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High water-use efficiency and growth contribute to success of non-native Erodium cicutarium in a Sonoran Desert winter annual community.

ABSTRACT: The success of non-native, invasive species may be due to release from natural enemies, superior competitive abilities, or both. In the Sonoran Desert, Erodium cicutarium has increased in abundance over the last 30?years. While native species in this flora exhibit a strong among-species trade-off between relative growth rate and water-use efficiency, E. cicutarium seems to have a higher relative growth rate for its water-use efficiency value relative to the pattern across native species. This novel trait combination could provide the non-native species with a competitive advantage in this water-limited environment. To test the hypothesis that E. cicutarium is able to achieve high growth rates due to release from native herbivores, we compared the effects of herbivory on E. cicutarium and its native congener, Erodium texanum. We also compared these two species across a range of environmental conditions, both in a common garden and in two distinct seasons in the field, using growth analysis, isotopic compositions and leaf-level gas exchange. Additionally, we compared the competitive abilities of the two Erodium species in a greenhouse experiment. We found no evidence of herbivory to either species. Physiological measurements in a common environment revealed that E. cicutarium was able to achieve high growth rates while simultaneously controlling leaf-level water loss. Non-native E. cicutarium responded to favourable conditions in the field with greater specific leaf area and leaf area ratio than native E. texanum. The non-native Erodium was a stronger competitor than its native congener in a greenhouse competition experiment. The ability to maintain relatively higher values of water-use efficiency:relative growth rate in comparison to the native flora may be what enables E. cictarium to outcompete native species in both wet and dry years, resulting in an increase in abundance in the highly variable Sonoran Desert.

SUBMITTER: Kimball S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4806723 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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High water-use efficiency and growth contribute to success of non-native Erodium cicutarium in a Sonoran Desert winter annual community.

Kimball Sarah S Gremer Jennifer R JR Barron-Gafford Greg A GA Angert Amy L AL Huxman Travis E TE Venable D Lawrence DL

Conservation physiology 20140305 1

The success of non-native, invasive species may be due to release from natural enemies, superior competitive abilities, or both. In the Sonoran Desert, Erodium cicutarium has increased in abundance over the last 30 years. While native species in this flora exhibit a strong among-species trade-off between relative growth rate and water-use efficiency, E. cicutarium seems to have a higher relative growth rate for its water-use efficiency value relative to the pattern across native species. This no ...[more]

PMID: 27293627

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Project description:Soil-borne fungi influence coexistence of plant species in mesic environments, but much less is known about their effects on demographic processes relevant to coexistence in arid and semi-arid systems. We isolated 43 fungal strains that naturally colonize seeds of an invasive winter annual (Brassica tournefortii) in the Sonoran Desert, and evaluated the impact of 18 of them on seed germination and mortality of B. tournefortii and a co-occurring native annual (Plantago ovata) under simulated summer and winter temperatures. Fungi isolated from B. tournefortii seeds impacted germination and mortality of seeds of both plant species in vitro. Seed responses reflected host-specific effects by fungi, the degree of which differed significantly between the strains, and depended on the temperature. In the winter temperature, ten fungal strains increased or reduced seed germination, but substantial seed mortality due to fungi was not observed. Two strains increased germination of P. ovata more strongly than B. tournefortii. In the summer temperature, fungi induced both substantial seed germination and mortality, with ten strains demonstrating host-specificity. Under natural conditions, host-specific effects of fungi on seed germination may further differentiate plant species niche in germination response, with a potential of promoting coexistence. Both host-specific and non-host-specific effects of fungi on seed loss may induce polarizing effects on plant coexistence depending on the ecological context. The coexistence theory provides a clear framework to interpret these polarizing effects. Moreover, fungi pathogenic to both plant species could induce host-specific germination, which challenges the theoretical assumption of density-independent germination response. These implications from an in vitro study underscore the need to weave theoretical modeling, reductive empirical experiments, and natural observations to illuminate effects of soil-borne fungi on coexistence of annual plant species in variable desert environments.

Dataset Information

High water-use efficiency and growth contribute to success of non-native Erodium cicutarium in a Sonoran Desert winter annual community.

Publications

High water-use efficiency and growth contribute to success of non-native Erodium cicutarium in a Sonoran Desert winter annual community.

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