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Nytko AG, Senior JK, Wooliver RC, O'Reilly‐Wapstra J, Schweitzer JA, Bailey JK. An evolutionary case for plant rarity: Eucalyptus as a model system. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e11440. [PMID: 38855318 PMCID: PMC11156952 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 06/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Species rarity is a common phenomenon across global ecosystems that is becoming increasingly more common under climate change. Although species rarity is often considered to be a stochastic response to environmental and ecological constraints, we examined the hypothesis that plant rarity is a consequence of natural selection acting on performance traits that affect a species range size, habitat specificity, and population aggregation; three primary descriptors of rarity. Using a common garden of 25 species of Tasmanian Eucalyptus, we find that the rarest species have 70% lower biomass than common species. Although rare species demonstrate lower biomass, rare species allocated proportionally more biomass aboveground than common species. There is also a negative phylogenetic autocorrelation underlying the biomass of rare and common species, indicating that traits associated with rarity have diverged within subgenera as a result of environmental factors to reach different associated optima. In support of our hypothesis, we found significant positive relationships between species biomass, range size and habitat specificity, but not population aggregation. These results demonstrate repeated convergent evolution of the trait-based determinants of rarity across the phylogeny in Tasmanian eucalypts. Furthermore, the phylogenetically driven patterns in biomass and biomass allocation seen in rare species may be representative of a larger plant strategy, not yet considered, but offering a mechanism as to how rare species continue to persist despite inherent constraints of small, specialized ranges and populations. These results suggest that if rarity can evolve and is related to plant traits such as biomass, rather than a random outcome of environmental constraints, we may need to revise conservation efforts in these and other rare species to reconsider the abiotic and biotic factors that underlie the distributions of rare plant species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alivia G. Nytko
- Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of TennesseeKnoxvilleTennesseeUSA
| | - John K. Senior
- Biological Sciences, School of Natural SciencesUniversity of TasmaniaHobartTasmaniaAustralia
| | - Rachel C. Wooliver
- Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of TennesseeKnoxvilleTennesseeUSA
- Biosystems Engineering & Soil ScienceUniversity of TennesseeKnoxvilleTennesseeUSA
| | | | | | - Joseph K. Bailey
- Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of TennesseeKnoxvilleTennesseeUSA
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2
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Kandlikar GS. Quantifying soil microbial effects on plant species coexistence: A conceptual synthesis. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY 2024; 111:e16316. [PMID: 38659131 DOI: 10.1002/ajb2.16316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 03/01/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Soil microorganisms play a critical role in shaping the biodiversity dynamics of plant communities. These microbial effects can arise through direct mediation of plant fitness by pathogens and mutualists, and over the past two decades, numerous studies have shined a spotlight on the role of dynamic feedbacks between plants and soil microorganisms as key determinants of plant species coexistence. Such feedbacks occur when plants modify the composition of the soil community, which in turn affects plant performance. Stimulated by a theoretical model developed in the 1990s, a bulk of the empirical evidence for microbial controls over plant coexistence comes from experiments that quantify plant growth in soil communities that were previously conditioned by conspecific or heterospecific plants. These studies have revealed that soil microbes can generate strong negative to positive frequency-dependent dynamics among plants. Even as soil microbes have become recognized as a key player in determining plant coexistence outcomes, the past few years have seen a renewed interest in expanding the conceptual foundations of this field. New results include re-interpretations of key metrics from classic two-species models, extensions of plant-soil feedback theory to multispecies communities, and frameworks to integrate plant-soil feedbacks with processes like intra- and interspecific competition. Here, I review the implications of theoretical developments for interpreting existing empirical results and highlight proposed analyses and designs for future experiments that can enable a more complete understanding of microbial regulation of plant community dynamics.
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3
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Delory BM, Callaway RM, Semchenko M. A trait-based framework linking the soil metabolome to plant-soil feedbacks. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2024; 241:1910-1921. [PMID: 38124274 DOI: 10.1111/nph.19490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
By modifying the biotic and abiotic properties of the soil, plants create soil legacies that can affect vegetation dynamics through plant-soil feedbacks (PSF). PSF are generally attributed to reciprocal effects of plants and soil biota, but these interactions can also drive changes in the identity, diversity and abundance of soil metabolites, leading to more or less persistent soil chemical legacies whose role in mediating PSF has rarely been considered. These chemical legacies may interact with microbial or nutrient legacies to affect species coexistence. Given the ecological importance of chemical interactions between plants and other organisms, a better understanding of soil chemical legacies is needed in community ecology. In this Viewpoint, we aim to: highlight the importance of belowground chemical interactions for PSF; define and integrate soil chemical legacies into PSF research by clarifying how the soil metabolome can contribute to PSF; discuss how functional traits can help predict these plant-soil interactions; propose an experimental approach to quantify plant responses to the soil solution metabolome; and describe a testable framework relying on root economics and seed dispersal traits to predict how plant species affect the soil metabolome and how they could respond to soil chemical legacies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin M Delory
- Institute of Ecology, Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Lüneburg, 21335, Germany
- Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, Utrecht, 3584 CB, the Netherlands
| | - Ragan M Callaway
- Division of Biological Sciences and Institute on Ecosystems, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, 59812, USA
| | - Marina Semchenko
- Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Liivi 2, 50409, Tartu, Estonia
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4
