title: Plague bacterium as a transformer species in prairie dogs and the grasslands of western North America.
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.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, U.S.A.|U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, 2150 Centre Avenue, Building C, Fort Collins, CO, 80526, U.S.A.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Eads
authors.affiliation: U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, 2150 Centre Avenue, Building C, Fort Collins, CO, 80526, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Dean E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Biggins
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002170:Canada; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D020387:Food Chain; D065948:Grassland; D058865:Introduced Species; D008800:Mexico; D010930:Plague / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D012376:Rodent Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D012589:Sciuridae; D014481:United States; D015010:Yersinia pestis / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Cynomys; Yersinia pestis; ecosystem function; especies invasoras; función del ecosistema; invasive species; perturbaciones tróficas; trophic perturbations
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