Impact of exotic invasion on the temporal stability of natural annual plant communities

Valone, Thomas J.; Balaban-Feld, Jesse

doi:10.1111/oik.04591

Cited by 26 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…We were not able to fully demonstrate the significant destabilizing effect on the total biomass (nevertheless, the evidence is suggestive, 0.05 < P < 0.1), probably because of relatively low number of replications resulting in the weak test (the replications are strongly limited by the dedicated and time‐consuming biomass sorting in these species rich plots; see Appendix ). The suggested stabilizing effect of Molinia would confirm the importance of strong stable dominant for community stability (Valone and Balaban‐Feld ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 55%

Stabilizing effects in temporal fluctuations: management, traits, and species richness in high‐diversity communities

Lepš

Májeková

Vítová

et al. 2017

Ecology

114

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The loss of biodiversity is thought to have adverse effects on multiple ecosystem functions, including the decline of community stability. Decreased diversity reduces the strength of the portfolio effect, a mechanism stabilizing community temporal fluctuations. Community stability is also expected to decrease with greater variability in individual species populations and with synchrony of their fluctuations. In semi-natural meadows, eutrophication is one of the most important drivers of diversity decline; it is expected to increase species fluctuations and synchrony among them, all effects leading to lower community stability. With a 16-year time series of biomass data from a temperate species-rich meadow with fertilization and removal of the dominant species, we assessed population biomass temporal (co)variation under different management types and competition intensity, and in relation to species functional traits and to species diversity. Whereas the effect of dominant removal was relatively small (with a tendency toward lower stability), fertilization markedly decreased community stability (i.e., increased coefficient of variation in the total biomass) and species diversity. On average, the fluctuations of individual populations were mutually independent, with a slight tendency toward synchrony in unfertilized plots, and a tendency toward compensatory dynamics in fertilized plots and no effects of removal. The marked decrease of synchrony with fertilization, contrary to the majority of the results reported previously, follows the predictions of increased compensatory dynamics with increased asymmetric competition for light in a more productive environment. Synchrony increased also with species functional similarity stressing the importance of shared ecological strategies in driving similar species responses to weather fluctuations. As expected, the decrease of temporal stability of total biomass was mainly related to the decrease of species richness, with its effect remaining significant also after accounting for fertilization. The weakening of the portfolio effect with species richness decline is a crucial driver of community destabilization. However, the positive effect of species richness on temporal stability of total biomass was not due to increased compensatory dynamics, since synchrony increased with species richness. This shows that the negative effect of eutrophication on community stability does not operate through increasing synchrony, but through the reduction of diversity.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 55%

Stabilizing effects in temporal fluctuations: management, traits, and species richness in high‐diversity communities

Lepš

Májeková

Vítová

et al. 2017

Ecology

114

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“…When temporal stability is positively associated with diversity, reductions in consumers can result in increased dominance and reduced producer richness and a reduction in temporal stability (Mortensen et al, ). In the Portal system, however, we have observed much stronger relationships between community temporal stability and the stability of the most dominant species ( E. cicutarium ) (Valone, & Balaban‐Feld, ), a pattern often found in studies of natural communities (Hillebrand, Bennett, & Cadotte, ; Sasaki & Lauenroth, ; Winfree et al, ). While the rodent consumer treatments affected E. cicutarium abundance, they did not fundamentally change the dominance structure ( λ ) of the plant communities across the treatments (Table ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

“…Previously, we had shown that invasion by a dominant exotic, E. cicutarium , was associated with a decline in annual plant community abundance and richness at this site (Valone, & Balaban‐Feld, ). Here, we took advantage of experimental manipulations of the rodent community at the Portal site to examine how variation in the kinds of rodent granivores on plots affected the temporal stability of the plants they consume.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

“…However, the temporal stability of the annual plant communities tended to increase rather than decline following invasion, a pattern opposite one might expect if temporal stability was positively associated with community diversity. Analyses revealed that in this system, annual plant community temporal stability was significantly associated with the stability of dominant species in the community rather than richness, and dominant species, including E. cicutarium exhibited high‐temporal stability (Valone, & Balaban‐Feld, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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An experimental investigation of top–down effects of consumer diversity on producer temporal stability

Valone

Balaban-Feld

2018

Journal of Ecology

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In multitrophic systems, the diversity of consumers can affect the abundances and temporal stability of the species they consume via ‘top‐down’ effects. However, little is known about how variation in consumer functional diversity affects the temporal stability of aggregate producer communities. We use data from a long‐term experiment to determine how variation in rodent granivore functional richness affected the temporal stability of the annual plant communities whose seeds they consume. Experimental plots excluded either all granivorous rodents, just large‐bodied kangaroo rat granivores, or no rodents. Over the 11‐year period studied, reductions in rodent granivory resulted in higher annual plant community abundance and higher abundance of exotic Erodium cicutarium, but lower annual plant species richness and diversity. However, there was no effect of the consumer experimental treatments on annual plant community temporal stability. Synthesis. The loss of consumers from an ecosystem need not necessarily destabilize the producer community, even when loss of consumers results in reduced producer richness and diversity.

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“…Plant communities fluctuate in their spatial stability over time with fluctuations in community abundance or biomass over time (Valone & Balaban‐Feld, ; Wang, Jiang, Liu, et al, ; Wang, Wu, Jiang, Zhou, Liu, & Lv, ). One of the major topics of research in the field of ecology is understanding how the shifts in the composition of plant communities will impact their stability because the variation in community abundance over time can subsequently disturb the level of ecosystem services (De Mazancourt et al, ; Gross et al, ; Tilman et al, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Degree of invasion of Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.) plays an important role in the variation of plant taxonomic diversity and community stability in eastern China

Shu

Wei

et al. 2019

Ecological Research

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Understanding the impacts of invaders on plant taxonomic diversity and community stability is significant for understanding the mechanisms underlying successful invasion. This study explored the impacts of the invasive plant Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.; goldenrod hereafter) with different degrees of invasion on plant taxonomic diversity and community stability by conducting a comparative study in eastern China. Degree of invasion was divided into the following categories, low (<35%, LDI), moderate (35–75%, MDI), and high (>75%, HDI), on the basis of the relative abundance of goldenrod in the invaded plant communities. Plant diversity, dominance, richness, and plant community stability noticeably decreased under HDI but plant diversity and dominance dramatically increased under LDI compared with the adjacent uninvaded plant communities. Plant diversity, dominance, richness, and community stability markedly declined as the degree of goldenrod invasion increased in the invaded plant communities. The greater plant diversity and dominance observed under LDI may be primarily driven by the passenger effects rather than a driving force of the presence of goldenrod. The greater competitive superiority of goldenrod over coexisting native plants under HDI might allow for invasion and enhance the risk of stochastic local extinction of several native species. A significantly positive diversity‐stability relationship was observed, which may explain the underlying mechanisms for the decreased plant community stability and drastic decline in plant diversity under HDI. Accordingly, the degree of invasion of goldenrod plays an important role in the variation of plant taxonomic diversity and community stability in eastern China.

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Impact of exotic invasion on the temporal stability of natural annual plant communities

Cited by 26 publications

References 56 publications

Stabilizing effects in temporal fluctuations: management, traits, and species richness in high‐diversity communities

Stabilizing effects in temporal fluctuations: management, traits, and species richness in high‐diversity communities

An experimental investigation of top–down effects of consumer diversity on producer temporal stability

Degree of invasion of Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.) plays an important role in the variation of plant taxonomic diversity and community stability in eastern China

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