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26 results for “Plant engineering”
Data and R code from: Pollination interactions reveal direct costs and indirect benefits of plant–plant facilitation for ecosystem engineers
Ecosystem engineers substantially modify the environment via their impact on abiotic conditions and the biota, resulting in facilitation of associated species that would not otherwise grow. Yet, reciprocal effects are poorly understood as studies of plant–plant interactions usually estimate only benefits for associated species while hardly considering how another trophic level may mediate direct and indirect effects for ecosystem engineers. We run a field experiment with ecosystem engineers blooming either alone or with associated plants to decompose net effects and to test the hypothesis that pollinator-mediated interactions provide benefits which balance costs of facilitation by ecosystem engineers. We found that net costs of facilitation are accompanied by pollinator-mediated benefits. Despite ecosystem engineers producing less flowers per plant, they were visited by more and more diverse pollinators per flower when blooming with associated plants than when blooming alone. However, fruit set was unaffected by the presence of associated plants and seed production per plant was higher when ecosystem engineers bloomed alone. Our findings suggest that besides experiencing direct costs, ecosystem engineers can also benefit from facilitating other species via increasing their own visibility to pollinators. This study illuminates how the outcome of direct plant–plant interactions might be mediated by indirect interactions including third players.
Data and R code from: Pollination interactions reveal direct costs and indirect benefits of plant–plant facilitation for ecosystem engineers
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The distribution and impact of an invasive plant species (Senecio inaequidens) on a dune building engineer (Calamagrostis arenaria)
<p>These data sets are used to run the analyses in the paper '<em>The distribution and impact of an invasive plant species (</em>Senecio inaequidens<em>) on a dune building engineer (</em>Calamagrostis arenaria<em>)</em>' by Van De Walle et al., 2022, Neobiota (in progress).</p> <p>The presence/absence data (PA) of <em>Senecio inaequidens</em> in European coastal dunes can be found in 'Senecio_PA.xlsx', in the tab 'senecio_PA', together with the country and location where the occurrences were mapped. All coordinates of the samples are available in the tab 'coordinates samples'.</p> <p>'Marram_growth_experiment.xlsx' contains the data gathered during the growth experiment. The origin of the sand is subdivided in 3 columns: 'Location' represents the location along the Belgian coast where sand was gathered, 'senecio' represents whether sand was gathered from underneath a senecio plant or not and 'biota' represents whether biota could affect marram grass growth (biota = 0 thus means that the sand was sterilized).</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p> <p>Disturbance is thought to enhance the probability of invasive species establishment, a prerequisite for naturalization. Coastal dunes are characterized by disturbance in the form of sand dynamics. We studied the effect of this disturbance on the establishment and spread of an invasive plant species (<em>Senecio inaequidens</em>) in European coastal dunes. Local sand dynamics dictate the spatial configuration of marram grass (<em>Calamagrostis arenaria</em>). Therefore, marram grass configuration was used as a reliable proxy for disturbance. As marram grass plays a crucial role in natural dune formation, we evaluated the possible effects <em>S. inaequidens</em> could have on this process, if it would be able to naturalize in European coastal dunes.</p> <p> We expected the highest probability of <em>S. inaequidens </em>establishment at intermediate marram grass cover because too low cover would increase sand burial, whereas high cover would increase competition. However, our results indicate that <em>S. inaequidens</em> is quite capable of handling higher levels of sand burial. Thus, probability of <em>S. inaequidens</em> establishment was high under low marram cover but slightly lowered when marram cover was high, hinting at the importance of competition.</p> <p>We expected a negative impact of <em>Senecio</em>-altered soils on marram grass growth mediated by soil biota. However, marram grass grew better in sand gathered underneath <em>Senecio</em> plants due to abiotic soil modifications. This enhanced growth may be caused by <em>Senecio</em> leaf litter elevating nutrient concentrations in an otherwise nutrient-poor substrate. If such increased plant growth is a general phenomenon, further expansion of <em>S. inaequidens</em> could accelerate natural succession in European coastal dunes.</p>
Data from: Pollinators and plants as ecosystem engineers: post-dispersal fruits provide new habitats for other organisms