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Liu M, Wang J, Zhao W, Korpelainen H, Li C. Females face more positive plant-soil feedback and intersexual competition under adequate nitrogen conditions compared to males in Populus cathayana. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 874:162479. [PMID: 36858242 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Plant-soil feedback (PSF) and competition influence plant performance, community structure and functions. However, how nutrient availability affects the interaction of PSF, sexual competition and coexistence in dioecious plants is poorly understood. In this study, the strengths of PSF and sexual competition, and their responses to nutrient availability were assessed in dioecious Populus cathayana using a garden experiment. We found that PSF reduced but did not eliminate the inequal sexual competition at low nitrogen (N) availability. Intersexual competition and nutrient limitation induced more negative PSF, which promoted sexual coexistence. PSF and competition were rather related to sexual dimorphism. Female plants experience more positive PSF and intersexual competition under adequate N conditions compared to males; the contrary was true with low N supply. Furthermore, the stability of root exudate networks and soil nutrient availability reflects the possibility of sexual coexistence regulated by PSF. Intersexual interaction promote more stable root exudate profiles and more saccharide secretion at low N supply. Meanwhile, the increased soil N and P mineralization in females with cultivated males explained the possible coexistence between females and males at low nutrient availability. Thus, these results indicate that soil biota can mitigate differences in sexual competitiveness and improve the stability of root exudate networks, consequently promoting sexual coexistence at low nutrient availability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miao Liu
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, China
| | - Junhua Wang
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, China
| | - Wenting Zhao
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, China
| | - Helena Korpelainen
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, Viikki Plant Science Centre, P.O. Box 27, FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Chunyang Li
- College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
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5
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Dostálek T, Knappová J, Münzbergová Z. The role of plant-soil feedback in long-term species coexistence cannot be predicted from its effects on plant performance. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2022; 130:535-546. [PMID: 35709943 PMCID: PMC9510945 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcac080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite many studies on the importance of competition and plants' associations with mutualists and pathogens on plant performance and community organization, the joint effects of these two factors remain largely unexplored. Even less is known about how these joint effects vary through a plant's life in different environmental conditions and how they contribute to the long-term coexistence of species. METHODS We investigated the role of plant-soil feedback (PSF) in intra- and interspecific competition, using two co-occurring dry grassland species as models. A two-phase PSF experiment was used. In the first phase, soil was conditioned by the two plant species. In the second, we assessed the effect of soil conditioning, competition and drought stress on seedling establishment, plant growth in the first and second vegetation season, and fruit production. We also estimated effects of different treatments on overall population growth rates and predicted the species' potential coexistence. RESULTS Soil conditioning played a more important role in the early stages of the plants' life (seedling establishment and early growth) than competition. Specifically, we found strong negative intraspecific PSF for biomass production in the first year in both species. Although the effects of soil conditioning persisted in later stages of plant's life, competition and drought stress became more important. Surprisingly, models predicting species coexistence contrasted with the effects on individual life stages, showing that our model species benefit from their self-conditioned soil in the long run. CONCLUSIONS We provide evidence that the effects of PSF vary through plants' life stages. Our study suggests that we cannot easily predict the effects of soil conditioning on long-term coexistence of species using data only on performance at a single time as commonly done in PSF studies. We also show the importance of using as realistic environmental conditions as possible (such as drought stress experienced in dry grasslands) to draw reasonable conclusions on species coexistence.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jana Knappová
- Institute of Botany, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Zámek, Průhonice, Czech Republic
- Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Benátská, Prague, Czech Republic
- Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Zuzana Münzbergová
- Institute of Botany, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Zámek, Průhonice, Czech Republic
- Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Benátská, Prague, Czech Republic
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6
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Semchenko M, Barry KE, de Vries FT, Mommer L, Moora M, Maciá-Vicente JG. Deciphering the role of specialist and generalist plant-microbial interactions as drivers of plant-soil feedback. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2022; 234:1929-1944. [PMID: 35338649 DOI: 10.1111/nph.18118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2021] [Accepted: 02/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Feedback between plants and soil microbial communities can be a powerful driver of vegetation dynamics. Plants elicit changes in the soil microbiome that either promote or suppress conspecifics at the same location, thereby regulating population density-dependence and species co-existence. Such effects are often attributed to the accumulation of host-specific antagonistic or beneficial microbiota in the rhizosphere. However, the identity and host-specificity of the microbial taxa involved are rarely empirically assessed. Here we review the evidence for host-specificity in plant-associated microbes and propose that specific plant-soil feedbacks can also be driven by generalists. We outline the potential mechanisms by which generalist microbial pathogens, mutualists and decomposers can generate differential effects on plant hosts and synthesize existing evidence to predict these effects as a function of plant investments into defence, microbial mutualists and dispersal. Importantly, the capacity of generalist microbiota to drive plant-soil feedbacks depends not only on the traits of individual plants but also on the phylogenetic and functional diversity of plant communities. Identifying factors that promote specialization or generalism in plant-microbial interactions and thereby modulate the impact of microbiota on plant performance will advance our understanding of the mechanisms underlying plant-soil feedback and the ways it contributes to plant co-existence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Semchenko
- Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Liivi 2, 50409, Tartu, Estonia
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PT, UK
| | - Kathryn E Barry
- Ecology and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Institute of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Franciska T de Vries
