Invasive species
Rat-free islands could rebuild seabirds and reefs
Open access · cc by · source: Europe PMC
Eradicating invasive rats and restoring native vegetation on Chagos islands could multiply seabirds ~18-fold and raise reef-fish biomass via seabird-derived nitrogen.
How this study connects
Role on claims
Each row is a claim on a concept or method page where this paper supports, challenges, or qualifies the statement. Roles are hand-checked — not a model guess.
This library holds 3 empirical papers on invasive species with measured outcomes rather than reviews.
Evidence for the claim as stated.
Eradicating invasive rats and restoring native vegetation on Chagos islands could multiply seabirds ~18-fold and raise reef-fish biomass via seabird-derived nitrogen.
Evidence for the claim as stated.
A metapopulation model or a local suppression trial does not generalise to every invader.
Evidence for the claim as stated.
Open questions
Tensions this paper is part of
From concept pages' “where studies disagree.” Disagreement means the same question; scope means different assays, populations, or outcomes.
A metapopulation model or a local suppression trial does not generalise to every invader.
Study at a glance
- Design
- Computational / modelling — Habitat/abundance models predicting Chagos seabird recovery and reef-fish biomass under rat eradication
- N
- N=25 · Modeled eradication on 25 rat-infested islands (scenario study, not a field trial N)
- Population
- Lesser noddies, sooty terns, and red-footed boobies on Chagos Archipelago islands
- Outcome
- Predicted seabird abundance, nitrogen deposition, and reef-fish biomass under restoration
Structured fields used in claim comparison tables when every cited study has a complete layer.
Inspect source passages
Rat-free islands could rebuild seabirds and reefs
These passages occur verbatim in the stored paper text. They support the points listed below; they do not verify every statement in the explanation.
Rats gone plus 75% native cover could support a 52% increase in reef fish biomass (50,000 tons more).
If rats were predicted to be eradicated and 75% native vegetation cover was restored throughout the Chagos Archipelago, the shallow coral reef area of the Archipelago could support a 52% increase in reef fish biomass, resulting in 50,000 tons more reef fish (95% HPD: 7000–310,000).
What terrestrial invasive animal suppresses Chagos seabirds?
black rats Rattus rattus and coconut palm forest were introduced in the late 18th and early 19th centuries
Key findings
Rat presence suppressed breeding abundances. Eradication on 25 infested islands could raise those three species ~18-fold. Full eradication plus 75% native cover could lift reef-fish biomass ~52% (~50,000 extra tons), with nitrogen deposition rising from 78 toward 170 tons/year.
Methodology
Authors modeled breeding abundances of lesser noddies, sooty terns, and red-footed boobies across Chagos islands as a function of rats, island area, and native habitat, then predicted prey demand and seabird nitrogen reaching coral reefs under eradication and vegetation-restoration scenarios.
Limitations
Predictions have wide uncertainty and assume prey and habitat can support restored densities; Diego Garcia and unmodeled islands, plus other invasive species, are not a full restoration trial.
Related papers in this topic
Same topic cluster — not a recommendation engine.