<p><span>Ecosystem engineering consists of</span><span> </span><span>a ubiquitous and fundamental class of interactions where some organisms promote state changes in biotic and abiotic materials which indirectly affect others. Since the concept was created as a counterpoint to traditional flux-based models, pollinators have never been considered to promote ecosystem engineering because they modulate the supply of resources used by seed/fruit consumers. However, dry fruits may persist in the environment for long periods after seed dispersion as empty structures that are an additional alternative for occupancy. These increase the realized niche of some organisms, being a clear example of biogenic habitats. Here, we demonstrate how pollination may boost ecosystem engineering using an illustrative case study based on a specialized interaction between a bee and an orchid with characteristic capsular fruits. We demonstrate that the orchid is fully dependent on the pollinator to set fruits. Post-dispersal fruits are voluminous and remain attached to the plant for several years. By investigating the occupation patterns of arthropods, we show that post-dispersal fruits are</span><span> </span><span>highly suitable for occupants when compared to pre-dispersal and dispersing fruits. Only 13.3% of post-dispersal fruits were never occupied, 33.3% had organisms inside and </span><span>53.3</span><span>% showed</span><span> </span><span>signs of previous occupation. We propose that pollinators are allogenic engineers and plants autogenic, since they promote state changes through their actions and their</span><span> </span><span>own physical structure, respectively. Thus, pollination is a case of cooperative ecosystem engineering whereby the effects of the interaction between two or more species expand habitat suitability. Since most plants rely on pollination to set fruits, we suggest that pollination-mediated engineering constitutes a widespread phenomenon. This offers a new perspective about the effects of pollination in nature, highlighting the importance of pollinators and opening new avenues of investigation of ecosystem dynamics and biodiversity maintenance.</span></p>
Data from: Pollinators and plants as ecosystem engineers: post-dispersal fruits provide new habitats for other organisms
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Data from: Do an ecosystem engineer and environmental gradient act independently or in concert to shape juvenile plant communities? Tests with the leaf-cutter ant Atta laevigata in a Neotropical savanna
Background. Ecosystem Engineers are species that transform habitats in ways that influence other species. While the impacts of many engineers have been well described, our understanding of how their impact varies along environmental gradients remains limited. Although disentangling the effects of gradients and engineers on biodiversity is complicated – the gradients themselves can be altered by engineers – doing so is necessary to advance conceptual and mathematical models of ecosystem engineering. We used leaf-cutter ants (Atta spp.) to investigate the relative influence of gradients and environmental engineers on the abundance and species richness of woody plants. Methods. We conducted our research in South America's Cerrado. With a survey of plant recruits along a canopy cover gradient, and data on environmental conditions that influence plant recruitment, we fit statistical models that addressed the following questions: (1) Does A. laevigata modify the gradient in canopy cover found in our Cerrado site? (2) Do environmental conditions that influence woody plant establishment in the Cerrado vary with canopy cover or proximity to A. laevigata nests? (3) Do A. laevigata and canopy cover act independently or in concert to influence recruit abundance and species richness? Results. We found that environmental conditions previously shown to influence plant establishment in the Cerrado varied in concert with canopy cover, but that ants are not modifying the cover gradient or cover over nests. However, ants are modifying other local environmental conditions, and the magnitude and spatial extent of these changes is consistent across the gradient. In contrast to prior studies, we found that ant-related factors (e.g., proximity to nests, ant changes in surface conditions), rather than canopy cover, had the strongest effect on the abundance of plant recruits. However, the diversity of plants was influenced by both the engineer and the canopy cover gradient. Discussion. Atta laevigata in the Cerrado modify local conditions in ways that have strong but spatially restricted consequences for plant communities. We hypothesize that ants indirectly reduce seedling establishment by clearing litter and reducing soil moisture, which leads to seed and seedling desiccation. Altering soil nutrients could also reduce juvenile growth and survivorship; if so these indirect negative effects of engineering could exacerbate their direct effects of harvesting plants. The effects of Atta appear restricted to nest mounds, but they could be long-lasting because mounds persist long after a colony has died or migrated. Our results support the hypothesis that leaf-cutter ants play a dominant role in Cerrado plant demography. We suggest the ecological and economic footprint of these engineers may increase dramatically in coming decades due to the transformation of the Cerrado by human activities.