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, PO Box 94240, 1090 GE, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Liesje Mommer
- Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation, Wageningen University & Research, PO Box 47, 6700 AA, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Mari Moora
- Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Liivi 2, 50409, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Jose G Maciá-Vicente
- Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation, Wageningen University & Research, PO Box 47, 6700 AA, Wageningen, the Netherlands
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7
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Xi N, Crawford KM, De Long JR. Plant landscape abundance and soil fungi modulate drought effects on plant–soil feedbacks. OIKOS 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.08836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nianxun Xi
- Key Laboratory of Genetics and Germplasm Innovation of Tropical Special Forest Trees and Ornamental Plants, Ministry of Education, College of Forestry, Hainan Univ. Haikou China
- School of Ecology, Sun Yat‐sen Univ. Guangzhou China
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8
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Forero LE, Kulmatiski A, Grenzer J, Norton J. Plant–soil feedbacks help explain plant community productivity. Ecology 2022; 103:e3736. [DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2021] [Revised: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Leslie E. Forero
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center Utah State University 5230 Old Main Hill Logan UT USA
| | - Andrew Kulmatiski
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center Utah State University 5230 Old Main Hill Logan UT USA
| | - Josephine Grenzer
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center Utah State University 5230 Old Main Hill Logan UT USA
| | - Jeanette Norton
- Department of Plants, Soils, and Climate Utah State University 4280 Old Main Hill Logan UT USA
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9
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Huangfu C, Zhang L, Hui D. Density-dependent plant-soil feedbacks of two plant species affected by plant competition. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 807:150908. [PMID: 34653462 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2021] [Revised: 10/05/2021] [Accepted: 10/06/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Both plant-soil feedbacks (PSF) and plant competition drive plant community assembly, but their interactive effects have rarely been investigated, and the role of community composition in modulating these interactions is unknown. We conducted a fully reciprocal experiment with two plant species (Polygonum criopolitanum and Carex thunbergii) and their associated soil biota communities to untangle the relative importance of PSF and competition. The two species were grown either in monoculture or in mixed plantings, with various densities of each plant's neighbor, and either in the presence or absence of the soil biota associated with either species. When grown individually, each plant species showed a neutral PSF in the presence of its own soil biota, while feedbacks in competition were predominantly negative. P. criopolitanum produced more biomass in the presence of soil biota than in autoclaved soil, but the opposite was observed for C. thunbergii. In competition, both plant species were suppressed by its presence of their own soil biota, and neither had a competitive advantage, resulting in a significant negative pairwise PSF in most cases. C. thunbergii also showed stronger per capita effects than did P. criopolitanum. The predication on species coexistence largely depended on the presence of soil biota, the soil origin, and the plant species ratio. When planted in equal proportion, P. criopolitanum and C. thunbergii only coexisted in the presence of soil biota of P. criopolitanum, while C. thunbergii usually excluded P. criopolitanum under all other conditions. When the density of the neighboring plant increased, either species was excluded in the presence of their own soil biota. However, in the absence of a soil biota, there was a priority effect, giving an advantage to the species that was planted first. Our study revealed that the strength and direction of these interactions were altered by interspecific competition at the community level, and both the identity and the density of the competitors must be taken into account in interpreting plant community assembly processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chaohe Huangfu
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecosystem Protection and Restoration, School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, China.
| | - Liming Zhang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecosystem Protection and Restoration, School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, China
| | - Dafeng Hui
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tennessee State University, Nashville, TN 37209, USA
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10
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Huang K, Kardol P, Yan X, Luo X, Guo H. Plant–soil biota interactions explain shifts in plant community composition under global change. Funct Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kailing Huang
- College of Resources and Environmental Sciences Nanjing Agricultural University Nanjing China
| | - Paul Kardol
- Department of Forest Ecology and Management Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Umeå Sweden
| | - Xuebin Yan
- College of Resources and Environmental Sciences Nanjing Agricultural University Nanjing China
| | - Xi Luo
- College of Resources and Environmental Sciences Nanjing Agricultural University Nanjing China
| | - Hui Guo
- College of Resources and Environmental Sciences Nanjing Agricultural University Nanjing China
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11
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Thakur MP, van der Putten WH, Wilschut RA, Veen GFC, Kardol P, van Ruijven J, Allan E, Roscher C, van Kleunen M, Bezemer TM. Plant-Soil Feedbacks and Temporal Dynamics of Plant Diversity-Productivity Relationships. Trends Ecol Evol 2021; 36:651-661. [PMID: 33888322 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2021.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2021] [Revised: 03/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/25/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Plant-soil feedback (PSF) and diversity-productivity relationships are important research fields to study drivers and consequences of changes in plant biodiversity. While studies suggest that positive plant diversity-productivity relationships can be explained by variation in PSF in diverse plant communities, key questions on their temporal relationships remain. Here, we discuss three processes that change PSF over time in diverse plant communities, and their effects on temporal dynamics of diversity-productivity relationships: spatial redistribution and changes in dominance of plant species; phenotypic shifts in plant traits; and dilution of soil pathogens and increase in soil mutualists. Disentangling these processes in plant diversity experiments will yield new insights into how plant diversity-productivity relationships change over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhav P Thakur
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland.
