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The realized niche of many sessile intertidal organisms is constrained by different stressors that set boundaries for their distribution based on tidal elevation. Higher tidal elevation increases desiccation risk but can provide a refuge from predation. Conversely, deeper water increases feeding time and growth but also increases vulnerability to benthic predators. Eastern oystersCrassostrea virginicaharden their shells in response to predator cues, which reduces their mortality from predation. We performed a field study to investigate if this defense mechanism could be manipulated to expand their realized niche and increase space for oyster survival and growth. We raised oysters in the presence of predators (blue crabsCallinectes sapidus) or in no-predator controls, measured changes in shell morphology, and then monitored oyster survival at different tidal elevations across 7 locations with different predator and salinity regimes. Oyster survival was significantly higher at the highest tidal elevations tested. Exposure to predators before deployment also significantly increased shell hardness and survival, with intertidal oysters experiencing greater improvement in survival from cue exposure than subtidal oysters. Intertidal placement (>15% exposure time) had larger effects on survival than predator exposure, but predator exposure increased oyster survival at all tidal elevations, suggesting that predator induction could help oysters both deter predators and resist abiotic stressors like desiccation, and perhaps increase the spatial areas where oysters can be restored.
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This content will become publicly available on June 19, 2026
Scared strong: using predator cues to bolster shellfish restoration
Oysters,Crassostrea virginica, are economically and ecologically valuable but have severely declined, and restoration is needed. As with the restoration and aquaculture of many shellfish species, restored oyster reefs are often impeded by predation losses, reducing restoration success and restricting locations where restored reefs are viable. Like many organisms, shellfish can modify their morphology to reduce predation risk by detecting and responding to chemical signals emanating from predators and injured prey. Oysters grow heavier, stronger shells in response to predation risk cues, which improves their survival. We tested if using predator cues to trigger shell hardening in oysters could be performed over a scale suitable for oyster reef restoration and improve oyster survival long‐term. We constructed an intertidal oyster reef using oysters grown in a nursery for 4 weeks while exposed to either exudates from Blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) predators or grown in controls without predator cues. Oysters grown with predators were 65% harder than those grown in controls, and after 1 year in the field, had a 60% increase in survival. Predation losses on the restored reef were significant, and the benefit of predator induction for survival was highest at intermediate tidal elevations, presumably due to intermediate levels of predation and abiotic stress. Our results suggest that manipulating the morphology of cultivated or restored species can be an effective tool to improve survival in habitats where consumers impede restoration success.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1948441
- PAR ID:
- 10610971
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Restoration Ecology
- ISSN:
- 1061-2971
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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NA (Ed.)The realized niche of many sessile intertidal organisms is constrained by different stressors that set boundaries for their distribution based on tidal elevation. Higher tidal elevation increases desiccation risk but can provide a refuge from predation. Conversely, deeper water increases feeding time and growth but also increases vulnerability to benthic predators. Eastern oysters Crassostrea virginica harden their shells in response to predator cues, which reduces their mortality from predation. We performed a field study to investigate if this defense mechanism could be manipulated to expand their realized niche and increase space for oyster survival and growth. We raised oysters in the presence of predators (blue crabs Callinectes sapidus) or in nopredator controls, measured changes in shell morphology, and then monitored oyster survival at different tidal elevations across 7 locations with different predator and salinity regimes. Oyster survival was significantly higher at the highest tidal elevations tested. Exposure to predators before deployment also significantly increased shell hardness and survival, with intertidal oysters experiencing greater improvement in survival from cue exposure than subtidal oysters. Intertidal placement (>15% exposure time) had larger effects on survival than predator exposure, but predator exposure increased oyster survival at all tidal elevations, suggesting that predator induction could help oysters both deter predators and resist abiotic stressors like desiccation, and perhaps increase the spatial areas where oysters can be restoredmore » « less
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Abstract The capacity of an apex predator to produce nonconsumptive effects (NCEs) in multiple prey trophic levels can create considerable complexity in nonconsumptive cascading interactions, but these effects are poorly studied. We examined such effects in a model food web where the apex predator (blue crabs) releases chemical cues in urine that affect both the intermediate consumer (mud crabs seek shelter) and the basal prey (oysters are induced to grow stronger shells). Shelter availability and predator presence were manipulated in a laboratory experiment to identify patterns in species interactions. Then, experimentally induced and uninduced oysters were planted across high‐quality and low‐quality habitats with varying levels of shelter availability and habitat heterogeneity to determine the consistency of these patterns in the field. Oyster shell thickening in response to blue crab chemical cues generally protected oysters from mud crab predation in both the laboratory and in field environments that differed in predation intensity, structural complexity, habitat heterogeneity, and predator composition. However, NCEs on the intermediate predator (greater use of refugia) opposed the NCEs on oyster prey in the interior of oyster reefs while still providing survival advantages to basal prey on reef edges and bare substrates. Thus, the combined effects of changing movement patterns of intermediate predators and morphological defenses of basal prey create complex, but predictable, patterns of NCEs across landscapes and ecotones that vary in structural complexity. Generalist predators that feed on multiple trophic levels are ubiquitous, and their potential effects on NCEs propagating simultaneously to different trophic levels must be quantified to understand the role of NCEs in food webs.more » « less
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