Rats on remote islands reroute reef life by starving seabirds
Invasive rats on tropical islands decimate seabird populations and their nutrient-rich guano subsidies to surrounding coral reefs. This reduces nutrient input and reshapes the reef cryptofauna: rat-free reefs are dominated by tiny cryptobenthic fishes, while rat-infested reefs see relatively more invertebrates and altered predator–prey dynamics, signaling cascading changes through the reef food web.