| | - Wim H van der Putten
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO- KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands; Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Rutger A Wilschut
- Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78464, Konstanz, Germany
| | - G F Ciska Veen
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO- KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Paul Kardol
- Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Jasper van Ruijven
- Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Eric Allan
- Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Christiane Roscher
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Physiological Diversity - UFZ, Leipzig, Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Puschstrasse 4, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Mark van Kleunen
- Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, 78464, Konstanz, Germany; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou 318000, China
| | - T Martijn Bezemer
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO- KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands; Institute of Biology, Section Plant Ecology and Phytochemistry, Leiden University, 2300, RA, Leiden, The Netherlands
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12
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The temporal development of plant-soil feedback is contingent on competition and nutrient availability contexts. Oecologia 2021; 196:185-194. [PMID: 33847804 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-021-04919-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/08/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Strength and direction of plant-soil feedback (PSF), the reciprocal interactions between plants and soil, can change over time and have distinct effects on different life stages. PSF and its temporal development can also be modified by external biotic and abiotic factors such as competition and resource availability, yet most PSF research is conducted in simple experimental settings without considering temporal changes. Here I have studied the effect of different competitive settings (intraspecific, interspecific, and no competition) and nutrient addition on the magnitude and direction of biomass-based PSF (performance in conspecific relative to heterospecific inoculum) across 46 grassland species, estimated at the 4th, 10th, and 13th month of the response phase. I also examined whether conspecific inoculum had a long-term effect on plant survival at the 36th month, and whether biomass-based PSF may predict survival-based PSF effects. PSF pooled across all treatments and time points was negative, but a significant overall temporal trend or differences among competitive settings were missing. PSF developed unimodally for interspecific competition across the three time points, whereas it declined gradually in case of intraspecific and no competition. Nutrient addition attenuated negative biomass-based PSF and eliminated negative effects of conspecific inoculum on survival. Interspecific differences in biomass-based PSF were related to survival-based PSF, but only after nutrient addition. This study demonstrates that PSF is dynamic and modulated by external abiotic and biotic factors. PSF research should consider the temporal dynamics of focal communities to properly estimate how PSF contributes to community changes, preferably directly in the field.
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13
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Reinhart KO, Bauer JT, McCarthy‐Neumann S, MacDougall AS, Hierro JL, Chiuffo MC, Mangan SA, Heinze J, Bergmann J, Joshi J, Duncan RP, Diez JM, Kardol P, Rutten G, Fischer M, van der Putten WH, Bezemer TM, Klironomos J. Globally, plant-soil feedbacks are weak predictors of plant abundance. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:1756-1768. [PMID: 33614002 PMCID: PMC7882948 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 12/02/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Plant-soil feedbacks (PSFs) have been shown to strongly affect plant performance under controlled conditions, and PSFs are thought to have far reaching consequences for plant population dynamics and the structuring of plant communities. However, thus far the relationship between PSF and plant species abundance in the field is not consistent. Here, we synthesize PSF experiments from tropical forests to semiarid grasslands, and test for a positive relationship between plant abundance in the field and PSFs estimated from controlled bioassays. We meta-analyzed results from 22 PSF experiments and found an overall positive correlation (0.12 ≤ r ¯ ≤ 0.32) between plant abundance in the field and PSFs across plant functional types (herbaceous and woody plants) but also variation by plant functional type. Thus, our analysis provides quantitative support that plant abundance has a general albeit weak positive relationship with PSFs across ecosystems. Overall, our results suggest that harmful soil biota tend to accumulate around and disproportionately impact species that are rare. However, data for the herbaceous species, which are most common in the literature, had no significant abundance-PSFs relationship. Therefore, we conclude that further work is needed within and across biomes, succession stages and plant types, both under controlled and field conditions, while separating PSF effects from other drivers (e.g., herbivory, competition, disturbance) of plant abundance to tease apart the role of soil biota in causing patterns of plant rarity versus commonness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kurt O. Reinhart
- Fort Keogh Livestock & Range Research LaboratoryUnited States Department of Agriculture‐ Agricultural Research ServiceMiles CityMTUSA
| | - Jonathan T. Bauer
- Department of BiologyInstitute for the Environment and SustainabilityMiami UniversityOxfordOHUSA
| | | | | | - José L. Hierro
- Laboratorio de EcologíaBiogeografía y Evolución Vegetal (LEByEV)Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa (INCITAP)Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)‐Universidad Nacional de La Pampa (UNLPam)Santa RosaArgentina
- Departamento de BiologíaFacultad de Ciencias Exactas y NaturalesUNLPamSanta RosaArgentina
| | - Mariana C. Chiuffo
- Grupo de Ecología de InvasionesINIBIOMAUniversidad Nacional del ComahueCONICETSan Carlos de BarilocheArgentina
| | - Scott A. Mangan
- Department of Biological SciencesArkansas State UniversityJonesboroARUSA
| | - Johannes Heinze
- Institute of Biochemistry and BiologyUniversity of PotsdamPotsdamGermany
- Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB)BerlinGermany
| | - Joana Bergmann
- Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB)BerlinGermany
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF)MünchebergGermany
- Institut für BiologiePlant EcologyFreie Universität BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Jasmin Joshi
- Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB)BerlinGermany
- Institute for Landscape and Open SpaceEastern Switzerland University of Applied SciencesSt. GallenSwitzerland
| | - Richard P. Duncan
- Centre for Conservation Ecology and GeneticsInstitute for Applied EcologyUniversity of CanberraCanberraACTAustralia
| | - Jeff M. Diez
- Institute of Ecology and EvolutionUniversity of OregonEugeneORUSA
| | - Paul Kardol
- Department of Forest Ecology and ManagementSwedish University of Agricultural SciencesUmeåSweden
| | - Gemma Rutten
