Fertile sediment and ammonium enrichment decrease the growth and biomechanical strength of submersed macrophyte Myriophyllum spicatum in an experiment

Zhu, Guijie; Cao, Ting; Zhang, Meng; Ni, Leyi; Zhang, Xiaolin

doi:10.1007/s10750-013-1792-2

Cited by 23 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Finally, the simple recovery or maintenance of riparian vegetation seems to be sufficient to prevent U. arrecta invasion, as suggested by our shading treatments. Our results align with others that indicate that increased shading is an effective strategy to reduce invasion by macrophytes (Bunn et al 1998;Schooler 2008;Zhu et al 2014;Zefferman 2015).…”

Section: A N a G E M E N T I M P L I C A T I O N Ssupporting

confidence: 92%

Shade provided by riparian plants and biotic resistance by macrophytes reduce the establishment of an invasive Poaceae

et al. 2016

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Running title:Riparian plants and invasion resistance Summary 1. Riparian corridors are habitats that are prone to invasion by non-native plants, but the shade provided by trees that grow in riparian zones may limit the success of invasive species. Accepted ArticleThis article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. 2. In this investigation, we conducted three complementary experiments to test the effects of shade levels, along with sediment type and biotic resistance (and their interactions), on the establishment of a highly invasive grass (Urochloa arrecta (Hack. ex T. Durand & Schinz) Morrone & Zuloaga).3. This invasive grass presented higher growth rates in sediment collected under riparian vegetation than in sediment collected at sites devoid of vegetation. Shade levels similar to those found underneath riparian vegetation suppressed the establishment of U. arrecta. In addition, when native macrophytes were planted a priori (i.e. before U. arrecta propagules arrived), the establishment of the invasive species was suppressed, even at lower levels of shade. Thus, biotic resistance was sufficient to prevent the establishment of the invasive grass at low shade levels. Therefore, our results indicated that although the sediment from riparian zones may favour the establishment of U. arrecta, shading by trees and the presence of native macrophytes suppress it. Synthesis and applications.Our results indicate that the shade provided by riparian trees and biotic resistance by macrophytes are likely the factors that negatively affect the establishment of the invasive macrophyte U. arrecta. A recommendation for management arising from our results is that restoring riparian corridors to prevent invasion is most likely more efficient if native macrophytes are planted along with the trees. This would be an efficient strategy to prevent invasion by U. arrecta and other invasive Poaceae during the early stages of riparian vegetation regeneration.

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Section: A N a G E M E N T I M P L I C A T I O N Ssupporting

confidence: 92%

Shade provided by riparian plants and biotic resistance by macrophytes reduce the establishment of an invasive Poaceae

et al. 2016

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“…natans is often the dominant macrophyte in eutrophic Chinese lakes and was selected for use in our experiment as it is among the last plants to disappear when eutrophication leads to complete loss of submerged macrophyte [16]. Other plant species may be even more sensitive and fragile as has been demonstrated in experiments with Myriophyllum spicatum [47] and Potamogeton crispus [48]. Our small-scale experiment has limitations since plant-nutrient interactions may be stronger in mesocosms than in natural lakes, but the observed direction of change is supported by findings in both experiments at larger scale and in the field [26,42].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Response of Vallisneria natans to Increasing Nitrogen Loading Depends on Sediment Nutrient Characteristics

Jin

et al. 2016

Water

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High nitrogen (N) loading may contribute to recession of submerged macrophytes in shallow lakes; yet, its influences vary depending on environmental conditions. In August 2013, we conducted a 28-day factorial-designed field mesocosm experiment in Lake Taihu at the Taihu Laboratory for Lake Ecosystem Research (TLLER) to examine the effects of high N loading on the growth of Vallisneria natans in systems with contrasting sediment types. We ran the experiments with two levels of nutrient loading-present-day external nutrient loading (average P: 5 µg·L −1 ·day −1 , N: 130 µg·L −1 ·day −1 ) and P: 5 µg·L −1 ·day −1 , and with three times higher N loading (N: 390 µg·L −1 ·day −1 ) and used sediment with two contrasting nutrient levels. V. natans growth decreased significantly with increasing N loading, the effect being dependent, however, on the nutrient status of the sediment. In low nutrient sediment, relative growth rates, leaf biomass and root biomass decreased by 11.9%, 18.2% and 23.3%, respectively, at high rather than low N loading, while the decline was larger (44.0%, 32.7% and 41.8%, respectively) when using high nutrient sediment. The larger effect in the nutrient-rich sediment may reflect an observed higher shading of phytoplankton and excess nutrient accumulation in plant tissue, though potential toxic effects of the high-nutrient sediment may also have contributed. Our study confirms the occurrence of a negative effect of increasing N loading on submerged plant growth in shallow nutrient-enriched lakes and further shows that this effect is augmented when the plants grow in nutrient-rich sediment. External N control may, therefore, help to protect or restore submerged macrophytes, especially when the sediment is enriched with nutrients and organic matter.

