Recent studies have expanded research on biodiversity by investigating whether the effects of diversity on ecosystem functioning hinge on the presence of symbiotic microorganisms. Cool‐season grasses commonly harbour endophytic fungi that can enhance plant resistance to herbivory, drought and competition. We address whether these endosymbionts modify relationships between diversity and two ecosystem properties: productivity and invasibility. We develop a graphical model that predicts endophyte infection of a grass host will weaken correlations between diversity and ecosystem properties. We then use a long‐term field experiment to test this prediction by manipulating symbiosis in tall fescue grass (Festuca arundinacea), a common and invasive species in the US. As predicted, endophyte infection reduced the strength of correlations between diversity and both primary productivity and the invasiveness of tall fescue. By altering relationships between diversity and ecosystem functioning, endophytic fungi may contribute more to the dynamics of communities than previously supposed.

Reducing the biological diversity of a community may decrease its resistance to invasion by exotic species. Manipulative experiments typically support this hypothesis but have focused mainly on one trophic level (i.e., primary producers). To date, we know little about how positive interactions among species may influence the relationship between diversity and invasibility, which suggests a need for research that addresses the question: under what conditions does diversity affect resistance to invasion? We used experimental manipulations of both plant diversity and the presence of an endophytic fungus to test whether a fungal mutualist of an invasive grass species (Lolium arundinaceum) switches the relationship between plant community diversity and resistance to invasion. Association with the fungal endophyte (Neotyphodium coenophialum) increased the ability of L. arundinaceum to invade communities with greater species diversity. In the absence of the endophyte, the initial diversity of the community significantly reduced the establishment of L. arundinaceum. However, establishment was independent of initial diversity in the presence of the endophyte. Fungal symbionts, like other key species, are often overlooked in studies of plant diversity, yet their presence may explain variation among studies in the effect of diversity on resistance to invasion.

Abstract. The predominance of outcrossing despite the substantial transmission advantage of self-fertilization remains a paradox. Theory suggests that selection can favor outcrossing if it enables the production of offspring that are less susceptible to pathogen attack than offspring produced via self-fertilization. Thus, if pathogen pressure is contributing to the maintenance of outcrossing in plants, there may be a positive correlation between the number of pathogen species attacking plant species and the outcrossing rate of the plant species. We tested this hypothesis by examining the association between outcrossing rate and the number of fungal pathogen species that attack a large, taxonomically diverse set of seed plants. We show that plant species attacked by more fungal pathogen species have higher outcrossing rates than plants with fewer enemies. This relationship persists after correcting for study bias among natural and agricultural species of plants. We also accounted for the nested hierarchy of relationships among plant lineages by conducting phylogenetically independent contrasts (PICs) within genera and families that were adequately represented in our dataset. A meta-analysis of the correlation between pathogen and outcrossing PICs shows that there is a positive correlation between pathogen species number and outcrossing rates. This pattern is consistent with the hypothesis that pathogen-mediated selection may contribute to the maintenance of outcrossing in species of seed plants.

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Outcrossing by hosts may offer protection from natural enemies adapted to parental genotypes by creating diverse progeny that differ from their parents through genetic recombination. However, past experimental work addressing the relationship between mating system and disease in offspring has given conflicting results, suggesting that outcrossing might also cause the dissolution of resistant genotypes. To determine if selfed progeny are more susceptible to disease caused by the heteroecious rust, Puccinia recondita, or if selfing preserves existing resistant genotypes, we used a factorial design to compare levels of infection of selfed and outcrossed progeny of Impatiens capensis, a woodland annual with a mixed mating system. We compared the level of host infection when exposed to three pathogen sources in the field: the sympatric rust population, and two allopatric rust populations. Outcrossed progeny exposed to sympatric rust had higher infection scores than selfed progeny exposed to the same rust, suggesting that outcrossing breaks up resistant genotypes. In addition, there was a trend for the rust to be more infective on sympatric rather than allopatric hosts. We also examined whether rust infection differentially alters the fitness of selfed and outcrossed progeny.Outcrossed plants that escaped infection had higher fitness, as measured by fruit production, than selfed plants, but there was no difference in fitness between infected selfed and infected outcrossed plants. Thus, outcrossing was advantageous in the absence of disease, but there was no fitness difference between selfed and outcrossed progeny in the presence of disease. In sum, our results indicate that interactions with pathogens can eliminate or reverse the advantage of outcrossing.