Biotic and abiotic predictors of ecosystem engineering traits of the dune building grass, <i>Ammophila breviligulata</i>

Emery, Sarah M.; Rudgers, Jennifer A.

doi:10.1890/es13-00331.1

Cited by 27 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 71 publications

(66 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In addition, if under warming conditions A. breviligulata experiences a range shift to the north, as appears to be occurring with U. paniculata, changes in grass dominance and foredune morphology could make coastal regions more vulnerable to erosion and overtopping. Interestingly, in an observational study in the Great Lakes region, Emery and Rudgers [41] found that A. breviligulata plants were taller at lower latitudes but shoot densities did not vary with any climate variables. Thus, while shifts in dune grass species' ranges are important to document, focusing on the physiological and morphological changes of dune grasses with changing climate is likely to be equally important to predicting foredune landscapes in the future.…”

Section: Dune Grass Distributions and The Consequences For Foredune Gmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…These large-scale distributional differences are associated with physiological responses to climate. Ammophila breviligulata is a C 3 grass that prefers temperate climates, with plants susceptible to mortality above 35 • C [40,41]. Uniola paniculata is a C 4 grass that prefers warmer climates and appears to be limited by cold winter temperatures [42,43].…”

Section: Dune Grass Distributions and The Consequences For Foredune Gmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Species-Specific Functional Morphology of Four US Atlantic Coast Dune Grasses: Biogeographic Implications for Dune Shape and Coastal Protection

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Coastal dunes arise from feedbacks between vegetation and sediment supply. Species-specific differences in plant functional morphology affect sand capture and dune shape. In this study, we build on research showing a relationship between dune grass species and dune geomorphology on the US central Atlantic Coast. This study seeks to determine the ways in which four co-occurring dune grass species (Ammophila breviligulata, Panicum amarum, Spartina patens, Uniola paniculata) differ in their functional morphology and sand accretion. We surveyed the biogeography, functional morphology, and associated change in sand elevation of the four dune grass species along a 320-kilometer distance across the Outer Banks. We found that A. breviligulata had dense and clumped shoots, which correlated with the greatest sand accretion. Coupled with fast lateral spread, it tends to build tall and wide foredunes. Uniola paniculata had fewer but taller shoots and was associated with ~42% lower sand accretion. Coupled with slow lateral spread, it tends to build steeper and narrower dunes. Panicum amarum had similar shoot densities and associated sand accretion to U. paniculata despite its shorter shoots, suggesting that shoot density is more important than morphology. Finally, we hypothesize, given the distributions of the grass species, that foredunes may be taller and wider and have better coastal protection properties in the north where A. breviligulata is dominant. If under a warming climate A. breviligulata experiences a range shift to the north, as appears to be occurring with U. paniculata, changes in grass dominance and foredune morphology could make for more vulnerable coastlines.

show abstract

Section: Dune Grass Distributions and The Consequences For Foredune Gmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Dune Grass Distributions and The Consequences For Foredune Gmentioning

confidence: 99%

Species-Specific Functional Morphology of Four US Atlantic Coast Dune Grasses: Biogeographic Implications for Dune Shape and Coastal Protection

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Connections between ramets are separated by long internodes resulting in widely spaced ramets that influence dune morphology (Ye et al 2006;Emery and Rudgers 2013;Brantley et al 2014). It is a dominant pioneer species of foredune habitat that once established, plays an important role capturing sand and creating tall foredunes (Emery and Rudgers 2014). Ammophila breviligulata can withstand very high rates of sand burial, up to 1 m of sand per year, which significantly contributes to foredune formation (Maun and Lapierre 1984).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differential response of barrier island dune grasses to species interactions and burial