Data from: Animals alter precipitation legacies: trophic and ecosystem engineering effects on plant community temporal dynamics
1. Multi-year precipitation 'legacies' can have stronger effects on plant community composition than rainfall in the current growing season, but variation in the magnitude of these effects is not fully understood. Direct interactions between plants and animals, such as herbivory, and indirect interactions, such as ecosystem engineering (via changes in the physical environment), may influence precipitation legacies by altering mechanisms of lagged effects. However, the role of direct and indirect plant-animal interactions in determining the strength of precipitation legacies remains largely unexplored. 2. Here, we investigated effects of current growing season rainfall and precipitation legacies on grassland composition, and the influence of herbivory and ecosystem engineering interactions on these temporal dynamics. From 2009 to 2014, a period spanning high and low rainfall, we recorded plant cover in kangaroo rat exclosures and paired control plots that included both burrow and inter-burrow areas. We used linear mixed effects modeling and analysis of community dissimilarities to evaluate plant composition responses to current and previous growing season rainfall and kangaroo rat herbivory (presence of seed foraging) and ecosystem engineering (burrowing). 3. We found that community composition was more strongly affected by precipitation legacies than by current growing season rainfall. Greater precipitation in the previous growing season enhanced grass cover and reduced forb and legume cover. Kangaroo rat trophic and engineering interactions had counteracting effects on these legacies. While burrowing increased grass cover and thereby amplified the effects of previous growing season rainfall on community composition, legacies were suppressed by the presence of kangaroo rat foraging, which decreased grass cover. Further analysis revealed that kangaroo rat foraging and burrowing had conflicting effects on residual plant biomass prior to the growing season, suggesting that precipitation legacies were influenced by altered litter dynamics. 4. Synthesis. Our study demonstrates that animals can impact the strength of precipitation legacies through direct and indirect interactions with the plant species that drive lag effects. The influence of multiple types of plant-animal interactions on precipitation legacies may be important to consider for ecosystem management and when generating predictions of community composition and productivity in future ecosystems.
Data from: Shrubs as ecosystem engineers across an environmental gradient: effects on species richness and exotic plant invasion
Ecosystem-engineering plants modify the physical environment and can increase species diversity and exotic species invasion. At the individual level, the effects of ecosystem engineers on other plants often become more positive in stressful environments. In this study, we investigated whether the community-level effects of ecosystem engineers also become stronger in more stressful environments. Using comparative and experimental approaches, we assessed the ability of a native shrub (Ericameria ericoides) to act as an ecosystem engineer across a stress gradient in a coastal dune in northern California, USA. We found increased coarse organic matter and lower wind speeds within shrub patches. Growth of a dominant invasive grass (Bromus diandrus) was facilitated both by aboveground shrub biomass and by growing in soil taken from shrub patches. Experimental removal of shrubs negatively affected species most associated with shrubs and positively affected species most often found outside of shrubs. Counter to the stress-gradient hypothesis, the effects of shrubs on the physical environment and individual plant growth did not increase across the established stress gradient at this site. At the community level, shrub patches increased beta diversity, and contained greater rarified richness and exotic plant cover than shrub-free patches. Shrub effects on rarified richness increased with environmental stress, but effects on exotic cover and beta diversity did not. Our study provides evidence for the community-level effects of shrubs as ecosystem engineers in this system, but shows that these effects do not necessarily become stronger in more stressful environments.
Engineering the plant intracellular immune receptor Sr50 to restore recognition of the AvrSr50 escape mutant
<p>The datasets for '<strong>Engineering the plant intracellular immune receptor Sr50 to restore recognition of the AvrSr50 escape mutant</strong><strong>'</strong>.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>All_docking_models.zip</strong>: molecular docking models used to derive the initial structural hypothesis (Model I, Alternative models I and II). </p> <p><strong>Zdock1.AF2.zip</strong>: includes refined, relaxed structures of Model I. </p> <p><strong>Zdock5.AF2.zip</strong>: includes refined, relaxed structures of Alternative model II. </p> <p><strong>Zdock15.AF2.zip</strong>: includes refined, relaxed structures of Alternative moel I.</p> <p><strong>Model_II.zip</strong>: includes ColabDock outputs used as Model II.</p> <p><strong>Model_III.zip</strong>: includes ColabDock outputs used as Model III.</p> <p><strong>Model_IV.zip</strong>: includes ColabFold outputs used as Model IV.</p> <p><strong>Sr50*.AF.zip</strong>: predicted structures by ColabFold for the indicated pairs of the receptors and effectors. </p> <p> </p> <p>To read more about the workflow, please refer to https://github.com/s-kyungyong/Sr50-AvrSr50</p>
Soil engineering by ants facilitates plant compensation for large herbivore removal of aboveground biomass
