Variations in Growth, Clonal and Sexual Reproduction of <i>Spartina alterniflora</i> Responding to Changes in Clonal Integration and Sand Burial

Xiao, Yan; Zhao, Hui; Yang, Wen; Qing, Hua; Zhou, Chi; Tang, Jun; An, Shuqing

doi:10.1002/clen.201300868

Cited by 13 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…In addition, feeding belowground uses more energy than feeding aboveground as it requires crabs to dig burrows (Vu and Pennings 2018), and big crabs have greater energy reserves than small crabs. Belowground disturbance can also lead to an increase in sexual reproduction in clonal plants (Xiao et al 2015), consistent with the observed effects of big crabs on Spartina in our field study. Grazing patterns may also differ aboveground: In mesocosms, we found that big crabs grazed a larger proportion of leaves overall (Appendix : Fig.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…In this case, lower stem density and mean height than expected in mixed‐crab plots may result from big crabs feeding more intensely on each stem, or from belowground rhizome consumption by big crabs impeding recovery from simultaneous aboveground consumption by small crabs (Tolvanen 1994). Consistent with these synergistic effects being due to different feeding behavior among size classes, flowering was stimulated less than expected in mixed plots, likely because reduced density of big crabs led to a reduction in belowground disturbance to ramets (Xiao et al 2015). Surprisingly, we saw no synergistic effect of mixed crabs on biomass.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

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Intraspecific diversity at two trophic levels influences plant–herbivore interactions

Noto

Hughes

2020

Ecosphere

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Diversity within species can have community-level effects similar in magnitude to those of species diversity. Intraspecific diversity in producers and consumers has separately been shown to affect trophic interactions, yet we have little understanding of how variation at these two levels could simultaneously affect trophic interactions. Salt marshes dominated by Spartina alterniflora are an ideal system in which to ask this question as this plant exhibits substantial genetically based trait variation. Further, herbivores can have sizable impacts on Spartina, but the impact of herbivore trait variation is not well understood. We conducted an experiment in a Massachusetts salt marsh to determine how herbivorous crab (Sesarma reticulatum) size diversity and Spartina genotypic diversity affect the plant community. Herbivore effects on plant traits varied by herbivore size, with large crabs generally having stronger impacts on plants. At times, the effect of small crabs on plant traits depended on plant genotypic diversity. The effects of crab size diversity (i.e., small and large crabs combined) were most often predicted by the independent effects of each size class, though there were synergistic effects on stem density, flowering stems, and mean stem height. Finally, we tested whether herbivore size or size diversity could have reciprocal effects on plant genotypic diversity. Small-and mixed-crab treatments promoted plant genotypic richness, whereas large crabs did not. Our results demonstrate that intraspecific diversity at multiple trophic levels can have simultaneous and sometimes interactive effects on species interactions, highlighting the importance of variation within species for understanding species interactions and community processes.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Intraspecific diversity at two trophic levels influences plant–herbivore interactions

Noto

Hughes

2020

Ecosphere

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“…Alternatively, some models have shown that clonal growth occurs when mother ramets show decreased growth and sexual reproduction (Xiao et al. ). As in other studies of Lentibulariaceae (Worley and Harder ) and Ranunculus reptans (Prati and Schmid ), populations tend to show negative correlations for the resource allocation pattern between clonal growth and sexual reproduction.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…, Xiao et al. ). Meanwhile, with the capacity for clonal integration, clonal plants can display a division of labor in resource‐acquisition duties, manifested as a local specialization by certain ramets, which enhances acquisition of the greatest abundance of each resource from the surrounding environment (Hutchings and Wijesinghe ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An irreversible division of labor through a sexually dependent system in the clonal plant Iris laevigata (Iridaceae)

