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Drozdova P, Saranchina A, Madyarova E, Gurkov A, Timofeyev M. Experimental Crossing Confirms Reproductive Isolation between Cryptic Species within Eulimnogammarus verrucosus (Crustacea: Amphipoda) from Lake Baikal. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms231810858. [PMID: 36142769 PMCID: PMC9506054 DOI: 10.3390/ijms231810858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2022] [Revised: 08/26/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Ancient lakes are known speciation hotspots. One of the most speciose groups in the ancient Lake Baikal are gammaroid amphipods (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Gammaroidea). There are over 350 morphological species and subspecies of amphipods in Baikal, but the extent of cryptic variation is still unclear. One of the most common species in the littoral zone of the lake, Eulimnogammarus verrucosus (Gerstfeldt, 1858), was recently found to comprise at least three (pseudo)cryptic species based on molecular data. Here, we further explored these species by analyzing their mitogenome-based phylogeny, genome sizes with flow cytometry, and their reproductive compatibility. We found divergent times of millions of years and different genome sizes in the three species (6.1, 6.9 and 8 pg), further confirming their genetic separation. Experimental crossing of the western and southern species, which are morphologically indistinguishable and have adjacent ranges, showed their separation with a post-zygotic reproductive barrier, as hybrid embryos stopped developing roughly at the onset of gastrulation. Thus, the previously applied barcoding approach effectively indicated the separate biological species within E. verrucosus. These results provide new data for investigating genome evolution and highlight the need for precise tracking of the sample origin in any studies in this morphospecies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Polina Drozdova
- Institute of Biology, Irkutsk State University, 664025 Irkutsk, Russia
- Baikal Research Centre, 664011 Irkutsk, Russia
- Correspondence: (P.D.); (M.T.)
| | | | | | - Anton Gurkov
- Institute of Biology, Irkutsk State University, 664025 Irkutsk, Russia
- Baikal Research Centre, 664011 Irkutsk, Russia
| | - Maxim Timofeyev
- Institute of Biology, Irkutsk State University, 664025 Irkutsk, Russia
- Baikal Research Centre, 664011 Irkutsk, Russia
- Correspondence: (P.D.); (M.T.)
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Gobbin TP, Tiemersma R, Leone G, Seehausen O, Maan ME. Patterns of ectoparasite infection in wild-caught and laboratory-bred cichlid fish, and their hybrids, implicate extrinsic rather than intrinsic causes of species differences in infection. HYDROBIOLOGIA 2020; 848:3817-3831. [PMID: 34720171 PMCID: PMC8550742 DOI: 10.1007/s10750-020-04423-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2020] [Revised: 09/07/2020] [Accepted: 09/22/2020] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Parasite-mediated selection may initiate or enhance differentiation between host populations that are exposed to different parasite infections. Variation in infection among populations may result from differences in host ecology (thereby exposure to certain parasites) and/or intrinsic immunological traits. Species of cichlid fish, even when recently diverged, often differ in parasite infection, but the contributions of intrinsic and extrinsic causes are unknown. Here, we compare infection patterns between two closely related host species from Lake Victoria (genus Pundamilia), using wild-caught and first-generation laboratory-reared fish, as well as laboratory-reared hybrids. Three of the commonest ectoparasite species observed in the wild were also present in the laboratory populations. However, the infection differences between the host species as observed in the wild were not maintained in laboratory conditions. In addition, hybrids did not differ in infection from either parental species. These findings suggest that the observed species differences in infection in the wild might be mainly driven by ecology-related effects (i.e. differential exposure), rather than by intrinsic species differences in immunological traits. Thus, while there is scope for parasite-mediated selection in Pundamilia in the wild, it has apparently not yet generated divergent evolutionary responses and may not enhance assortative mating among closely related species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiziana P. Gobbin
- Division of Aquatic Ecology & Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Universitat Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
| | - Ron Tiemersma
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Giulia Leone
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ole Seehausen
- Division of Aquatic Ecology & Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Universitat Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
| | - Martine E. Maan
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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Wattier R, Mamos T, Copilaş-Ciocianu D, Jelić M, Ollivier A, Chaumot A, Danger M, Felten V, Piscart C, Žganec K, Rewicz T, Wysocka A, Rigaud T, Grabowski M. Continental-scale patterns of hyper-cryptic diversity within the freshwater model taxon Gammarus fossarum (Crustacea, Amphipoda). Sci Rep 2020; 10:16536. [PMID: 33024224 PMCID: PMC7538970 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-73739-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Traditional morphological diagnoses of taxonomic status remain widely used while an increasing number of studies show that one morphospecies might hide cryptic diversity, i.e. lineages with unexpectedly high molecular divergence. This hidden diversity can reach even tens of lineages, i.e. hyper cryptic diversity. Even well-studied model-organisms may exhibit overlooked cryptic diversity. Such is the case of the freshwater crustacean amphipod model taxon Gammarus fossarum. It is extensively used in both applied and basic types of research, including biodiversity assessments, ecotoxicology and evolutionary ecology. Based on COI barcodes of 4926 individuals from 498 sampling sites in 19 European countries, the present paper shows (1) hyper cryptic diversity, ranging from 84 to 152 Molecular Operational Taxonomic Units, (2) ancient diversification starting already 26 Mya in the Oligocene, and (3) high level of lineage syntopy. Even if hyper cryptic diversity was already documented in G. fossarum, the present study increases its extent fourfold, providing a first continental-scale insight into its geographical distribution and establishes several diversification hotspots, notably south-eastern and central Europe. The challenges of recording hyper cryptic diversity in the future are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Remi Wattier
- UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université Bourgogne Franche Comté, Dijon, France.
