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Sreekanth GB, Mujawar S, Lal DM, Mayekar T, Stephen J, Raghavan R, Kumar AB, Ingole BS. Modelling the mixed impacts of multiple invasive alien fish species in a closed freshwater ecosystem in India. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2022; 29:58278-58296. [PMID: 35364792 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-19794-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2021] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Invasive alien species (IAS) influence the trophic organisation and food web structure in an invaded ecosystem, and therefore, it is imperative to quantify the resultant ecological impacts. The globally recognised ecosystem modelling platform, Ecopath with Ecosim, was used to delineate the impacts of IAS on a tropical freshwater pond ecosystem in India. We analysed the trophic interactions, consumption patterns, prey overlap and mixed trophic impacts of three co-existing invasive alien fish species, African catfish (Clarias gariepinus), suckermouth catfish (Pterygoplichthys pardalis) and Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus), on other functional groups in the ecosystem. Together, the three IAS shared 11% of the total energy consumption and about 50% of the energy consumption by the fish species/groups. There was no predation mortality for African catfish and suckermouth catfish, and a very low estimate for the same was recorded for tilapia (0.64 year-1). The IAS shared high mean prey overlap with the native fish groups (Garra sp., Etroplus suratensis, Systomus sarana, Chanda nama and various small species of the cypriniform genera Puntius, Rasbora and Devario) indicating a substantial competition between alien and native species in the ecosystem. Consequently, the three IAS exhibited higher mean negative mixed trophic impacts on these functional groups. A very high Finn's cycling index (39.59%), a low relative ascendency (28.5%) and a very low system robustness (0.07) were observed compared to similar ecosystems, and the baseline values. These indices exposed the vulnerability of the ecosystem towards perturbations, which could be due to the presence of multiple alien invasive species. Mitigating the impacts of IAS should involve a combination of approaches, including eradication through draining and harvesting, high-density stocking of similar trophic level fish in the pond, and local and national level policy interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giri Bhavan Sreekanth
- ICAR-Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute (CCARI), Ella, Old Goa, Goa, 403 402, India.
| | - Sajiya Mujawar
- ICAR-Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute (CCARI), Ella, Old Goa, Goa, 403 402, India
| | - Dhanya Mohan Lal
- ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, 400 061, India
| | - Trivesh Mayekar
- ICAR-Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute (CCARI), Ella, Old Goa, Goa, 403 402, India
| | | | - Rajeev Raghavan
- Department of Fisheries Resource Management, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS), Kochi, 682 506, India
| | | | - Baban Shravan Ingole
- National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Headland Sada, Vasco da Gama, Goa, 403 802, India
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Mungi NA, Qureshi Q, Jhala YV. Expanding niche and degrading forests: Key to the successful global invasion of Lantana camara (sensu lato). Glob Ecol Conserv 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e01080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
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Unveiling cryptic ecological functions: prospects in plant invasions. Trop Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s42965-019-00002-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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