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opencc-zeroAug 2020View details →

Demographic analysis of invasible habitat fraction identifies context-dependent roles of resource availability and biotic resistance in determining invasion success

Theories of plant invasions predict that plant communities should be more easily invaded when resources increase and/or competition decreases. We tested this with an experimentally introduced plant population by manipulating precipitation and resident community biomass. We used a spatially-explicit demographic approach to develop a new population-level metric of invasibility that quantifies the invasible habitat fraction (IHF) across the landscape. The existing community was essentially uninvasible (median IHF ≈ 0%), but experimental manipulations greatly increased the range of outcomes, with maximum observed IHF values over 50%. However, changes in invasibility were often context-dependent, resulting in some outcomes that aligned with existing theory, and others that were not readily predicted. Moreover, variation in invasibility was often driven by specific sets of invader demographic vital rates. Removing competitors revealed the capacity for strong biotic resistance, but this interacted with precipitation such that little biotic resistance was detected under drought conditions. Adding precipitation typically had little positive effect on invasibility, and moderate drought relief led to relatively high invasibility. However, the latter was driven to a large extent by interactions with mammal herbivory that otherwise inhibited invasion in one year. Synthesis. Our findings show that interactions between abiotic and biotic factors, as well as legacy effects, can strongly mediate invasibility. This study also highlights the importance of incorporating spatial heterogeneity into population-level assessments of invasion, as initial population declines do not necessarily indicate resistance to invasion.

opencc-zeroDec 2016View details →

Data from: Native species dispersal reduces community invasibility by increasing species richness and biotic resistance

1. Recent studies indicate that diversity-invasibility relationships can depend upon spatial scale, but the contributing role of native species dispersal among local communities in mediating these relationships remains unaddressed. Metacommunity ecology highlights the effects of species dispersal rates on local diversity, thereby suggesting native species dispersal may influence local biotic resistance to invasion by non-native species. However, effects of native species dispersal rates on local native diversity and invasibility could depend upon any intraspecific differences of the invader that may alter establishment success. 2. Here, I experimentally tested for the influence of native dispersal-diversity relationships on the invasibility of native communities by a non-native species represented by core, midrange, and peripheral regions of the introduced geographic range. 3. In mesocosms, native plankton communities were connected by low or moderate rates of dispersal to yield dispersal-rate driven differences in native species richness prior to invasion by a non-native zooplankter, Daphnia lumholtzi. After invasion, establishment success and effects of the non-native species on native community structure and ecosystem properties were evaluated as a function of dispersal rate and invader source region relative to a control without native species. 4. Native species richness was greater at the moderate dispersal rate than the low dispersal rate, and yielded a dispersal rate dependent diversity-invasibility relationship that was robust to invader source region. There was almost no establishment success of the non-native species at moderate dispersal and reduced success at low dispersal relative to the control. Invader population growth rates were negative only at the moderate dispersal rate. Effects of species dispersal on native community and ecosystem response were more influential than effects of invasion and impacts associated with invader source region. 5. The results demonstrate that dispersal-diversity relationships can influence diversity-invasibility relationships at the local spatial scale. These dispersal-driven responses of invasion were unaffected by any ecological differences associated with invasion history related intraspecific variation of the non-native species. This study emphasizes that dispersal rates of native species in metacommunities can differentially alter local biotic resistance to invasion. Thus, native species dispersal rates have largely been an underappreciated local diversity maintenance mechanism that can confer insurance against biological invasions.

opencc-zeroNov 2019View details →

Trophic rewilding revives biotic resistance to shrub invasion

Trophic rewilding seeks to rehabilitate degraded ecosystems by repopulating them with large animals, thereby reestablishing strong top-down interactions. Yet there are vanishingly few tests of whether such initiatives can restore ecosystem structure and functions, and on what timescales. Here we show that war-induced collapse of large-mammal populations in Mozambique's Gorongosa National Park exacerbated woody encroachment by the invasive shrub Mimosa pigra—one of the world's '100 worst' invasive species—and that one decade of concerted trophic rewilding restored this invasion to pre-war baseline levels. Mimosa occurrence increased between 1972 and 2015, a period encompassing the near-extirpation of large herbivores during the Mozambican Civil War. From 2015–2019, mimosa abundance declined as ungulate biomass recovered. DNA metabarcoding revealed that ruminant herbivores fed heavily on mimosa, and experimental exclosures confirmed the causal role of mammalian herbivory in containing shrub encroachment. Our results provide mechanistic evidence that trophic rewilding has rapidly revived biotic resistance to a notorious woody invader, underscoring the potential for restoring ecosystem structure and functions in degraded African protected areas.