| | - Tomasz Mamos
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland.,Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Denis Copilaş-Ciocianu
- Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius Nature Research Centre, Institute of Ecology, Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Mišel Jelić
- Department of Natural Sciences, Varaždin City Museum, Varaždin, Croatia
| | - Anthony Ollivier
- UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université Bourgogne Franche Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Arnaud Chaumot
- Laboratoire d'écotoxicologie, INRAE, UR RiverLy, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Michael Danger
- UMR CNRS 73602 LIEC, Université de Lorraine, Metz, France
| | - Vincent Felten
- UMR CNRS 73602 LIEC, Université de Lorraine, Metz, France
| | | | - Krešimir Žganec
- Department of Teacher Education Studies in Gospić, University of Zadar, Gospić, Croatia
| | - Tomasz Rewicz
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland.,University of Guelph, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, Guelph, ON, Canada
| | - Anna Wysocka
- Department of Genetics and Biosystematics, University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Thierry Rigaud
- UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université Bourgogne Franche Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Michał Grabowski
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland.
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The Ecological Importance of Amphipod–Parasite Associations for Aquatic Ecosystems. WATER 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/w12092429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Amphipods are a key component of aquatic ecosystems due to their distribution, abundance and ecological role. They also serve as hosts for many micro- and macro-parasites. The importance of parasites and the necessity to include them in ecological studies has been increasingly recognized in the last two decades by ecologists and conservation biologists. Parasites are able to alter survival, growth, feeding, mobility, mating, fecundity and stressors’ response of their amphipod hosts. In addition to their modulating effects on host population size and dynamics, parasites affect community structure and food webs in different ways: by increasing the susceptibility of amphipods to predation, by quantitatively and qualitatively changing the host diet, and by modifying competitive interactions. Human-induced stressors such as climate change, pollution and species introduction that affect host–parasite equilibrium, may enhance or reduce the infection effects on hosts and ecosystems. The present review illustrates the importance of parasites for ecosystem processes using examples from aquatic environments and amphipods as a host group. As seen from the literature, amphipod–parasite systems are likely a key component of ecological processes, but more quantitative data from natural populations and field evidence are necessary to support the results obtained by experimental research.
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Babin A, Motreuil S, Teixeira M, Bauer A, Rigaud T, Moreau J, Moret Y. Origin of the natural variation in the storage of dietary carotenoids in freshwater amphipod crustaceans. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0231247. [PMID: 32294101 PMCID: PMC7159244 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0231247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2019] [Accepted: 03/19/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Carotenoids are diverse lipophilic natural pigments which are stored in variable amounts by animals. Given the multiple biological functions of carotenoids, such variation may have strong implications in evolutionary biology. Crustaceans such as Gammarus amphipods store large amounts of these pigments and inter-population variation occurs. While differences in parasite selective pressure have been proposed to explain this variation, the contribution of other factors such as genetic differences in the gammarid ability to assimilate and/or store pigments, and the environmental availability of carotenoids cannot be dismissed. This study investigates the relative contributions of the gammarid genotype and of the environmental availability of carotenoids in the natural variability in carotenoid storage. It further explores the link of this natural variability in carotenoid storage with major crustacean immune parameters. We addressed these aspects using the cryptic diversity in the amphipod crustacean Gammarus fossarum and a diet supplementation protocol in the laboratory. Our results suggest that natural variation in G. fossarum storage of dietary carotenoids results from both the availability of the pigments in the environment and the genetically-based ability of the gammarids to assimilate and/or store them, which is associated to levels of stimulation of cellular immune defences. While our results may support the hypothesis that carotenoids storage in this crustacean may evolve in response to parasitic pressure, a better understanding of the specific roles of this large pigment storage in the crustacean physiology is needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélie Babin
- Equipe Ecologie Evolutive, UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne-Franche Comté, Dijon, France
- * E-mail:
| | - Sébastien Motreuil
- Equipe Ecologie Evolutive, UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne-Franche Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Maria Teixeira
- Equipe Ecologie Evolutive, UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne-Franche Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Alexandre Bauer
- Equipe Ecologie Evolutive, UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne-Franche Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Thierry Rigaud
- Equipe Ecologie Evolutive, UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne-Franche Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Jérôme Moreau
