Diversity patterns from sequentially restored grasslands support the ‘environmental heterogeneity hypothesis’

Scott, Drew A.; Baer, Sara G.

doi:10.1111/oik.05877

Cited by 10 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Each plot in each sequence was treated as an independent experimental unit (field replicate) within each sequence (n = 4 per sequence), which was geo-statistically supported by Scott and Baer (2019). To compare trajectories of community development over time among sequences, the effects of AGE (years since seeding) and SEQ (corresponding with planting year) and their interaction on species composition were analyzed using repeated measures permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) with 1000 permutations using the "adonis" function in the vegan package of R (vegan: Oksanen et al, 2020).…”

Section: Short-term Community Response To Establishment Yearmentioning

confidence: 99%

Persistent decadal differences in plant communities assembled under contrasting climate conditions

Eckhoff

Scott

Manning

et al. 2023

Ecological Applications

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Plant community assembly outcomes can be contingent upon establishment year (year effects) due to variations in the environment. Stochastic events such as interannual variability in climate, particularly in the first year of community assembly, contribute to unpredictable community outcomes over the short term, but less is known about whether year effects produce transient or persistent states on a decadal timescale. To test for short-term (5-year) and persistent (decadal) effects of establishment year climate on community assembly outcomes, we restored prairie in an agricultural field using the same methods in four different years (2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016) that captured a wide range of initial (planting) year climate conditions. Species composition was measured for 5 years in all four restored prairies and for 9 and 11 years in the two oldest restored prairies established under average precipitation and extreme drought conditions. The composition of the four assembled communities showed large and significant differences in the first year of restoration, followed by dynamic change over time along a similar trajectory due to a temporary flush of annual volunteer species.Sown perennial species eventually came to dominate all communities, but communities remained distinct from each other in year five. Precipitation in June and July of the establishment year explained short-term coarse community metrics (i.e., species richness and grass/forb cover), with wet establishment years resulting in a higher cover of grasses and dry establishment years resulting in a higher cover of forbs in restored communities. Short-term differences in community composition, species richness, and grass/forb cover in restorations established under average precipitation and drought conditions persisted for 9-11 years, with low interannual variability in the composition of each prairie over the long term, indicating persistently different states on a decadal timescale. Thus, year effects resulting from stochastic variation in climate can have decadal effects on community assembly outcomes.

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Section: Short-term Community Response To Establishment Yearmentioning

confidence: 99%

Persistent decadal differences in plant communities assembled under contrasting climate conditions

Eckhoff

Scott

Manning

et al. 2023

Ecological Applications

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“…Notably, M. vimineum invasion across the mycorrhizal gradient was associated with homogenization of the ECM-dominance gradient, altering slow cycling organic soil conditions more than inorganic nutrient economies. To the extent that loss of heterogeneity in nutrient economies may promote a reduction in species richness (Scott and Baer 2019), which has known effects on ecosystem functioning (Hooper et al 2005), the longer-term consequences of invasion may be greater than demonstrated here.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Biogeochemical Effects of a Forest Understory Plant Invasion Depend More On Dissimilar Nutrient Economies Than Invader Biomass

Podzikowski¹,

Lee²,

Fahey³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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There is an increasing need to better understand how and why invasion impacts differ across heterogeneous landscapes. One hypothesis predicts invader impacts are greatest where the invader is most abundant (the mass ratio hypothesis; MRH). Alternatively, invader impacts may be greatest in communities where the nutrient acquisition strategies of the invader are most dissimilar from those of native species (the nutrient economy dissimilarity hypothesis; NEDH). We tested whether the effects of an invasive grass, Microstegium vimineum, on soil biogeochemistry were best explained by MRH, NEDH, or both. At three locations (Indiana, North Carolina, and Georgia), invaded and reference plots were established across a nutrient economy gradient. Plots varied in the relative abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) vs. ectomycorrhizal (ECM) associated overstory trees, reflecting gradients in biotic nutrient acquisition strategies and edaphic factors. At two locations, we found NEDH predicted invader effects on soil conditions. The net effect of M. vimineum homogenized soil properties across the nutrient economy gradient towards conditions consistent with AM-dominated stands; as such, the nutrient economy gradients observed in uninvaded plots were mostly absent in invaded plots. At one location with high N availability and intermediate acidity, both ECM-dominance (NEDH) and invader abundance (MRH) predicted differences in soil moisture, pH, and nitrification rates. Collectively, these results suggest the biogeochemical consequences of M. vimineum depend, in part, on pre-invasion soil nutrient economies. Where pre-invasion conditions are known, we provide a scalable and predictive approach to determine where impacts on biogeochemical cycling of C and N may be greatest.

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“…Their density and community composition have been shown to vary with forest type (i.e., deciduous vs. coniferous) rather than with the number of tree species (Erdmann et al., 2012 ; Lu, 2021 ; Lu, Bluhm, et al., 2022 ). Mixed forests are likely to provide greater resource and microhabitat diversity, allowing species to occupy different positions in niche space (Chesson, 2000 ; Nielsen et al., 2010 ; Scott & Baer, 2019 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Niche dimensions in soil oribatid mite community assembly under native and introduced tree species

Noske,

Lu,

Schaefer

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

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Forest soils are a critical component of terrestrial ecosystems and host a large number of animal decomposer species. One diverse and abundant decomposer taxon is oribatid mites (Acari: Oribatida), whose species composition varies with forest type and tree species composition. We used functional traits that indicate different niche dimensions, to infer assembly processes of oribatid mite communities in monocultures and mixed forests of native and introduced tree species. We found that coexisting species differed more in the resource‐related niche dimension, i.e., reproductive mode and trophic guild, than in the morphological dimension, e.g., body length and width, sclerotization and concealability. These results suggest that both filtering and partitioning processes structure oribatid mite communities. In native European beech forests, but not in non‐native Douglas fir forests, oribatid mites were mainly structured by filtering processes acting via traits related both to environmental tolerance and to resources. Furthermore, oribatid mite trait diversity, but not phylogenetic diversity, differed significantly between monocultures and mixed forests, demonstrating that multidimensional diversity indices provide additional information on soil biodiversity. Overall, the study provides evidence that traits representing different niche dimensions need to be considered for understanding assembly processes in soil animal communities and thereby soil biodiversity.

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Diversity patterns from sequentially restored grasslands support the ‘environmental heterogeneity hypothesis’

Cited by 10 publications

References 45 publications

Persistent decadal differences in plant communities assembled under contrasting climate conditions

Persistent decadal differences in plant communities assembled under contrasting climate conditions

Biogeochemical Effects of a Forest Understory Plant Invasion Depend More On Dissimilar Nutrient Economies Than Invader Biomass

Niche dimensions in soil oribatid mite community assembly under native and introduced tree species

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