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Frequent invasions in coastal ecosystems result in novel species interactions that have unknown ecological consequences. Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides and Brazilian waterweed Egeria densa are introduced species in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta (the Delta) of California, a highly modified estuary. In this system, Brazilian waterweed and Largemouth Bass have seen marked increases in distribution and abundance in recent decades, but their association has not been specifically studied until now. We conducted a 2-year, bimonthly electrofishing survey with simultaneous sampling of water quality and submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) biomass at 33 locations throughout the Delta. We used generalized linear mixed models to assess the relative influences of water temperature, conductivity, Secchi depth, and SAV biomass density on the abundance of both juvenile-sized and larger Largemouth Bass. Water temperature had a positive relationship with the abundance of both size-classes, but only juvenile-sized fish had a positive association with SAV biomass density, with highest abundances at intermediate SAV densities. In contrast, larger fish were generally ubiquitous across all sampling conditions, even when SAV was absent or present at low densities. Our results on the Largemouth Bass–SAV relationship are consistent with those of previous studies from lake systems within the Largemouth Bass’s native range, where they interact with a different SAV species assemblage. These results are supportive of the hypothesis that the proliferation of Brazilian waterweed has expanded Largemouth Bass rearing habitat in the Delta. Finally, this study has implications for tidal wetland restoration plans for the Delta, suggesting that the larger-sized Largemouth Bass may still inhabit restored areas even if invasive SAV establishment is limited.

  Posts

September 1st, 2018

Graduate student position available studying alternative reproductive tactics at BGSU

We seek a graduate student for a newly NSF-funded project examining the life history decisions made by male smallmouth bass. […]

June 14th, 2018

Part of that World

The other day I was singing “Part of your World” from The Little Mermaid, but was changing some of the […]

June 13th, 2018

Parasite manipulation of host behavior in pop culture

I’m going to be giving a talk at the sure-to-be-amazing Zombie Apocalypse Medicine Meeting. The meeting celebrates all things zombie-related, and […]

June 4th, 2017

Soonish giveaway on Goodreads!

Five copies of the advance reader version of Zach and my new book Soonish are up for grabs on Goodreads! Click […]

March 7th, 2017

Soonish: Ten Emerging Technologies That’ll Improve and/or Ruin Everything

Zach and I wrote a book! Soonish: Ten Emerging Technologies That’ll Improve and/or Ruin Everything explores 10 emerging technologies, and discusses the roadblocks […]

January 26th, 2017

Tales from the Crypt: a parasitoid manipulates the behaviour of its parasite host

I have a new paper out with Dr. Scott Egan, Dr. Andrew Forbes, and Sean Liu! The paper is Open Access […]

May 30th, 2016

Postdoc with Dr. Ryan Hechinger (and me!)

We’re looking for a postdoc! See below! —————— Postdoctoral Opportunity with the Marine Biology Research Division at SIO Postdoctoral Scholar […]

May 7th, 2016

Science…sort of Episode 240: Moon Rocks Don’t Glow

I co-hosted an episode of Science…sort of recently. I pasted the show notes below, but you’ll have to head over […]

February 24th, 2016

Books on parasites

I’m often asked by students to suggest books they can read about parasites. Below is a list of books that […]

August 22nd, 2015

Great Adaptations – A kid’s book about evolution

Zach Weinersmith and I contributed to Tiffany Taylor’s children’s book about evolution. Tiffany worked with scientists to create Seuss-style stories […]