| Interactions between introduced and native consumers are often complex and cryptic, and actions designed to highlight or mitigate the effects of introduced species can be difficult to accomplish or controversial to carry out. We shed light on relationships between the introduced brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), imperiled Cascades frog (Rana cascadae), and their shared predator, the aquatic gartersnake (Thamnophis atratus), using a treatment-control removal experiment in a sub-alpine system of northern California. Specifically, we report changes in the abundance and distribution of the aquatic gartersnake and Cascades frog following complete basin-wide eradication of introduced brook trout. Our findings corroborate previous research suggesting aquatic gartersnake abundance and distribution, as well as the resulting hyperpredation experienced by Cascades frogs, is largely dependent on the presence of salmonids historically stocked for recreational angling. These results not only demonstrate how a single introduced species can have drastic and unintended consequences in seemingly pristine wilderness settings, but they also illustrate how restoration-based management can reshape native food webs. |