publicAug 2020View details →

Demographic analysis of invasible habitat fraction identifies context-dependent roles of resource availability and biotic resistance in determining invasion success

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publicJul 2018View details →

Data from: Native species dispersal reduces community invasibility by increasing species richness and biotic resistance

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publicFeb 2020View details →

Direct and indirect effects of native plants and herbivores on biotic resistance to alien aquatic plant invasions

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publicFeb 2020View details →

Trophic rewilding revives biotic resistance to shrub invasion

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publicDec 2025View details →

CSR strategy shifts under biotic resistance and grazing drive invasion success of Solanum rostratum in northern China

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opencc-zeroDec 2020View details →

Calcareous defense structures of prey mediate the effects of predation and biotic resistance towards the tropics

Aims The importance of biotic interactions in creating and maintaining diversity is expected to increase toward low latitudes. However, the way in which predation affects diversity, can depend on how predators mediate competitive interactions and also on defensive traits of prey. Here we assessed the role of physical defences of prey to escape predation and how the importance of predation on community structure and diversity changes across latitude. Location Six sites, in three regions distributed across 45 degrees of latitude in the Atlantic Ocean: a tropical region in Angola, a subtropical region in Brazil and a temperate region in Wales-UK. Methods We manipulated predation on marine sessile communities, using exclusion cages and assessed community parameters, including their susceptibility to biological invasion during early and advanced succession. Results Predation was more intense in the tropics and in advanced communities suggesting that predation effects increase through time. In the tropical region, predators reduced the number of co-occurring species and beta diversity, limited the occurrence of exotic species and promoted a change in the identity of the dominant organisms, replacing soft-bodied organisms with calcified animals. In the subtropical region, predation promoted a similar trait-mediated change in the identity of dominant prey, although it was not strong enough to affect diversity and did not prevent bioinvasion. In the temperate region other processes than predation seem to drive the community organization and resistance to invasion. Main conclusions Our results support both Biotic Interaction and Biotic Resistance Hypotheses, showing that the importance of predation to biodiversity increases toward the tropics. In addition, where predation is intense, morphological traits of prey drive the final structure and dominance in the community. Our results suggest that physical defences are the main traits preventing predation, perhaps explaining why calcified organisms are among the most common invasive species in coastal habitats.

opencc-zeroDec 2016View details →

Data from: Is biotic resistance enhanced by natural variation in diversity?

Theories linking diversity to ecosystem function have been challenged by the widespread observation of more exotic species in more diverse native communities. Few studies have addressed the underlying processes by dissecting how biotic resistance to new invaders may be shaped by the same environmental influences that determine diversity and other community properties. In grasslands with heterogeneous soils, we added invaders and removed competitors to analyze the causes of invasion resistance. Abiotic resistance was measured using invader success in the absence of the resident community. Biotic resistance was measured as the reduction in invader success in the presence of the resident community. Invaders were most successful where biotic resistance was lowest and abiotic resistance was highest, confirming the dominant role of biotic resistance. Contrary to theory, though, biotic resistance was highest where both species richness and functional diversity were lowest. In the multivariate framework of a structural equation model, biotic resistance was independent of community diversity, and was highest where fertile soils led to high community biomass. Seed predation slightly augmented biotic resistance without qualitatively changing the results. Soil-related genotypic variation in the invader also did not affect the results. We conclude that in natural systems, diversity may be correlated with invasibility and yet have little effect on biotic resistance to invasion. More generally, the environmental causes of variation in diversity should be considered when examining the potential functional consequences of diversity.