- Equipe Ecologie Evolutive, UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne-Franche Comté, Dijon, France
| | - Yannick Moret
- Equipe Ecologie Evolutive, UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université de Bourgogne-Franche Comté, Dijon, France
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Gobbin TP, Vanhove MPM, Pariselle A, Groothuis TGG, Maan ME, Seehausen O. Temporally consistent species differences in parasite infection but no evidence for rapid parasite-mediated speciation in Lake Victoria cichlid fish. J Evol Biol 2020; 33:556-575. [PMID: 32163649 PMCID: PMC7318199 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2019] [Revised: 02/17/2020] [Accepted: 03/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Parasites may have strong eco‐evolutionary interactions with their hosts. Consequently, they may contribute to host diversification. The radiation of cichlid fish in Lake Victoria provides a good model to study the role of parasites in the early stages of speciation. We investigated patterns of macroparasite infection in a community of 17 sympatric cichlids from a recent radiation and 2 older species from 2 nonradiating lineages, to explore the opportunity for parasite‐mediated speciation. Host species had different parasite infection profiles, which were only partially explained by ecological factors (diet, water depth). This may indicate that differences in infection are not simply the result of differences in exposure, but that hosts evolved species‐specific resistance, consistent with parasite‐mediated divergent selection. Infection was similar between sampling years, indicating that the direction of parasite‐mediated selection is stable through time. We morphologically identified 6 Cichlidogyrus species, a gill parasite that is considered a good candidate for driving parasite‐mediated speciation, because it is host species‐specific and has radiated elsewhere in Africa. Species composition of Cichlidogyrus infection was similar among the most closely related host species (members of the Lake Victoria radiation), but two more distantly related species (belonging to nonradiating sister lineages) showed distinct infection profiles. This is inconsistent with a role for Cichlidogyrus in the early stages of divergence. To conclude, we find significant interspecific variation in parasite infection profiles, which is temporally consistent. We found no evidence that Cichlidogyrus‐mediated selection contributes to the early stages of speciation. Instead, our findings indicate that species differences in infection accumulate after speciation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiziana P Gobbin
- Division of Aquatic Ecology & Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.,Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.,Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
| | - Maarten P M Vanhove
- Research Group Zoology: Biodiversity & Toxicology, Centre for Environmental Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium.,Department of Biology, Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic.,Zoology Unit, Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Antoine Pariselle
- ISEM, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, IRD, Montpellier, France.,Faculty of Sciences, Laboratory of Biodiversity, Ecology and Genome, Mohammed V University in Rabat, Rabat, Morocco
| | - Ton G G Groothuis
- Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
| | - Martine E Maan
- Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, Centre of Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
| | - Ole Seehausen
- Division of Aquatic Ecology & Evolution, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.,Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
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Galipaud M, Bollache L, Lagrue C. Acanthocephalan infection patterns in amphipods: a reappraisal in the light of recently discovered host cryptic diversity. DISEASES OF AQUATIC ORGANISMS 2019; 136:107-121. [PMID: 31575838 DOI: 10.3354/dao03379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Amphipods are model species in studies of pervasive biological patterns such as sexual selection, size assortative pairing and parasite infection patterns. Cryptic diversity (i.e. morphologically identical but genetically divergent lineages) has recently been detected in several species. Potential effects of such hidden diversity on biological patterns remain unclear, but potentially significant, and beg the question of whether we have missed part of the picture by involuntarily overlooking the occurrence and effects of cryptic diversity on biological patterns documented by previous studies. Here we tested for potential effects of cryptic diversity on parasite infection patterns in amphipod populations and discuss the implications of our results in the context of previously documented host-parasite infection patterns, especially amphipod-acanthocephalan associations. We assessed infection levels (prevalence and abundance) of 3 acanthocephalan species (Pomphorhynchus laevis, P. tereticollis and Polymorphus minutus) among cryptic lineages of the Gammarus pulex/G. fossarum species complex and G. roeseli from sampling sites where they occur in sympatry. We also evaluated potential differences in parasite-induced mortality among host molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs)-parasite species combinations. Acanthocephalan prevalence, abundance and parasite-induced mortality varied widely among cryptic MOTUs and parasite species; infection patterns were more variable among MOTUs than sampling sites. Overall, cryptic diversity in amphipods strongly influenced apparent infection levels and parasite-induced mortality. Future research on species with cryptic diversity should account for potential effects on documented biological patterns. Results from previous studies may also need to be reassessed in light of cryptic diversity and its pervasive effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Galipaud
- Laboratoire Biogéosciences, UMR CNRS 6282 , Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 21000 Dijon, France