Wang

et al. 2017

Ecosphere

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Abstract. Scientists were concerned with the division of labor research early, and much current research in clonal plant ecology has proved environmentally induced or a developmentally programmed division of labor. However, the sexually dependent division of labor in clonal plants has received little attention, and few experimental tests have been conducted to date. Here, using reproductive ramets and non-reproductive ramets in the clonal plant Iris laevigata, we test this hypothesis on morphology and physiology through field and manipulative experiments, including an isotope ( 15 N) labeling method. With regard to morphology, under natural conditions, non-reproductive ramets of I. laevigata were more abundant, taller, and consisted exclusively of leaves, while the relatively rare, smaller reproductive ramets consisted of leaves, flowers, or seeds. However, the mean biomass of non-reproductive ramets was nearly half that of reproductive ramets. With regard to physiology, non-reproductive ramets had a significantly higher net photosynthetic rate over a 24-h period than reproductive ramets. Furthermore, the reproductive ramets stopped leaf growth when flower buds appeared in late May and lost photosynthetic capacity before late June, while its growing fruits still required a constant supply of many nutrients. Manipulative experiments showed that the non-reproductive ramets supplied the nutrient demands for reproduction of the reproductive ramets through clonal integration as high as d 15 N of the value (196.1 AE 73.39) of the seed. Thereby providing the first clear evidence of sexually dependent division of labor in clonal plants: Certain individuals constitute a very small amount of reproductive castes (reproductive ramets), whereas a large amount of other individuals (non-reproductive ramets) are "workers" as in social insect societies whose role is primarily as producers. The rapid withering of reproductive ramets that failed to be pollinated highlights their role as irreversibly focused on reproduction, and those unable to reproduce do not contribute to the colony. Additionally, "producer" ramets positively influenced reproductive castes growth, and the division of labor was assumed to underlie the resource allocation pattern among ramets.

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“…Instead, because saltmarshes are so productive and therefore of interest with respect to support of food webs and mediation of the global carbon cycle, the focus has largely been on how variation in saltmarsh biogeochemistry and other abiotic drivers affects plant productivity (Mendelssohn & Morris, 2002;Morris, Sundberg, & Hopkinson, 2013). A great deal has been learned about these topics, but issues of plant allometry and life-history theory have largely been ignored (but see Xiao, Tang, Qing, Zhou, & An, 2011a, Xiao, Tang, Qing, Zhou, Kong, et al, 2011bXiao et al, 2015;Crosby et al, 2015).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Self‐thinning and size‐dependent flowering of the grass Spartina alterniflora across space and time

Liu

Pennings

2019

Functional Ecology

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Plants adjust their size and reproductive effort in response to numerous selection pressures and constraints. The self‐thinning law describes a well‐known trade‐off between size and density. Plants also trade‐off investment into growth vs. sexual reproduction, as described by life‐history theory. We build on past work on plant allometry and life history by examining both self‐thinning and size‐dependent reproduction in a single plant species, the saltmarsh grass Spartina alterniflora, across a wide range of settings: three landscape positions, two habitats and eight sites, across sixteen years. Plants in different landscape positions and years varied tremendously in size and shoot density. However, all this variation could be explained by a single allometric relationship consistent with the self‐thinning law, but with a lower slope. Flowering was size‐dependent, and the size at which plants had a 50% probability of flowering varied among habitat, sites and years. Plants that were stressed reproduced at a smaller size than plants that were growing under good conditions, and this pattern was consistent among habitat, sites and years. Finally, reproductive biomass and the proportion of shoots flowering increased with increasing vegetative size (plant height or shoot biomass). Combining these two patterns, S. alterniflora plants growing high density are small and reproduce at a smaller size than large plants growing at low density. Although there is tremendous spatial and temporal variation in S. alterniflora growth and reproductive patterns, all this variation can be understood as resulting from two simple allometric trade‐offs. Because saltmarsh plants often occur in monospecific stands, they may serve as simple, model systems for studies of plant life history. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.

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Variations in Growth, Clonal and Sexual Reproduction of Spartina alterniflora Responding to Changes in Clonal Integration and Sand Burial

Cited by 13 publications

References 55 publications

Intraspecific diversity at two trophic levels influences plant–herbivore interactions

Intraspecific diversity at two trophic levels influences plant–herbivore interactions

An irreversible division of labor through a sexually dependent system in the clonal plant Iris laevigata (Iridaceae)

Self‐thinning and size‐dependent flowering of the grass Spartina alterniflora across space and time

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