Plague bacterium as a transformer species in prairie dogs and the grasslands of western North America |
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Authors: | David A Eads Dean E Biggins |
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Institution: | 1. Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, U.S.A.;2. U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, CO, U.S.A. |
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Abstract: | Invasive transformer species change the character, condition, form, or nature of ecosystems and deserve considerable attention from conservation scientists. We applied the transformer species concept to the plague bacterium Yersinia pestis in western North America, where the pathogen was introduced around 1900. Y. pestis transforms grassland ecosystems by severely depleting the abundance of prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.) and thereby causing declines in native species abundance and diversity, including threatened and endangered species; altering food web connections; altering the import and export of nutrients; causing a loss of ecosystem resilience to encroaching invasive plants; and modifying prairie dog burrows. Y. pestis poses an important challenge to conservation biologists because it causes trophic‐level perturbations that affect the stability of ecosystems. Unfortunately, understanding of the effects of Y. pestis on ecosystems is rudimentary, highlighting an acute need for continued research. |
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Keywords: | Cynomys ecosystem function invasive species trophic perturbations Yersinia pestis especies invasoras funció n del ecosistema perturbaciones tró ficas Cynomys Yersinia pestis |
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