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27 results for “cushion plants”
Contrasting effects of two phenotypes of an alpine cushion plant on understory species drive community assembly
<p><span>In alpine systems, cushion plants act as foundation species by ameliorating local environmental conditions. Empirical studies indicate that contrasting phenotypes of alpine cushion species have different effects on understory plant species, either facilitative or competitive. Furthermore, dependent species within each community type might also exhibit different responses to each cushion phenotype, which can be clustered into several "response groups". Additionally, these species-groups specific responses to alpine cushion species phenotypes could alter community assembly. However, very few studies have assessed responses of dependent communities at species-group levels, in particular for both above- and below-ground communities. Here, we selected a loose and a tight phenotype of the alpine cushion species <em>Thylacospermum</em> <em>caespitosum</em> in two sites in northwest China, and use the relative intensity of interactions index to quantify cushion plant effects on subordinate communities of plants and soil fungi and bacteria. We assessed variations in responses of both above- and below-ground organisms to cushion plant effects at species-group level. Species-group level analyses showed that the effects of the phenotype varied among groups of each of the three community types, and different species-groups were composed of unique taxa. Additionally, we found that loose cushions enhanced stochastic processes in community assembly, for plants and soil fungi but not for soil bacteria. These variations of phenotypic effects on different species-group induced contrasting taxonomic composition between groups and altered community assembly thereby. Our study highlights the occurrence of contrasting effects of two phenotypes of a foundation cushion plant on understory plants, soil fungi and bacteria community composition, but not necessarily on their richness. We also showed that assessing responses of understory species at the species-group level allows a more realistic and mechanistic understanding of biotic interactions both for above- and below-ground communities.</span></p>
Contrasting effects of two phenotypes of an alpine cushion plant on understory species drive community assembly
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Overgrowth competition or facilitation from cushion plants: Implication for the role of plant-plant interactions
<p>Our data reports the annual growth and age of the shrub <em>Caragana versicolor</em> overgrown or free of the cushion plant <em>Thylacospermum ceaspitosum</em>.<span> The observations and sampling were performed at ~5000 m.a.s.l., on the East facing slope of the Korzok range, on the North-Eastern side of Lake Tso Moriri above Korzok village (4522 m a.s.l.). </span><span>Our study demonstrates that the growth of </span><em>Caragana versicolor</em> is repressed by the competitive effect of the cushion plant <em>Thylacospermum ceaspitosum</em>, and shows no evidence of facilitation between the two co-occurring species.</p>
Overgrowth competition or facilitation from cushion plants: Implication for the role of plant-plant interactions
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Data from: Cushion plant morphology controls biogenic capability and facilitation effects of Silene acaulis along an elevation gradient
The stress-gradient hypothesis (SGH) predicts that the balance of plant–plant interactions shifts along abiotic environmental gradients, with facilitation becoming more frequent under stressful conditions. However, recent studies have challenged this perspective, reporting that positive interactions are, in some cases, more common at the intermediate level of environmental severity gradients. Here, we test whether and how neighbour effects by Silene acaulis cushions vary along a 700 m wide altitudinal transect, in relation to cushion morphological traits and environmental severity. Field measurements along the gradient, within and outside cushions, included (i) species richness and cover of coexisting vascular plants; (ii) cushion morphology; (iii) above- and below-ground microclimate; and (iv) soil quality. We used the relative interaction index to decouple neighbour trait effects and environmental severity effects on plant diversity at different elevations. The ability of the cushion plant to facilitate heterospecifics shifts considerably along the elevation gradient, being greatest at the intermediate level. On the other hand, Silene morphological traits steadily change along the gradient, from lax, soft and flat-shaped cushion habits at low elevation to tightly knit and dome-shaped habits at high elevation. Cushion morphological changes are associated with mitigating effects on microclimate, indicating that cushions effectively act as a heat-trap at medium and high elevations, while at low elevations the soft and flat cushions avoid excessive heat accumulation by tight coupling with the surrounding atmosphere. At the upper end of the gradient, cushion cespitose–pulvinate compactness and high stem density appear to be critical traits in modulating the net effect of plant–plant interaction, since the space available for hosting other vascular species is considerably reduced. In conclusion, this work provides a mechanistic link between plant morphological traits, associated biogenic microclimate changes and variation in net plant–plant interactions along the explored severity gradient. Our findings support an alternative conceptual model to SGH, with plant facilitation collapsing at the upper extreme of the abiotic stress gradient.
Data from: Facilitation consequences for reproduction of the benefactor cushion plant Laretia acaulis along an elevational gradient: costs or benefits?