opencc-zeroDec 2014View details →

Data from: Biotic resistance to tropical ornamental invasion

We examined invasive, casual (found occasionally outside cultivation) and non-invasive (found only in cultivation) species to investigate the role of species traits and two forms of biotic resistance (plant neighbours and herbivores) in limiting invasion in Hawaiian lowlands. Seeds of 21 species of common woody ornamentals from three plant families (Acanthaceae, Apocynaceae, Bignoniaceae) that are non-invasive, casual or invasive in Hawai'i were outplanted at two field sites. We measured germination of seeds and growth and survival of seedlings for one year in plots with and without neighbours from the naturally-assembled community. The presence of neighbours reduced survival in some species, mostly non-invasive or casual species and completely excluded two non-invasive species from community plots. Damage from the existing community of herbivores was correlated with lower survival in the Acanthaceae and Bignoniaceae, but not the Apocynaceae. Non-invasive and casual species had lower survival and growth rates than invasive species and lower photosynthetic rates in the presence of neighbours than invasive species. Non-invasives without neighbours also had lower specific leaf area than invasives and casuals. We found evidence for barriers to invasion in some non-invasive and casual species, including low growth rate, low survival, or low survival in the presence of neighbours. By contrast, five of the six invasives flowered and three began setting fruit within the duration of the experiment, as did one of the casual species. Synthesis: Our research demonstrates biotic resistance, presumably as a result of competition. Neighbouring plants reduced survival and growth for most species. For non-invasive species with low survival and growth even without competition from neighbouring plants, this resulted in complete exclusion from community plots or such low growth rates that exclusion over longer time frames was likely. We also provide evidence for traits-based barriers to invasion in non-invasive and casual species. However, no single barrier to invasion was shared across all non-invasive and casual species.

opencc-by-4.0May 2022View details →

Disentangling the role of environmental filtering and biotic resistance on alien invasions in a reservoir area

Data from: Disentangling the role of environmental filtering and biotic resistance on alien invasions in a reservoir area

opencc-zeroOct 2022View details →

Using semiochemicals to predict biotic resistance and facilitation of invading phytophagous insects

Invasive species are leading causes of biodiversity loss and economic damage. Allocating limited resources towards prevention and management of invasions requires risk assessments based on ecological knowledge for species of potential concern. Interactions of potentially invasive species with heterospecifics in a novel community will contribute to biotic resistance and facilitation experienced by the invader, and thus the likelihood of establishment. To experimentally predict heterospecific interactions, we conducted field experiments using synthetic aggregation-pheromone lures to measure the response of ecologically relevant species (possible predators, competitors, and facilitators) to the simulated presence of two potentially invasive spruce bark beetles, the North American Dendroctonus rufipennis (tested in Norway) and the European Ips typographus (tested in eastern Canada). The Canadian beetle community responded strongly to I. typographus lures, suggesting potential for considerable biotic resistance, whereas D. rufipennis lures prompted little response by the Norwegian beetle community. D. rufipennis was attracted to I. typographus lures, suggesting potential facilitation between these species through cooperative mass attack on trees. Our findings will inform invasive-species risk assessments for I. typographus and D. rufipennis and highlight useful methods for assessing interactions among other taxa that rely heavily on semiochemical communication.

opencc-zeroDec 2018View details →

Supplementary material 3 from: Iannone BV III, Potter KM, Guo Q, Jo I, Oswalt CM, Fei S (2018) Environmental harshness drives spatial heterogeneity in biotic resistance. NeoBiota 40: 87-105. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.40.28558

Section-level standardised slope estimates for the 91 ecological sections from initial models of invasive richness and cover in response to four metrics of evolutionary relatedness—PSC, PSV, PD and PSE :

opencc-zeroDec 2018View details →

Supplementary material 2 from: Iannone BV III, Potter KM, Guo Q, Jo I, Oswalt CM, Fei S (2018) Environmental harshness drives spatial heterogeneity in biotic resistance. NeoBiota 40: 87-105. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.40.28558

Description of differences between Northern and Southern FIA Regions in invasive plant species monitoring protocols :

opencc-zeroDec 2018View details →

Supplementary material 1 from: Iannone BV III, Potter KM, Guo Q, Jo I, Oswalt CM, Fei S (2018) Environmental harshness drives spatial heterogeneity in biotic resistance. NeoBiota 40: 87-105. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.40.28558

Locations of Northern and Southern FIA Regions and of the ecological domains, provinces and sections in which study plots were located :