Fungicide-induced declines of freshwater biodiversity modify ecosystem functions and services.

Autor: McMahon TA; Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620, USA. tamcmaho@mail.usf.edu, Halstead NT, Johnson S, Raffel TR, Romansic JM, Crumrine PW, Rohr JR
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Ecology letters [Ecol Lett] 2012 Jul; Vol. 15 (7), pp. 714-22. Date of Electronic Publication: 2012 May 15.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2012.01790.x
Abstrakt: Although studies on biodiversity and ecosystem function are often framed within the context of anthropogenic change, a central question that remains is how important are direct vs. indirect (via changes in biodiversity) effects of anthropogenic stressors on ecosystem functions in multitrophic-level communities. Here, we quantify the effects of the fungicide chlorothalonil on 34 species-, 2 community- and 11 ecosystem-level responses in a multitrophic-level system. At ecologically relevant concentrations, chlorothalonil increased mortality of amphibians, gastropods, zooplankton, algae and a macrophyte (reducing taxonomic richness), reduced decomposition and water clarity and elevated dissolved oxygen and net primary productivity. These ecosystem effects were indirect and predictable based on changes in taxonomic richness. A path analysis suggests that chlorothalonil-induced reductions in biodiversity and top-down and bottom-up effects facilitated algal blooms that shifted ecosystem functions. This work emphasises the need to re-evaluate the safety of chlorothalonil and to further link anthropogenic-induced changes in biodiversity to altered ecosystem functions.
(© 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd/CNRS.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
Externí odkaz: