NICHE BREADTH and INVASION SUCCESS Harri Pettitt-Wade University of Windsor
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University of Windsor Scholarship at UWindsor Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2016 NICHE BREADTH AND INVASION SUCCESS Harri Pettitt-Wade University of Windsor Follow this and additional works at: http://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd Recommended Citation Pettitt-Wade, Harri, "NICHE BREADTH AND INVASION SUCCESS" (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 5759. This online database contains the full-text of PhD dissertations and Masters’ theses of University of Windsor students from 1954 forward. These documents are made available for personal study and research purposes only, in accordance with the Canadian Copyright Act and the Creative Commons license—CC BY-NC-ND (Attribution, Non-Commercial, No Derivative Works). Under this license, works must always be attributed to the copyright holder (original author), cannot be used for any commercial purposes, and may not be altered. Any other use would require the permission of the copyright holder. Students may inquire about withdrawing their dissertation and/or thesis from this database. For additional inquiries, please contact the repository administrator via email ([email protected]) or by telephone at 519-253-3000ext. 3208. NICHE BREADTH AND INVASION SUCCESS By Harri Pettitt-Wade A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies through the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Windsor Windsor, Ontario, Canada 2016 © 2016 Harri Pettitt-Wade Niche Breadth and Invasion Success by Harri Pettitt-Wade APPROVED BY: _____________________________ D. A. Jackson, External Examiner University of Toronto _____________________________ T. Pitcher Department of Biological Sciences _____________________________ D. D. Heath Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research ______________________________ C. Semeniuk Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research ____________________________ A. T. Fisk, Advisor Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research 18 April 2016 DECLARATION OF CO-AUTHORSHIP / PREVIOUS PUBLICATION I. CO-AUTHORSHIP DECLARATION I hereby declare that this dissertation includes original research reprinted from co- authored, submitted and published manuscripts. In all chapters, A T. Fisk contributed intellectually by providing consultation, and facilities and materials required for completion of the research. For Chapters 2, 3, 4 and 5, K. W. Wellband contributed to the research with sample collection, statistical guidance and manuscript consultation. For chapters 2, 3, 4 and 5, D. D. Heath contributed to the research with manuscript consultation. For Chapter 3, A. M. McLeod contributed to the research with statistical guidance and manuscript consultation. The writing of all chapters included in this dissertation, however, was completed entirely by the author, Harri Pettitt-Wade. I am aware of the University of Windsor Senate Policy on Authorship and I certify that I have properly acknowledged the contribution of the other researchers to my dissertation, and have obtained written permission from each of the co-author(s) to include the above material(s) in my dissertation, I certify that, with the above qualification, this dissertation, and the research to which it refers, is the product of my own work. II. DECLARATION OF PREVIOUS PUBLICATION This dissertation includes 2 original manuscripts that have been published or submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals, as follows: iii Thesis Chapter Publication title/full citation Publication status Chapter 2 Pettitt-Wade, H., K. W. Wellband, D. D. Heath published & A. T. Fisk. 2015. Niche Plasticity in Invasive Fishes in the Great Lakes. Biol Inv 17: 2565- 2580 Chapter 3 Pettitt-Wade, H., K. W. Wellband, A. M. in review McLeod, D. D. Heath & A. T. Fisk. Ecology I certify that I have obtained a written permission from the copyright owner(s) to include the above published material(s) in my dissertation. I certify that the above material describes work completed during my registration as graduate student at the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research, University of Windsor. I declare that, to the best of my knowledge, my thesis does not infringe upon anyone’s copyright nor violate any proprietary rights and that any ideas, techniques, quotations, or any other material from the work of other people included in my thesis, published or otherwise, are fully acknowledged in accordance with the standard referencing practices. Furthermore, to the extent that I have included copyrighted material that surpasses the bounds of fair dealing within the meaning of the Canada Copyright Act, I certify that I have obtained a written permission from the copyright owner(s) to include such material(s) in my thesis. I declare that this is a true copy of my thesis, including any final revisions, as approved by my thesis committee and the Graduate Studies office, and that this thesis has not been submitted for a higher degree to any other University or Institution. iv ABSTRACT A developing concept in ecology is that broad niches predict geographical range size. Plasticity in resource use is often considered to be important for responding to novel environments, and study of species that are established across different ranges provides a model for determining the drivers of species spread and distribution. Contrasting distributions of invasive species are often associated with species-specific feeding ecology, but comparisons are rarely made for multiple taxa, spatial scales or between native and invaded ranges. Stable isotopes of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) are common tracers in food web ecology and provide a quantitative measure of intra and interspecific variation in dietary niche. In this dissertation, I compare the dietary niches (variation in δ13C and δ15N) of successful and less successful aquatic invasive species of fish and invertebrates established across broad and narrow ranges in invaded regions, fishes in native and invaded ranges, and the role of time since invasion for niche diversification in relation to habitat complexity and genetic diversity. This dissertation demonstrates the importance of intra and inter-individual variation in resource use for successful widespread distribution of invasive fishes. Inconsistency in this trend for oysters, tunicates and waterflea suggested dietary niche breadth is less important for invasion success in aquatic invertebrates than it is for fishes. Moreover, dietary niche plasticity was associated with a broad body size range in fishes, but not invertebrates. Habitat complexity and environmental heterogeneity were associated with peaks in niche breadth that were exceptions to general trends of increasing niche breadth and genetic diversity with time established. Gain in niche v breadth from native to invaded regions for populations of most successful invasive fishes, but loss of niche breadth for less successful species, further indicated the importance of intra-individual variation in resource use for widespread distribution. Loss of dietary niche breadth for less successful species implied that the invasion process could be associated with severe bottlenecks for less successful species, which could be a mechanism for limited spread. These findings highlight the potential for considerable impact from the invasion process for the ecology of the invader, and that establishment in novel environments can drive diversification in the absence of founder effects. vi DEDICATION For those that will inherit the Earth: Charlie, Isla, Betsy and Tilly vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am foremost thankful to Aaron Fisk for taking me on as a student, investing wholly in my success and for his patience and encouragement to achieve my potential. I am grateful for the valuable advice, critique and encouragement from my supervisory committee members Drs. Daniel D. Heath, Trevor Pitcher, Christina Semeniuk and past member Hugh MacIsaac. I am very grateful that this research was part of the Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network (CAISN II). As part of CAISN, I have had the opportunity to interact with, gain advice and constructive criticism from numerous academics from around the world. In particular, Nickolas Mandrak provided advice and assistance on numerous occasions, including revision of my first data chapter following journal submission. Thanks to Lynda Corkum and Tim Johnson for sampling advice and contacts, Igor Grigorovic for Ukraine sampling advice, assistance in tracking down field assistants and in translating travel documents. I am grateful for the continuous collaboration of Kyle Wellband, who is always willing to explore the broad implications of our research. Thanks to Anne McLeod for never failing to provide honest criticism, discuss ideas at length no matter how trivial, for sharing my enthusiasm for fundamental science and continuous encouragement of my abilities. I am grateful for the support of my colleagues at GLIER and their willingness to discuss ideas, particularly Dave Yurkowski, Nigel Hussey, Scott Colbourne, Steven Kessel and Brent Nawrocki. Thanks to Sergey Khokodiy for being an exceptional Ukraine field assistant, lab assistant, translator and travel guide. Thanks to Yuriy Kvash, Lyonid Izergin and The Research Institute of the Azov Sea for their incredible hospitality and assistance in Ukraine sample collections. Thanks to Chris McKindsey for conducting sample viii collections on the Canadian East coast, and Thomas Therriault, and the Pacific