Mechanisms of invasion resistance: competition among intertidal mussels promotes establishment of invasive species and displacement of native species

Abstract

MEPS Marine Ecology Progress Series Contact the journal Facebook Twitter RSS Mailing List Subscribe to our mailing list via Mailchimp HomeLatest VolumeAbout the JournalEditorsTheme Sections MEPS 383:187-197 (2009) - DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps07982 Mechanisms of invasion resistance: competition among intertidal mussels promotes establishment of invasive species and displacement of native species J. S. Shinen1,*, S. G. Morgan2 1Estación Costera de Investigaciones Marinas, Departamento de Ecología, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Alameda 340, Santiago, Chile 2Bodega Marine Laboratory, Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California Davis, PO Box 247, Bodega Bay, California 94923, USA *Email: jlshinen@bio.puc.cl ABSTRACT: Understanding interactions between invasive species and recipient communities is essential to determining whether invasive species will become established and spread. In this study, we explored the role of competition and the specific mechanisms of interaction in limiting the spread of the Mediterranean bay mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis within a Pacific Northwest invasion front. We examined the role of direct (interference) and indirect (exploitation) mechanisms of competition among M. galloprovincialis and 2 native mussels (M. trossulus and M. californianus). As the fastest-growing organisms are often competitively dominant in space-limited systems, such as rocky intertidal communities, we used changes in relative performance (growth and survival) in monocultures and polycultures to assess interactions among mussels. Performance of M. galloprovincialis was always greater than that of the 2 native species of mussels in both field and laboratory manipulations of species composition and density, indicating that interspecific competition did not strongly limit the growth or survival of the invader. Moreover, the presence of M. galloprovincialis consistently led to both reduced growth and survival of M. trossulus. Laboratory studies of mussel feeding and behavior revealed M. galloprovincialis to be a robust interference competitor. The invader restricted movement, smothered and interfered with filter feeding of the 2 native species of mussels. Rather than limiting invasion, interference competition gave M. galloprovincialis a competitive advantage over the native mussels. Our results suggest M. galloprovincialis may have contributed to the displacement of M. trossulus along much of its historic southern range. KEY WORDS: Exploitation competition · Interference competition · Mytilus · Rocky intertidal communities Full text in pdf format PreviousNextCite this article as: Shinen JS, Morgan SG (2009) Mechanisms of invasion resistance: competition among intertidal mussels promotes establishment of invasive species and displacement of native species. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 383:187-197. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps07982 Export citation RSS - Facebook - Tweet - linkedIn Cited by Published in MEPS Vol. 383. Online publication date: May 14, 2009 Print ISSN: 0171-8630; Online ISSN: 1616-1599 Copyright © 2009 Inter-Research.