prediction by monitoring the abundances of dingoes, foxes, cats, small mammals and barn owls and investigating barn owl diets in areas where dingoes were common versus areas where dingoes were functionally extinct on either side of the dingo barrier fence (DBF) in the Strzelecki Desert. Foxes and cats were less abundant in areas where dingoes were common. Conversely, small mammals and barn owls were more abundant where dingoes were common. Owls in areas where dingoes were common fed almost exclusively on small mammals, but owls in areas where dingoes were functionally extinct fed on greater proportion of birds and invertebrates. The findings of our study provide evidence that an introduced apex predator may indirectly facilitate a native predator and illustrates the myriad of far-reaching indirect effects that can result from apex predator suppression.