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“…It is important to note that, similar to the stems of submerged macrophytes (e.g. Hydrilla verticillata, M. spicatum and Potamogeton malaianus) in previous studies (Miler et al 2014;Zhu et al 2012aZhu et al , 2014, V. natans also showed reduced biomechanical properties along the leaves, which indicate that upper leaves were more fragile and vulnerable to hydraulic damage, as hydraulic forces acting on submerged macrophytes stands decrease exponentially with water depth (Denny 1988;Schutten et al 2004). Consequently, the various biomechanical properties of V. natans leaves, in part, explain its distribution pattern in Lake Erhai.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 62%

“…It suggested that both stronger and more flexible leaves are necessary for V. natans to survive under a high and longer time wind exposure, just like other aquatic plants in rivers (Miler et al 2012) such as Fontinalis antipyretica grown in fierce water flow that had higher flexibility of stems than other species. Once the drag forces exceed the tensile force or tensile strain of plants, shoot breakage will incur, thus reduced fitness, due to loss of biomass and meristems (Mony et al 2011;Zhu et al 2014). Unlike other submerged macrophytes species, shoot breakage is fatal to the survival of V. natans, because it is rosette species (leaves inserted on a reduced, partly buried stem, Sun 1995), therefore, the leaf fragment of V. natans cannot re-sprout, not to mention become a new plant.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Associations between the morphology and biomechanical properties of submerged macrophytes: implications for its survival and distribution in Lake Erhai

Zhu

Cao

2015

Environ Earth Sci

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Submerged macrophytes mainly distribute in the wind-protected littoral zones, rather than continuously distribute around the lake due to mechanical damage by strong wave. However, it is unknown how the biomechanical properties, the key targets against mechanical stress, contribute to its survival and distribution in natural aquatic ecosystem. In this study, the distribution, plant growth, and leaf biomechanical and morphological traits of different segments of Vallisneria natans were examined at 25 sites with three wind strength [sites exposed to strong ES wind (HW), sites exposed to moderate ES wind (MW) and sites sheltered by lakeshore with weak wind disturbance], in Lake Erhai, of Yunnan Province, China. Results showed that V. natans mainly distributed in the wind-protected eastern and northern littoral zones within 5 m water depth. The smallest plant growth, strongest and least flexible leaves were at MW, indicating that V. natans is prone to dominate the littoral zones exposed to strong but short wave. Additionally, the high plant growth and relatively stronger and less flexible leaves at HW suggested that the maximization of photosynthesis was at the cost of reduced biomechanical properties and increased drag forces from similar waves, which were unfavourable to complete their life cycles and ultimately reduce the survival and distribution of V. natans under strong wave disturbance. The significant associations between the biomechanical and morphological traits may trigger trade-offs between the mechanical resistance and other plant functions, such as photosynthesis, ultimately determining survival and distribution of submerged macrophytes in natural aquatic ecosystems.

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Fertile sediment and ammonium enrichment decrease the growth and biomechanical strength of submersed macrophyte Myriophyllum spicatum in an experiment

Cited by 23 publications

References 47 publications

Shade provided by riparian plants and biotic resistance by macrophytes reduce the establishment of an invasive Poaceae

Shade provided by riparian plants and biotic resistance by macrophytes reduce the establishment of an invasive Poaceae

Response of Vallisneria natans to Increasing Nitrogen Loading Depends on Sediment Nutrient Characteristics

Associations between the morphology and biomechanical properties of submerged macrophytes: implications for its survival and distribution in Lake Erhai

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