Water velocity limits the temporal extent of herbivore effects on aquatic plants in a lowland river

Wood, Kevin A.; Stillman, Richard A.; Clarke, Ralph T.; Daunt, Francis ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4638-3388; O'Hare, Matthew T.. 2018 Water velocity limits the temporal extent of herbivore effects on aquatic plants in a lowland river [in special issue: Plants in aquatic systems: a 21st century perspective] Hydrobiologia, 812 (1). 45-55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2744-4

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2744-4

Abstract/Summary

The role of herbivores in regulating aquatic plant dynamics has received growing recognition from researchers and managers. However, the evidence for herbivore impacts on aquatic plants is largely based on short-term exclosure studies conducted within a single plant growing season. Thus, it is unclear how long herbivore impacts on aquatic plant abundance can persist for. We addressed this knowledge gap by testing whether mute swan (Cygnus olor) grazing on lowland river macrophytes could be detected in the following growing season. Furthermore, we investigated the role of seasonal changes in water current speed in limiting the temporal extent of grazing. We found no relationship between swan biomass density in 1 year and aquatic plant cover or biomass in the following spring. No such carry-over effects were detected despite observing high swan biomass densities in the previous year from which we inferred grazing impacts on macrophytes. Seasonal increases in water velocity were associated with reduced grazing pressure as swans abandoned river habitat. Furthermore, our study highlights the role of seasonal changes in water velocity in determining the length of the mute swan grazing season in shallow lowland rivers and thus in limiting the temporal extent of herbivore impacts on aquatic plant abundance.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2744-4
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	UKCEH Fellows Watt
ISSN:	0018-8158
Additional Keywords:	carry-over effects, mute swan, Cygnus olor, plant senescence, trophic interactions, water velocity, waterfowl grazing and herbivory
NORA Subject Terms:	Ecology and Environment
Date made live:	25 Jul 2016 11:54 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/514024

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2744-4

UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:

UKCEH Fellows
Watt

ISSN:

0018-8158

Additional Keywords:

carry-over effects, mute swan, Cygnus olor, plant senescence, trophic interactions, water velocity, waterfowl grazing and herbivory

NORA Subject Terms:

Ecology and Environment