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Quiles A, Bacela-Spychalska K, Teixeira M, Lambin N, Grabowski M, Rigaud T, Wattier RA. Microsporidian infections in the species complex Gammarus roeselii (Amphipoda) over its geographical range: evidence for both host-parasite co-diversification and recent host shifts. Parasit Vectors 2019; 12:327. [PMID: 31253176 PMCID: PMC6599290 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-019-3571-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2019] [Accepted: 06/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Microsporidians are obligate endoparasites infecting taxonomically diverse hosts. Both vertical (from mother to eggs) and horizontal (between conspecifics or between species) transmission routes are known. While the former may promote co-speciation and host-specificity, the latter may promote shifts between host species. Among aquatic arthropods, freshwater amphipod crustaceans are hosts for many microsporidian species. However, despite numerous studies, no general pattern emerged about host specificity and co-diversification. In south-eastern Europe, the gammarid Gammarus roeselii is composed of 13 cryptic lineages of Miocene to Pleistocene age but few genotypes of one lineage have spread postglacially throughout north-western Europe. Based on nearly 100 sampling sites covering its entire range, we aim to: (i) explore the microsporidian diversity present in G. roeselii and their phylogenetic relationships, especially in relation to the parasites infecting other Gammaridae; (ii) test if the host phylogeographical history might have impacted host-parasite association (e.g. co-diversifications or recent host shifts from local fauna). METHODS We used part of the small subunit rRNA gene as source of sequences to identify and determine the phylogenetic position of the microsporidian taxa infecting G. roeselii. RESULTS Microsporidian diversity was high in G. roeselii with 24 detected haplogroups, clustered into 18 species-level taxa. Ten microsporidian species were rare, infecting a few individual hosts in a few populations, and were mostly phylogenetically related to parasites from other amphipods or various crustaceans. Other microsporidians were represented by widespread genera with high prevalence: Nosema, Cucumispora and Dictyocoela. Two contrasting host association patterns could be observed. First, two vertically transmitted microsporidian species, Nosema granulosis and Dictyocoela roeselum, share the pattern of infecting G. roeselii over most of its range and are specific to this host suggesting the co-diversification scenario. This pattern contrasted with that of Dictyocoela muelleri, the three species of Cucumispora, and the rare parasites, present only in the recently colonised region by the host. These patterns suggest recent acquisitions from local host species, after the recent spread of G. roeselii. CONCLUSIONS Microsporidians infecting G. roeselii revealed two scenarios of host-parasite associations: (i) ancient associations with vertically transmitted parasites that probably co-diversified with their hosts, and (ii) host shifts from local host species, after the postglacial spread of G. roeselii.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrien Quiles
- Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Laboratoire Biogéosciences, UMR CNRS 6282, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, University of Lodz, 12/16 Banacha Street, 90-237, Lodz, Poland
| | - Karolina Bacela-Spychalska
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, University of Lodz, 12/16 Banacha Street, 90-237, Lodz, Poland
| | - Maria Teixeira
- Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Laboratoire Biogéosciences, UMR CNRS 6282, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France
| | - Nicolas Lambin
- Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Laboratoire Biogéosciences, UMR CNRS 6282, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France
| | - Michal Grabowski
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Hydrobiology, University of Lodz, 12/16 Banacha Street, 90-237, Lodz, Poland
| | - Thierry Rigaud
- Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Laboratoire Biogéosciences, UMR CNRS 6282, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France
| | - Rémi André Wattier
- Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Laboratoire Biogéosciences, UMR CNRS 6282, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France
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Poulin R. Invasion ecology meets parasitology: Advances and challenges. Int J Parasitol Parasites Wildl 2017; 6:361-363. [PMID: 30951572 PMCID: PMC5715220 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijppaw.2017.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2017] [Accepted: 03/31/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Biological invasions threaten the diversity and functioning of native ecosystems, and the rate at which species are being introduced to new areas shows no sign of slowing down. Parasites play roles in biological invasions, for instance when native parasites interact with exotic hosts, or when parasites themselves are introduced to new areas. However, publication trends show clearly that research on parasitism in the context of biological invasions is lagging far behind research on biological invasions in general. The different articles in this special issue of International Journal for Parasitology-Parasites and Wildlife on 'Invasions' address various aspects of the interface between parasitology and invasion biology, including how invasive free-living species lose or gain parasites on the invasion front as they move away from their site of introduction, how these invasive species affect the dynamics of native parasites, and how exotic parasites become established and impact native hosts. Together, they highlight the challenges facing researchers in this area, and set the agenda for the next few years of research.
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