Life-history Habitat Matching in Invading Non-native Plant Species

Abstract

We briefly reviewed the literature on habitat matching in invading non-native plant species. Then we hypothesized that the richness and cover of native annual and perennial plant species integrate complex local information of vegetation and soils that would help to predict invasion success by similarly adapted non-native plant species. We tested these Ôlife-history habitat matchingÕ relationships in 603 0.1-ha plots, including 294 plots in Colorado, which were relatively high for the cover of native perennial plant species, and for 309 0.1-ha plots in southern Utah, which were relatively high in the cover of native annual plant species. We found strong positive relationships between the richness and foliar cover for both native and non-native species, whether they were annual or perennial species (0.34 > r 2 < 0.53; P < 0.0001). We also found significant positive relationships between the cover of native annual species at a site and the richness (r 2 = 0.13; P < 0.0001) and the foliar cover (r 2 = 0.06; P < 0.0001) of non-native annual species. The proportion of non-native annual species in the flora of a plot also increased significantly with the foliar cover of native annual species. Conversely, the richness and cover of non-native annual species were significantly negatively associated with the foliar cover of native perennial species (r 2 = 0.05 and 0.06, respectively; P < 0.0001). The cover of non-native annual or perennial species was not significantly correlated with soil texture variables, %N, or %C. We conclude that there may be a high degree of life-history habitat matching by non-native annual species in these study sites. Information on native annual and perennial species richness and cover may help characterize the complex soils, climate, and disturbance environment in which similarly adapted non-native plant species establish and gain foliar cover.

Effect of fencing and grazing on a Kobresia-dominated meadow in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

“…But, the grazed meadow had a higher species diversity and plant density than the fenced meadow. This may be explained by enhancement of cattle-mediated seed dispersal and seedling establishment (Oesterheld and Sala 1990), release from competitive exclusion by suppression of taller dominants and by increased spatial heterogeneity (Olff and Ritchie 1998;Bokdam and Gleichman 2000;Stohlgren et al 2005). Grazing also affected the height, cover and density of dominant species (i.e.…”

Rejoinder to Harrison (2008): The Myth of Plant Species Saturation

“…Interestingly, complex models of species richness often transcend spatial scales. At county scales (Stohlgren et al 2005b), landscape scales (Kumar et al 2006), and local scales (Stohlgren et al 1998), native and exotic species track Ôthe good lifeÕ -high light, warm temperatures, high precipitation and high soil nutrients. Where tree canopies reduces light, we find fewer native and exotic understory species (Stohlgren et al 2000).…”

Plant Species Invasions Along the Latitudinal Gradient in the United States

“…In many areas, the richness and foliar cover of nonnative plant species are strongly positively correlated (Stohlgren et al 1998(Stohlgren et al , 1999a(Stohlgren et al , 2003(Stohlgren et al , 2005b, so habitats vulnerable to establishment may also be vulnerable to successful invasion by nonnative species. However, despite the generalized patterns shown here where nonnative plant species have successfully established in native species-rich counties, many nonnative plant species also have been successful in species-poor areas (e.g., cheatgrass in some arid shrublands).…”