- Institute of Plant ScienceUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
- Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine (LECA)Université Grenoble AlpesUMR CNRS‐UGA‐USMB 5553GrenobleFrance
| | - Markus Fischer
- Institute of Plant ScienceUniversity of BernBernSwitzerland
| | - Wim H. van der Putten
- Department of Terrestrial EcologyNetherlands Institute of EcologyWageningenThe Netherlands
- Laboratory of NematologyWageningen UniversityWageningenThe Netherlands
| | - Thiemo Martijn Bezemer
- Department of Terrestrial EcologyNetherlands Institute of EcologyWageningenThe Netherlands
- Institute of BiologySection Plant Ecology and PhytochemistryLeiden UniversityLeidenThe Netherlands
| | - John Klironomos
- Department of BiologyUniversity of British ColumbiaKelownaBCCanada
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14
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Xue W, Wang WL, Yuan QY, Yu FH. Clonal integration in Phragmites australis alters soil microbial communities in an oil-contaminated wetland. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2020; 265:114828. [PMID: 32480007 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2020.114828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2020] [Revised: 04/25/2020] [Accepted: 05/14/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Clonal plants can share information and resources among connected ramets (asexual individuals). Such clonal integration can promote ramet growth, which may further influence soil microbial communities in the rooting zone. Crude oil contamination can negatively affect plant growth and alter soil microbial community composition. However, we still know little about how clonal integration affects soil microbial communities, especially under crude oil contamination. In a coastal wetland, ramets of the rhizomatous plant Phragmites australis in circular plots (60 cm in diameter) were subjected to 0, 5 and 10 mm depth of crude oil, and the rhizomes at the edge of the plots were either severed (preventing clonal integration) or left intact (allowing clonal integration). After three years of treatment, we analysed in each plot soil physiochemical properties and soil microbial community composition. The alpha-diversity of the soil microbial communities did not differ between intact and severed plots, but was overall lower in 10-mm than in 0-mm and 5-mm oil plots. Considering all three oil treatments together, soil microbial community dissimilarity (beta-diversity) was positively correlated with soil property distance in both severed and intact plots. Considering the three oil treatments separately, this pattern was also observed in 10-mm oil plots, but not in 0-mm or 5-mm oil plots. The soil microbial community composition was more sensitive to the oil addition than to the clonal integration. Moreover, the relative abundance of the nitrogen-cycling bacterial taxa was lower in intact than in severed plots, and that of the oil-degrading bacterial taxa increased with increasing oil-addition levels. Our results indicate that clonal integration and oil contamination can influence soil microbial communities independently through changing the relative abundance of the component bacteria taxa, which has important implications for ecosystem functions of the soil food web mediated by clonal plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Xue
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology/ Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, 318000, China
| | - Wan-Li Wang
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology/ Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, 318000, China; School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China
| | - Qing-Ye Yuan
- School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China
| | - Fei-Hai Yu
- Institute of Wetland Ecology & Clone Ecology/ Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, 318000, China.
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15
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Beals KK, Moore JAM, Kivlin SN, Bayliss SLJ, Lumibao CY, Moorhead LC, Patel M, Summers JL, Ware IM, Bailey JK, Schweitzer JA. Predicting Plant-Soil Feedback in the Field: Meta-Analysis Reveals That Competition and Environmental Stress Differentially Influence PSF. Front Ecol Evol 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2020.00191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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16
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17
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Aldorfová A, Knobová P, Münzbergová Z. Plant–soil feedback contributes to predicting plant invasiveness of 68 alien plant species differing in invasive status. OIKOS 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.07186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Anna Aldorfová
- Dept of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles Univ Benátská 2 CZ‐128 01 Prague 2 Czech Republic
- Inst. of Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences Průhonice Czech Republic
| | - Pavlína Knobová
- Dept of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles Univ Benátská 2 CZ‐128 01 Prague 2 Czech Republic
| | - Zuzana Münzbergová
- Dept of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles Univ Benátská 2 CZ‐128 01 Prague 2 Czech Republic
- Inst. of Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences Průhonice Czech Republic
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18
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May F, Wiegand T, Huth A, Chase JM. Scale‐dependent effects of conspecific negative density dependence and immigration on biodiversity maintenance. OIKOS 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.06785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Felix May
- Leuphana Univ. Lüneburg, Universitätsallee 1 DE‐21335 Lüneburg
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle‐Jena‐Leipzig Leipzig Germany
| | - Thorsten Wiegand
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle‐Jena‐Leipzig Leipzig Germany
- Dept of Ecological Modelling, Helmholtz‐Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ Leipzig Germany
| | - Andreas Huth
- Dept of Ecological Modelling, Helmholtz‐Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ Leipzig Germany
- Inst. for Environmental Systems Research, Univ. of Osnabrück Osnabrück Germany
| | - Jonathan M. Chase
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle‐Jena‐Leipzig Leipzig Germany
- Inst. of Computer Science, Martin‐Luther Univ. Halle‐Wittenberg Halle (Saale) Germany
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19
