Greater physiological resistance to heat may favour an invasive freshwater turtle, enabling it to outcompete native species in a changing climate

Climate warming and biological invasion can interact to affect ecosystems, and the results of such interactions depend on whether invaders show physiological advantages in their responses to warming environments as compared with native species after the establishment and local adaptation. However, it has rarely been evaluated. The present study compared the heat tolerance of a globally invasive turtle, the red-eared slider Trachemys scripta elegans, and two co-occurring native turtle species in China, the Chinese soft-shelled turtle Pelodiscus sinensis and Chinese pond turtle Mauremys reevesii, after acclimation in the same thermal environment. The expression patterns of heat shock factor 1 (HSF1), multiple heat shock proteins (HSPs) and telomere reverse transcriptase (TERT), and changes in relative telomere length (RTL) were then evaluated in liver and muscle of turtles under thermal stress. The results showed that T. scripta elegans had greater physiological resistance to heat than the co-occurring native turtle species, and that this higher tolerance was accompanied by a higher temperature induction of the peak expression of inducible HSPs in liver and a higher onset temperature for the main inducible HSPs in muscle. During thermal stress, T. scripta elegans showed a better ability to maintain the expression levels of TERT under extremely hot conditions, whereas high temperatures inhibited TERT in muscles of native turtle species. Meanwhile, thermal stress did not cause telomere erosion in any of the three turtle species and some treatments can lead to slightly longer telomeres in T. scripta elegans or M. reevesii. Overall, the invasive turtle species showed higher heat tolerance and physiological advantages in enduring hot weather in comparison to the co-occurring native turtle species. This may favour these invaders in situations of climate warming. Our study highlights the role of physiological adaptations displayed by invaders in achieving advantages over native species under climate change.

Automated summary

Climate warming and biological invasion can interact to affect ecosystems, and the present study demonstrates that the invasive red-eared slider turtle has greater physiological resistance to heat compared to co-occurring native turtle species in China. The invasive species shows higher heat tolerance and physiological advantages in enduring hot weather, which may favor them in situations of climate warming.