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Barrier islands are at the forefront of storms and sea-level rise. High disturbance regimes and sediment mobility make these systems sensitive and dynamic. Island foredunes are protective structures against storm-induced overwash that are integrally tied to dune grasses via biogeomorphic feedbacks. Shifts in dune grass dominance could influence dune morphology and susceptibility to overwash, altering island stability. In a glasshouse study, two dune grasses, Ammophila breviligulata and Uniola paniculata, were planted together and subjected to a 20 cm burial to quantify morphological and physiological responses. Burial had positive effects on both plants as indicated by increased electron transport rate and total biomass. Ammophila breviligulata performance declined when planted with U. paniculata. Uniola paniculata was not affected when planted with A. breviligulata but did have higher water use efficiency and nitrogen use efficiency. Planted in mixture, differential reallocation of biomass occurred between species potentially altering resource acquisition further. As U. paniculata migrates into A. breviligulata dominated habitat and A. breviligulata performance diminishes, biotic interactions between these and other species may affect dune formation and community structure. Our study emphasizes the importance of studying biotic interactions alongside naturally occurring abiotic drivers.

show abstract

“…It hosts an undescribed species of Epichloë (Emery et al ). The most commonly used nursery stocks for dune restoration material have 100% endophyte prevalence, whereas the prevalence of Epichloë in Great Lakes A. breviligulata populations is more variable (∼22% of Great Lakes populations were symbiotic, Emery et al , Emery and Rudgers ). To assess the interactive effects of above‐ground plant symbionts and climate on decomposition in a native ecosystem, we manipulated Epichloë sp.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Plant–fungal symbiosis affects litter decomposition during primary succession

Bell‐Dereske

Gao

Masiello

et al. 2016

Oikos

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Microbial symbionts of plants can affect decomposition by altering the quality or quantity of host plant tissue (substrate) or the micro-environment where decomposition occurs (conditioning). In C 3 grasses, foliar fungal endophytes (Clavicipitaceae) can increase plant resistance to drought and/or produce alkaloids that reduce herbivory -effects that may also influence host litter composition and subsequent litter decomposition. We studied the effect of the endophyte Epichloë sp. on litter decomposition in the Great Lakes dunes (USA) using a reciprocal design altering endophyte presence/absence in both American beachgrass Ammophila breviligulata substrate (litter bags) and its conditioning of the decomposition microenvironment. Symbiont treatments were crossed with rain-out shelters that altered growing season precipitation.The first year of decomposition, senesced leaf substrate from A. breviligulata with Epichloë decomposed 21% faster than endophyte-free substrate. By the third year, conditioning by live symbiotic plants reduced cumulative decomposition by 33% compared to plots planted with endophyte-free plants. Of the traits we examined -litter quantity, C:N ratio, mineral composition, fungal colonization, and carbon chemistry -increased litter quantity via greater tiller production was the primary trait shift associated with endophyte symbiosis. Epichloë in A. breviligulata litter also altered litter nitrogen decomposition dynamics, as evidenced by lower nitrogen and protein content in decomposed tissue from plants that hosted the endophyte. Differences in initial litter quality and subsequent colonization by saprotrophic fungi were ruled out as key drivers. Altered precipitation had negligible effects on decomposing processes in the dunes. Grass-Epichloë symbiosis altered nutrient cycling through increasing the rate of litter decomposition when present in the litter and through reducing litter decomposition by conditioning the decomposition microenvironment. Epichloë are widespread symbionts of grasses. Thus, their effects on decomposition could be an important, but often overlooked, driver of nutrient cycling in grass-dominated ecosystems.

show abstract

Biotic and abiotic predictors of ecosystem engineering traits of the dune building grass, Ammophila breviligulata

Cited by 27 publications

References 71 publications

Species-Specific Functional Morphology of Four US Atlantic Coast Dune Grasses: Biogeographic Implications for Dune Shape and Coastal Protection

Species-Specific Functional Morphology of Four US Atlantic Coast Dune Grasses: Biogeographic Implications for Dune Shape and Coastal Protection

Differential response of barrier island dune grasses to species interactions and burial

Plant–fungal symbiosis affects litter decomposition during primary succession

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About