Crayfish molting as a disturbance effect in the assembly of ectosymbiotic communities

• DOI: 10.1002/oik.11204
• Publication Date: 2025-05-20T11:29:18Z
• Authors: Philip McElmurray; Spencer S. Bell; Robert P. Creed; Bryan L. Brown

Recently, there has been an effort to view the study of symbiosis through lens community ecology. Hosts can be viewed as patches in a symbiont metacommunity, and host ontogenetic change alter properties occupied by symbionts. We used freshwater cleaning between population Conhaway crayfish Cambarus appalachiensis their ectosymbiotic branchiobdellidan worms explore how molting act disturbance assembly. Based on year‐long survey hosts communities, acted that reset process Crayfish had recently molted was more similar smaller crayfish. This dynamic is likely driven competition–colonization tradeoff species community, with symbionts having better colonization ability, larger competitive ability. The richness lowest very recently, supporting idea communities are composed early colonizing characterize On not higher, while it highest somewhat recently. suggests caused interacting tradeoffs among determine composition community. Our results show host‐related disturbances important part assembly ectosymbioses involving invertebrate provide unique tool processes underlying symbiotic communities.