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Keystone Species. Consumers (predators, herbivores, parasites, and diseases) that maintain food-web diversity . Anolis : Two species/island. 7 Islands: 2-fold body size difference (males) Reduce competition for food? St Maarten: Greater overlap ? WHY ?. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Keystone Species
Consumers (predators, herbivores, parasites, and diseases) that maintain food-web diversity.
Anolis: Two species/island
7 Islands: 2-fold body size difference (males)
Reduce competition for food?
St Maarten: Greater overlap?
WHY? Schall, J.J. 1992. Oecologia 92:58-64.
Malaria: Insect-borne infection
• Initially (?) Intestinal parasite of reptiles
• Became infection of blood
Accessible to biting insects
• Vector-borne parasite with complex life cycle
Saurian malariaInfection reduces a female’s clutch size:
Fitness cost of infection
Significant in 4 of 5 years
Infected males: Less capable of evicting intruders on feeding territory
Fitness Cost of Infection
Correct for increase in clutch size as female size increases
Report: Loss of 2 eggs/year due to malaria
Spatial distribution
Smaller lizard not found at lower elevation: exclusion
Smaller lizard common in central hills: 2 species coexist
Biting sand-fly found in central hills: vector of saurian malaria
Malaria, “keystone predator”
Central hills: malaria infects 30 – 46% of the otherwise competitively dominant species
Infects only 3.6% of A. watsii, smaller species
Differential fitness cost of disease (parasite) maintains host diversity
Generalized keystone predator
Keystone predator’s diet in two-prey environment:
Dietary frequency of more common prey exceeds that species’ environmental frequency
Keystone predators
“Zebras attracted to lethal anthrax grass”
Dr. Wendy C. Turner
Biol. Sci.
Etosha/Namibia
10
Equus quagga
Anthrax – Zebra – Plants + FLP - Anthrax
11
Bacillus anthracis
Obligate Killer; Environmentally Transmitted
Vegetative Spores: Persistence
Infective Dose?Zebra Immunity and Macroparasites?