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Zhang Z, Shan L, Li Y, Wang Y. Belowground interactions differ between sympatric desert shrubs under water stress. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:1444-1453. [PMID: 32076526 PMCID: PMC7029086 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2018] [Revised: 12/10/2019] [Accepted: 12/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding the relationships among species is central to ecological research; however, many knowledge gaps remain regarding how desert plant species interact. In the present study, we assessed the effect of rainfall on the belowground interactions and root morphology of two desert shrubs, Reaumuria soongorica (Tamaricaceae) and Salsola passerina (Chenopodiaceae), from three communities with similar landforms and soil environments. The roots of both R. soongorica and S. passerina were deeper when grown together than grown singly. Interestingly, the belowground biomass of R. soongorica was higher, but the belowground biomass of S. passerina was lower when grown together than when grown alone. This suggests that S. passerina benefitted from the association with R. soongorica. When grown together under conditions of low rainfall, the roots of R. soongorica were deeper than those of S. passerina, which suggests that R. soongorica is more robust than S. passerina when subjected to periods of decreased rainfall. We concluded that the symbiotic relationship between these two shrub species can lead to deeper roots and that the plants are affected by rainfall availability. Combined with the output results of climate change models, we speculated that the distribution area of these two species will expand to the west, which has important implications on how the interactions of other desert species may change in response to climate variability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengzhong Zhang
- College of ForestryGansu Agricultural UniversityLanzhouGansuChina
| | - Lishan Shan
- College of ForestryGansu Agricultural UniversityLanzhouGansuChina
| | - Yi Li
- College of ForestryGansu Agricultural UniversityLanzhouGansuChina
| | - Yang Wang
- College of ForestryGansu Agricultural UniversityLanzhouGansuChina
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20
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Klinerová T, Dostál P. Nutrient-demanding species face less negative competition and plant-soil feedback effects in a nutrient-rich environment. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2020; 225:1343-1354. [PMID: 31569272 DOI: 10.1111/nph.16227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2019] [Accepted: 09/20/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Plant-soil feedbacks (PSFs) and plant-plant competition influence performance and abundance of plants. To what extent the two biotic interactions are interrelated and thus affect plant performance in combination rather than in isolation remains poorly explored. It is also unclear how the abiotic context, such as resource availability, modifies individual and joint effects of PSFs and of plant-plant competition. Using a garden experiment, we assessed the strengths of PSFs, competition, and their combined effects explored under low and high nutrient levels, and related them to abundance of 46 plant species and their ecological optima with respect to soil nutrients. We found that PSFs reduced but did not eliminate differences in competitive ability of plant species. Isolated and combined effects of the biotic interactions poorly predicted local or regional abundance of species. They were rather related to species' ecological optima, as nutrient-demanding plants experienced less negative biotic effects but only in a nutrient-rich environment. Our study demonstrates that soil biota can mitigate differences in competitive ability among species. It remains to be tested whether such an equalizing effect can maintain coexistence under high nutrient availability, in which nutrient-demanding species may disproportionately benefit from less negative competition and PSF effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tereza Klinerová
- Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Průhonice,, CZ 252 43, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Dostál
- Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Průhonice,, CZ 252 43, Czech Republic
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21
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Chung YA, Collins SL, Rudgers JA. Connecting plant–soil feedbacks to long‐term stability in a desert grassland. Ecology 2019; 100:e02756. [DOI: 10.1002/ecy.2756] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2019] [Revised: 03/26/2019] [Accepted: 04/17/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Y. Anny Chung
- Department of Biology University of New Mexico Albuquerque New Mexico USA
- Departments of Plant Biology and Plant Pathology University of Georgia Athens Georgia 30602 USA
| | - Scott L. Collins
- Department of Biology University of New Mexico Albuquerque New Mexico USA
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22
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Kandlikar GS, Johnson CA, Yan X, Kraft NJB, Levine JM. Winning and losing with microbes: how microbially mediated fitness differences influence plant diversity. Ecol Lett 2019; 22:1178-1191. [DOI: 10.1111/ele.13280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2018] [Revised: 01/19/2019] [Accepted: 04/17/2019] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Gaurav S. Kandlikar
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Los Angeles CA USA
| | | | - Xinyi Yan
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Los Angeles CA USA
| | - Nathan J. B. Kraft
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Los Angeles CA USA
| | - Jonathan M. Levine
- Institute of Integrative Biology ETH Zurich Zurich Switzerland
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Princeton University Princeton NJ USA
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23
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Xiao S, Atwater DZ, Callaway RM. Integrating spatial structure and interspecific and intraspecific plant–soil feedback effects and responses into community structure. OIKOS 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.05915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sa Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro‐Ecosystems, School of Life Science, Lanzhou Univ CN‐730000 Lanzhou PR China
| | - Daniel Z. Atwater
- Plant Pathology, Physiology and Weed Science, Virginia Tech Blacksburg VA USA
| | - Ragan M. Callaway
- Division of Biological Sciences and the Institute on Ecosystems, Univ. of Montana Missoula MT USA
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24
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Siefert A, Zillig KW, Friesen ML, Strauss SY. Mutualists Stabilize the Coexistence of Congeneric Legumes. Am Nat 2018; 193:200-212. [PMID: 30720367 DOI: 10.1086/701056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Coexistence requires that stabilizing niche differences, which cause species to limit themselves more than others, outweigh relative fitness differences, which cause competitive exclusion. Interactions with shared mutualists, which can differentially affect host fitness and change in magnitude with host frequency, can satisfy these conditions for coexistence, yet empirical tests of mutualist effects on relative fitness and stabilizing niche differences are largely lacking within the framework of coexistence theory. Here, we show that N-fixing rhizobial mutualists mediate coexistence in four naturally co-occurring congeneric legume (Trifolium) species. Using experimental greenhouse communities, we quantified relative fitness and stabilizing niche differences for each species in the presence of rhizobia originating from conspecific or congeneric hosts. Rhizobia stabilized coexistence by increasing the self-limitation of Trifolium species grown with rhizobia isolated from conspecifics, thus allowing congeners to increase when rare. Greenhouse-measured invasion growth rates predicted natural, unmanipulated coexistence dynamics of Trifolium species over 2 years at our field sites. Our results demonstrate that interactions with shared mutualists can stabilize the coexistence of closely related species.
