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Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species

The role of the native species richness and density in ecosystem invasibility is a matter of concern for both ecologists and managers. We tested the hypothesis that the invasiveness of Urochloa arrecta (non-native in the Neotropics) is negatively affected by the species richness and abundance of nat...

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Autores principales: Michelan, Thaisa S., Thomaz, Sidinei M., Bini, Luis M.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2013
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3607602/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23536902
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0060004
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author Michelan, Thaisa S.
Thomaz, Sidinei M.
Bini, Luis M.
author_facet Michelan, Thaisa S.
Thomaz, Sidinei M.
Bini, Luis M.
author_sort Michelan, Thaisa S.
collection PubMed
description The role of the native species richness and density in ecosystem invasibility is a matter of concern for both ecologists and managers. We tested the hypothesis that the invasiveness of Urochloa arrecta (non-native in the Neotropics) is negatively affected by the species richness and abundance of native aquatic macrophytes in freshwater ecosystems. We first created four levels of macrophyte richness in a greenhouse (richness experiment), and we then manipulated the densities of the same native species in a second experiment (density experiment). When the native macrophytes were adults, fragments of U. arrecta were added, and their growth was assessed. Our results from the richness experiment corroborated the hypothesis of a negative relationship between the native species richness and the growth of U. arrecta, as measured by sprout length and root biomass. However, the resistance to invasion was not attributed to the presence of a particular native species with a greater competitive ability. In the density experiment, U. arrecta growth decreased significantly with an increased density of all five of the native species. Density strongly affected the performance of the Poaceae in a negative manner, suggesting that patches that are densely colonized by native macrophytes and less subject to disturbances will be more resistant to invasion than those that are poorly colonized and more commonly subjected to disturbances. Our density experiment also showed that some species exhibit a higher competitive ability than others (sampling effect). Although native richness and abundance clearly limit the colonization and establishment of U. arrecta, these factors cannot completely prevent the invasion of aquatic ecosystems by this Poaceae species.
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spelling pubmed-36076022013-03-27 Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species Michelan, Thaisa S. Thomaz, Sidinei M. Bini, Luis M. PLoS One Research Article The role of the native species richness and density in ecosystem invasibility is a matter of concern for both ecologists and managers. We tested the hypothesis that the invasiveness of Urochloa arrecta (non-native in the Neotropics) is negatively affected by the species richness and abundance of native aquatic macrophytes in freshwater ecosystems. We first created four levels of macrophyte richness in a greenhouse (richness experiment), and we then manipulated the densities of the same native species in a second experiment (density experiment). When the native macrophytes were adults, fragments of U. arrecta were added, and their growth was assessed. Our results from the richness experiment corroborated the hypothesis of a negative relationship between the native species richness and the growth of U. arrecta, as measured by sprout length and root biomass. However, the resistance to invasion was not attributed to the presence of a particular native species with a greater competitive ability. In the density experiment, U. arrecta growth decreased significantly with an increased density of all five of the native species. Density strongly affected the performance of the Poaceae in a negative manner, suggesting that patches that are densely colonized by native macrophytes and less subject to disturbances will be more resistant to invasion than those that are poorly colonized and more commonly subjected to disturbances. Our density experiment also showed that some species exhibit a higher competitive ability than others (sampling effect). Although native richness and abundance clearly limit the colonization and establishment of U. arrecta, these factors cannot completely prevent the invasion of aquatic ecosystems by this Poaceae species. Public Library of Science 2013-03-25 /pmc/articles/PMC3607602/ /pubmed/23536902 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0060004 Text en © 2013 Michelan et al http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are properly credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Michelan, Thaisa S.
Thomaz, Sidinei M.
Bini, Luis M.
Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species
title Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species
title_full Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species
title_fullStr Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species
title_full_unstemmed Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species
title_short Native Macrophyte Density and Richness Affect the Invasiveness of a Tropical Poaceae Species
title_sort native macrophyte density and richness affect the invasiveness of a tropical poaceae species
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3607602/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23536902
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0060004
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