Environmental stress may favour facilitative interactions among plants but whether these interactions are positive for the benefactor and how this depends on stress factors, remains to be determined. We studied the effect of beneficiary cover and biomass on reproduction of the benefactor cushion plant Laretia acaulis (Apiaceae) in the central Chilean Andes during three years. Study sites were situated along an elevational gradient at 2600, 2800, 3000 and 3150 m a.s.l. This range comprises a cold- and a drought-stress gradient, with moisture increasing and temperature decreasing with elevation. We studied the effect of natural gradients in beneficiary cover and of experimental cover removal on cushion flower and fruit production. Beneficiary cover had a negative effect on flower production but not on infructescence and fruit densities or fruit weights. A positive effect of beneficiaries on the fraction of flowers converted into fruits was detected for hermaphrodite cushions. The effect of beneficiary cover on flowering was independent of elevation or cushion gender, although these latter factors explained most of the variation. Removing the aboveground parts of the beneficiaries positively affected flowering at 2800 m a.s.l. but not at the other elevations. Our results suggest negative effects of facilitation on L. acaulis flowering, but these are neutralized in fruit production. Surprisingly, this conclusion holds along the entire elevational or stress gradient. This suggests that this system of facilitation is evolutionarily stable and not very sensitive to environmental change. It remains to be tested, however, whether facilitation affects fitness via growth and long-term survival in these slow-growing alpine cushions.
Data from: Differences in the fungal communities nursed by two genetic groups of the alpine cushion plant, Silene acaulis
Foundation plants shape the composition of local biotic communities and abiotic environments, but the impact of a plant's intraspecific variations on these processes is poorly understood. We examined these links in the alpine cushion moss campion (Silene acaulis) on two neighboring mountain ranges in the French Alps. Genotyping of cushion plants revealed two genetic clusters matching known subspecies. The exscapa subspecies was found on both limestone and granite while the longiscapa one was only found on limestone. Even on similar limestone bedrock, cushion soils from the two S. acaulis subspecies deeply differed in their impact on soil abiotic conditions. They further strikingly differed from each other and from the surrounding bare soils in fungal community composition. Plant genotype variations accounted for a large part of the fungal composition variability in cushion soils, even when considering geography or soil chemistry, and particularly for the dominant molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs). Both saprophytic and biotrophic fungal taxa were related to the MOTUs recurrently associated with a single plant genetic cluster. Moreover, the putative phytopathogens were abundant, and within the same genus (Cladosporium) or species (Pyrenopeziza brassicae), MOTUs showing specificity for each plant subspecies were found. Our study highlights the combined influences of bedrock and plant genotype on fungal recruitment into cushion soils and suggests the coexistence of two mechanisms, an indirect selection resulting from the colonization of an engineered soil by free-living saprobes, and a direct selection resulting from direct plant-fungi interactions.
FIGURE 51 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 51. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult, SEM micrograph: medio-anterior part of body, ventro-lateral view. Scale bar 200 Μm.
FIGURE 50 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 50. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult, SEM micrograph: anterior part of body, lateral view. Scale bar 200 Μm.
FIGURE 6–9 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 6–9. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult: 6—anterior part of left half of subcapitulum, ventral view; 7—palp; 8—chelicera (Trägårdh's organ damaged), antiaxial view; 9—ovipositor. Scale bars (6–8) 20 Μm, (9) 50 Μm.
FIGURE 49 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 49. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult, SEM micrograph: ventral view. Scale bar 400 Μm.
FIGURE 18–19 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 18–19. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., deutonymph: 18—dorsal view (legs not illustrated); 19—lateral view (legs except basal part of legs III, IV not illustrated). Scale bar 100 Μm.
FIGURE 3–5 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 3–5. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult: 3—anterior part of body, lateral view; 4—posterior view; 5—posterior part of body, lateral view. Scale bar 100 Μm.
FIGURES 20–25 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURES 20–25. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., nymphs: 20—epimeral region of protonymph; 21—epimeral region of deutonymph; 22—epimeral region of tritonymph; 23—anogenital region of protonymph; 24—anogenital region of deutonymph; 25—anogenital region of tritonymph. Scale bars (20, 21, 23, 24) 50 Μm, (22, 26) 100 Μm.
FIGURES 39–41 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURES 39–41. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., dissected adult, transmitted light microscopy images: 39—porose area Ah; 40—median part of epimeres II–IV; 41—postanal porose area. Without scale bar.
FIGURES 26–29 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURES 26–29. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., juvenile instars: 26—leg I of larva, right, antiaxial view; 27—leg II of larva, without tarsus, right, antiaxial view; 28—leg III of larva, left, paraxial view; 29—leg IV of protonymph, right, antiaxial view. Scale bars (26–28) 20 Μm, (29) 50 Μm.
FIGURE 14–17 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 14–17. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., larva: 14—dorsal view (legs not illustrated); 15—ventral view (subcapitulum and legs except trochanters not illustrated); 16—subcapitulum, left half, ventral view, and palp; 17—chelicera, antiaxial view. Scale bars (14, 15) 50 Μm, (16, 17) 20 Μm.
FIGURE 2 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 2. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult: ventral view (legs except trochanters IV not illustrated). Scale bar 100 Μm.
FIGURE 1 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURE 1. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult: dorsal view (legs not illustrated). Scale bar 100 Μm.
FIGURES 10–13 in Zealandozetes southensis gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari, Oribatida, Maudheimiidae) from alpine cushions plant in New Zealand
FIGURES 10–13. Zealandozetes southensis sp. nov., adult: 10—leg I, right, antiaxial view; 11—leg II, tarsus not illustrated, left, paraxial view; 12—leg III, left, antiaxial view; 13—leg IV, left, antiaxial view. Scale bar 50 Μm.
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