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25
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Kadowaki K, Yamamoto S, Sato H, Tanabe AS, Hidaka A, Toju H. Mycorrhizal fungi mediate the direction and strength of plant-soil feedbacks differently between arbuscular mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal communities. Commun Biol 2018; 1:196. [PMID: 30480098 PMCID: PMC6244237 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-018-0201-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2017] [Accepted: 10/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Plants influence their soil environment, which affects the next generation of seedlings that can be established. While research has shown that such plant-soil feedbacks occur in the presence of mycorrhizal fungi, it remains unclear when and how mycorrhizal fungi mediate the direction and strength of feedbacks in tree communities. Here we show that arbuscular mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal fungal guilds mediate plant-soil feedbacks differently to influence large-scale patterns such as tree species coexistence and succession. When seedlings are grown under the same mycorrhizal type forest, arbuscular mycorrhizal plant species exhibit negative or neutral feedbacks and ectomycorrhizal plant species do neutral or positive feedbacks. In contrast, positive and neutral feedbacks dominate when seedlings are grown in associations within the same versus different mycorrhizal types. Thus, ectomycorrhizal communities show more positive feedbacks than arbuscular mycorrhizal communities, potentially explaining why most temperate forests are ectomycorrhizal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kohmei Kadowaki
- Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, Hirano 2, Otsu, Shiga, 520-2113, Japan.
- Research and Educational Unit for Studies on Connectivity of Hills, Humans and Oceans, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa Oiwake-cho, Sakyo, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan.
| | - Satoshi Yamamoto
- Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa Oiwake-cho, Sakyo, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan
| | - Hirotoshi Sato
- Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Yoshida Nihonmatsu-cho, Sakyo, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan
| | - Akifumi S Tanabe
- Faculty of Science and Technology, Ryukoku University, 1-5 Yokotani, Seta Oe-cho, Otsu, Shiga, 520-2194, Japan
| | - Amane Hidaka
- Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa Oiwake-cho, Sakyo, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan
| | - Hirokazu Toju
- Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, Hirano 2, Otsu, Shiga, 520-2113, Japan
- Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology (PRESTO), Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi, Saitama, 332-0012, Japan
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26
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Kulmatiski A, Beard KH, Norton JM, Heavilin JE, Forero LE, Grenzer J. Live long and prosper: plant-soil feedback, lifespan, and landscape abundance covary. Ecology 2018; 98:3063-3073. [PMID: 28880994 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.2011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2017] [Revised: 08/18/2017] [Accepted: 08/30/2017] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Plant soil feedbacks (PSFs) are thought to be important to plant growth and species coexistence, but most support for these hypotheses is derived from short-term greenhouse experiments. Here we use a seven-year, common garden experiment to measure PSFs for seven native and six nonnative species common to the western United States. We use these long-term, field-based estimates to test correlations between PSF and plant landscape abundance, species origin, functional type, and lifespan. To assess potential PSF mechanisms, we also measured soil microbial community composition, root biomass, nitrogen cycling, bulk density, penetration resistance, and shear strength. Plant abundance on the landscape and plant lifespan were positively correlated with PSFs, though this effect was due to the relationships for native plants. PSFs were correlated with indices of soil microbial community composition. Soil nutrient and physical traits and root biomass differed among species but were not correlated with PSF. While results must be taken with caution because only 13 species were examined, these species represent most of the dominant plant species in the system. Results suggest that native plant abundance is associated with the ability of long-lived plants to create positive plant-soil microbe interactions, while short-lived nonnative plants maintain dominance by avoiding soil-borne antagonists, increasing nitrogen cycling and dedicating resources to aboveground growth and reproduction rather than to belowground growth. Broadly, results suggest that PSFs are correlated with a suite of traits that determine plant abundance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Kulmatiski
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5230, USA
| | - Karen H Beard
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5230, USA
| | - Jeanette M Norton
- Plants, Soils and Climate Department and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-4820, USA
| | - Justin E Heavilin
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322, USA
| | - Leslie E Forero
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5230, USA
| | - Josephine Grenzer
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5230, USA
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27
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Lekberg Y, Bever JD, Bunn RA, Callaway RM, Hart MM, Kivlin SN, Klironomos J, Larkin BG, Maron JL, Reinhart KO, Remke M, van der Putten WH. Relative importance of competition and plant-soil feedback, their synergy, context dependency and implications for coexistence. Ecol Lett 2018; 21:1268-1281. [PMID: 29896848 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2017] [Revised: 12/28/2017] [Accepted: 05/03/2018] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Plants interact simultaneously with each other and with soil biota, yet the relative importance of competition vs. plant-soil feedback (PSF) on plant performance is poorly understood. Using a meta-analysis of 38 published studies and 150 plant species, we show that effects of interspecific competition (either growing plants with a competitor or singly, or comparing inter- vs. intraspecific competition) and PSF (comparing home vs. away soil, live vs. sterile soil, or control vs. fungicide-treated soil) depended on treatments but were predominantly negative, broadly comparable in magnitude, and additive or synergistic. Stronger competitors experienced more negative PSF than weaker competitors when controlling for density (inter- to intraspecific competition), suggesting that PSF could prevent competitive dominance and promote coexistence. When competition was measured against plants growing singly, the strength of competition overwhelmed PSF, indicating that the relative importance of PSF may depend not only on neighbour identity but also density. We evaluate how competition and PSFs might interact across resource gradients; PSF will likely strengthen competitive interactions in high resource environments and enhance facilitative interactions in low-resource environments. Finally, we provide a framework for filling key knowledge gaps and advancing our understanding of how these biotic interactions influence community structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ylva Lekberg
- MPG Ranch Missoula, MT, 59801, USA.,Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, 59812, USA
| | - James D Bever
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and Kansas Biological Survey, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 66047, USA
| | - Rebecca A Bunn
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, 98225, USA
| | - Ragan M Callaway
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, 59812.,Wildlife Biology and the Institute on Ecosystems, University of Montana, Missoula, MT