<p>The interplay between top-down and bottom-up processes determines ecosystem productivity. Yet, the factors that mediate the balance between these opposing forces remain poorly understood. Furthering this challenge, complex and often cryptic factors like ecosystem engineering and trait-mediated interactions may play major roles in mediating the outcomes of top-down and bottom-up interactions. In semi-arid grasslands of northeastern China, we conducted a large-scale, three-year experiment to evaluate how soil engineering by ants and plasticity in plants independently and jointly influenced the top-down effects of grazing by a ubiquitous herbivore (cattle) on aboveground standing biomass of the dominant perennial grass, <i><span>Leymus chinensis</span></i>. Herbivory had strong top-down effects, reducing <i><span>L. chinensis</span></i> AB by 25% relative to baseline levels without cattle or ants. In contrast, soil engineering by ants facilitated weak bottom-up effects in the absence of herbivory. However, in the presence of herbivory, soil engineering effects were strong enough to fully offset herbivore removal of aboveground biomass. This outcome was mediated by <i><span>L. chinensis</span></i>'s plasticity in reallocating growth from below- to aboveground biomass, a result linked to additive effects of engineers and herbivores increasing soil N availability and engineering effects improving soil structure. Soil engineering increased soil N by 12%, promoting aboveground biomass. Herbivores increased soil N by 13% via defecation, but this increase failed to offset their reductions in aboveground biomass in isolation. However, when combined, engineers and herbivores increased soil N by 26% and engineers improved soil bulk density, facilitating <i><span>L. chinensis</span></i> to shift resource allocations from below- to aboveground biomass sufficiently to fully offset herbivore suppression of aboveground biomass. Our results demonstrate that soil engineering and trait-mediated effects of plant plasticity can strongly mediate the outcome of top-down and bottom-up interactions. These cryptic but perhaps ubiquitous processes may help to explain the long-debated phenomenon of plant compensatory responses to large grazers. </p>
Soil engineering by ants facilitates plant compensation for large herbivore removal of aboveground biomass
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Data from: Animals alter precipitation legacies: trophic and ecosystem engineering effects on plant community temporal dynamics
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Data from: Shrubs as ecosystem engineers across an environmental gradient: effects on species richness and exotic plant invasion
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Data from: Do an ecosystem engineer and environmental gradient act independently or in concert to shape juvenile plant communities? Tests with the leaf-cutter ant Atta laevigata in a Neotropical savanna
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Supplementary material 1 from: Van De Walle R, Massol F, Vandegehuchte ML, Bonte D (2022) The distribution and impact of an invasive plant species (Senecio inaequidens) on a dune building engineer (Calamagrostis arenaria). NeoBiota 72: 1-23. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.72.78511
Tables S1, S2, Figures S1, S2
Disturbance and the (surprising?) role of ecosystem engineering in explaining spatial patterns of non-native plant establishment
<p>The Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis is widely considered to be wrong but is rarely tested against alternative hypotheses. It predicts that soil disturbances and herbivory have identical impacts on species richness via identical mechanisms (reduction in biomass and in competition). An alternative hypothesis is that the specific traits of disturbance agents (small mammals) and plants differentially affects richness or abundance of different plant groups. We tested these hypotheses on a degu (<em>Octodon degus</em>) colony in central Chile. We ask whether native and non-native forbs respond differently to degu bioturbation on runways vs. herbivory on grazing lawns. We ask whether this can explain the increase in non-native plants on degu colonies. We found that biopedturbation did not explain the locations of non-native plants. We did not find direct evidence of grazing increasing non-native herbs either, but a grazing effect appears to be mediated by grass, which is the dominant cover. Further, we provide supplementary evidence to support our interpretation that a key mechanism of non-native spread is the formation of dry soil conditions on grazing lawns. Thus ecosystem engineering (alteration of soil qualities) may be an outcome of disturbances, which each interact with specific plant traits, to create the observed pattern of non-native spread in the colony. Based on these results we propose to extend Jentsch & White's (2019) concept of combined pulse/ disturbance events to the long-term process duality of ecosystem engineering/ disturbance.</p>
Data from: Modification of plant-induced responses by an insect ecosystem engineer influences the colonization behaviour of subsequent shelter-users
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Disturbance and the (surprising?) role of ecosystem engineering in explaining spatial patterns of non-native plant establishment
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Plant breeding involving genetic engineering does not result in unacceptable unintended effects in rice relative to conventional cross-breeding
GEO Series GSE152572. Oryza sativa. 39 samples. Type: Expression profiling by high throughput sequencing.
Metabolic engineering reveals the relative importance of different sugar catabolic pathways during growth of Aspergillus niger on plant biomass
GEO Series GSE196397. Aspergillus niger. 84 samples. Type: Expression profiling by high throughput sequencing.
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