Anderson, T. M. et al. (2024) Interplay of competition and facilitation in grazing succession by migrant Serengeti herbivores. Science, 383(6684), pp. 782-788. (doi: 10.1126/science.adg0744) (PMID:38359113)
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Abstract
Competition, facilitation, and predation offer alternative explanations for successional patterns of migratory herbivores. However, these interactions are difficult to measure, leaving uncertainty about the mechanisms underlying body-size-dependent grazing—and even whether succession occurs at all. We used data from an 8-year camera-trap survey, GPS-collared herbivores, and fecal DNA metabarcoding to analyze the timing, arrival order, and interactions among migratory grazers in Serengeti National Park. Temporal grazing succession is characterized by a “push-pull” dynamic: Competitive grazing nudges zebra ahead of co-migrating wildebeest, whereas grass consumption by these large-bodied migrants attracts trailing, small-bodied gazelle that benefit from facilitation. “Natural experiments” involving intense wildfires and rainfall respectively disrupted and strengthened these effects. Our results highlight a balance between facilitative and competitive forces in co-regulating large-scale ungulate migrations.
| Item Type: | Articles |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | This work was supported by the National Geographic Society (grants WW-025R-17 and NGS-52921R-18 to T.M.A.); the National Science Foundation (grant BCS-1461728 to T.M.A. and R.M.H.; grants PRFB-1810586, IIS-1619177, and OAC-1835530 to C.P.; and grants IOS-1656527 and DEB-1457697 to R.M.P.); European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant 641918 to J.G.C.H. and T.A.M.); the Frankfurt Zoological Society (J.G.C.H. and T.A.M.); and the British Ecological Society (J.G.C.H. and T.A.M.). |
| Status: | Published |
| Refereed: | Yes |
| Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: | Morrison, Dr Thomas and Hopcraft, Professor Grant |
| Creator Roles: | Hopcraft, G.Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Investigation, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Writing – review and editing Morrison, T.Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Resources, Software, Validation, Visualization, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing |
| Authors: | Anderson, T. M., Hepler, S. A., Holdo, R. M., Donaldson, J. E., Erhardt, R. J., Hopcraft, G., Hutchinson, M. C., Huebner, S. E., Morrison, T. A., Muday, J., Munuo, I. N., Palmer, M. S., Pansu, J., Pringle, R. M., Sketch, R., and Packer, C. |
| College/School: | College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine |
| Journal Name: | Science |
| Publisher: | American Association for the Advancement of Science |
| ISSN: | 0036-8075 |
| ISSN (Online): | 1095-9203 |
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