| | - Miranda M Hart
- Department of Biology, University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, BC, V1V 1V7, Canada
| | - Stephanie N Kivlin
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA
| | - John Klironomos
- Department of Biology, University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, BC, V1V 1V7, Canada
| | | | - John L Maron
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, 59812
| | - Kurt O Reinhart
- United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, Fort Keogh Livestock and Range Research Laboratory, Miles City, MT, 59301, USA
| | - Michael Remke
- School of Forestry, College of Engineering Forestry and Natural Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 86011, USA
| | - Wim H van der Putten
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Netherlands Institute of Ecology, 6708 PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands.,Department of Plant Sciences, Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University (WUR), 6700 ES, Wageningen, the Netherlands
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28
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Allen WJ, Meyerson LA, Flick AJ, Cronin JT. Intraspecific variation in indirect plant-soil feedbacks influences a wetland plant invasion. Ecology 2018; 99:1430-1440. [PMID: 29771449 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.2344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2017] [Revised: 03/15/2018] [Accepted: 03/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Plant-soil feedbacks (PSFs) influence plant competition via direct interactions with pathogens and mutualists or indirectly via apparent competition/mutualisms (i.e., spillover to co-occurring plants) and soil legacy effects. It is currently unknown how intraspecific variation in PSFs interacts with the environment (e.g., nutrient availability) to influence competition between native and invasive plants. We conducted a fully crossed multi-factor greenhouse experiment to determine the effects of Phragmites australis rhizosphere soil biota, interspecific competition, and nutrient availability on biomass of replicate populations from one native and two invasive lineages of common reed (P. australis) and a single lineage of native smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora). Harmful soil biota consistently dominated PSFs involving all three P. australis lineages, reducing biomass by 10%. Indirect PSFs (i.e., soil biota spillover) from the two invasive P. australis lineages reduced S. alterniflora biomass by 7%, whereas PSFs from the native P. australis lineage increased S. alterniflora biomass by 6%. Interestingly, interspecific competition and PSFs interacted to weaken their respective impacts on S. alterniflora, whereas they exerted synergistic negative effects on P. australis. Phragmites australis soil biota decreased S. alterniflora biomass when grown alone (i.e., a soil legacy), but increased S. alterniflora biomass when grown with P. australis, suggesting that P. australis recruits harmful generalist soil biota or facilitates S. alterniflora via spillover (i.e., apparent mutualism). Soil biota also reduced interspecific competition impacts on S. alterniflora, although it remained competitively inferior to P. australis across all treatments. Competitive interactions and responses to nutrients did not differ among P. australis lineages, indicating that interspecific competition and nutrient deposition may not be key drivers of P. australis invasion in North America. Although soil biota, interspecific competition, and nutrient availability appear to have no direct impact on the success of invasive P. australis lineages in North America, intraspecific lineage variation in indirect spillover and soil legacies from P. australis occur and may have important implications for co-occurring native species and restoration of invaded habitats. Our study integrates multiple factors linked to plant invasions, highlighting that indirect interactions are likely commonplace in influencing plant community dynamics and invasion success and impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Warwick J Allen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803, USA.,The Bio-Protection Research Centre, Lincoln University, PO Box 84, Lincoln, 7647, New Zealand
| | - Laura A Meyerson
- Natural Resources Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, Rhode Island, 02881, United States
| | - Andrew J Flick
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803, USA
| | - James T Cronin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803, USA
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29
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Chen Y, Umaña MN, Uriarte M, Yu S. Abundance-dependent effects of neighbourhood dissimilarity and growth rank reversal in a neotropical forest. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:20172878. [PMID: 29618550 PMCID: PMC5904314 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.2878] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2017] [Accepted: 03/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Why tropical forests harbour an exceptional number of species with striking differences in abundances remains an open question. We propose a theoretical framework to address this question in which rare species may have different extirpation risks depending on species ranks in tree growth and sensitivities to neighbourhood interactions. To evaluate the framework, we studied tree growth and its responses to neighbourhood dissimilarity (ND) in traits and phylogeny for 146 species in a neotropical forest. We found that tree growth was positively related to ND, and common species were more strongly affected by ND than rare species, which may help delay dominance of common species. Rare species grew more slowly at the community-wide average ND than common species. But rare species grew faster when common species tended to dominate locally, which may help reduce extirpation risk of rare species. Our study highlights that tree growth rank among species depends on their responses to neighbourhood interactions, which can be important in fostering diversity maintenance in tropical forests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuxin Chen
- School of Life Sciences/State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, People's Republic of China
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - María Natalia Umaña
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
- Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - María Uriarte
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Shixiao Yu
- School of Life Sciences/State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, People's Republic of China
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30
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Kempel A, Rindisbacher A, Fischer M, Allan E. Plant soil feedback strength in relation to large-scale plant rarity and phylogenetic relatedness. Ecology 2018; 99:597-606. [DOI: 10.1002/ecy.2145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2017] [Revised: 12/18/2017] [Accepted: 12/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anne Kempel
- Institute of Plant Sciences; Altenbergrain 21 3013 Bern Switzerland
| | | | - Markus Fischer
- Institute of Plant Sciences; Altenbergrain 21 3013 Bern Switzerland
| | - Eric Allan
- Institute of Plant Sciences; Altenbergrain 21 3013 Bern Switzerland
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Mariotte P, Mehrabi Z, Bezemer TM, De Deyn GB, Kulmatiski A, Drigo B, Veen G(C, van der Heijden MG, Kardol P. Plant–Soil Feedback: Bridging Natural and Agricultural Sciences. Trends Ecol Evol 2018; 33:129-142. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2017.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 183] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2017] [Revised: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 11/10/2017] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
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