Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 398-410 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Austral ecology |
| Volume | 46 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Publication status | Published - 20 Apr 2021 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Abstract
In island ecosystems, biological invasions are one of the major threats to native biodiversity and to ecosystem functioning. Invasive ornamental plants such as the alien palm tree Pinanga coronata in the Fiji islands can form mono-dominant stands in rainforests and displace native species. Using a functional trait-based approach, we investigated the impact of P. coronata on both above and belowground communities (i.e. plants and Collembola). Within a rainforest reserve on Fiji´s principal island, we sampled a total of 10 invaded and non-invaded plots and recorded five functional traits for plants and six for Collembola. We found that invasion by P. coronata led to a strong and significant decrease of native plants and Collembola taxonomic diversity. Ingress of P. coronata also induced a decrease in the functional diversity of plant communities and to a lesser extent of Collembola communities. P. coronata invasion led to a decrease of leaf carbon–nitrogen ratio (LCN), Leaf nitrogen content (LN), specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf dry matter content (LDMC) of plant communities, suggesting a change in litter properties compared to non-invaded communities. Plots with P. coronata were associated with large Collembola living at the soil surface with more trichobothria and pseudocelli, which are used as defence mechanisms. Using trait-matching, we also found that the strength of plant-soil relationships was higher (i.e. more stable) in non-invaded plots than in P. coronata-invaded plots. Lastly this study suggests that the main mechanism through which P. coronata alters soil communities is a change in plant properties rather than a change in the abiotic environment. Our trait-based approach underlines the negative impact of this alien palm invasion on native rainforest plant and soil fauna in Fiji, and the urgent need for on-the-ground action to conserve terrestrial island biodiversity in Fiji´s rainforests.
Keywords
- above-belowground interactions, biodiversity, biological invasion, collembola, functional traits, Pinanga coronata, plant communities, rainforest
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
- Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
- Environmental Science(all)
- Ecology
Sustainable Development Goals
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In: Austral ecology, Vol. 46, No. 3, 20.04.2021, p. 398-410.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - A functional trait-based approach to assess the impact of an alien palm invasion on plant and soil communities on a South Pacific island
AU - Forey, Estelle
AU - Lodhar, Sherri
AU - Gopaul, Sunil
AU - Boehmer, Hans Juergen
AU - Chauvat, Matthieu
N1 - Funding Information: We thank the European Commission for the attribution of the Erasmus Mundus Grant to E.F. that allowed us to establish this international research cooperation project. Lastly, we thanks the two anonymous reviewers for their suggestions and comments.
PY - 2021/4/20
Y1 - 2021/4/20
N2 - In island ecosystems, biological invasions are one of the major threats to native biodiversity and to ecosystem functioning. Invasive ornamental plants such as the alien palm tree Pinanga coronata in the Fiji islands can form mono-dominant stands in rainforests and displace native species. Using a functional trait-based approach, we investigated the impact of P. coronata on both above and belowground communities (i.e. plants and Collembola). Within a rainforest reserve on Fiji´s principal island, we sampled a total of 10 invaded and non-invaded plots and recorded five functional traits for plants and six for Collembola. We found that invasion by P. coronata led to a strong and significant decrease of native plants and Collembola taxonomic diversity. Ingress of P. coronata also induced a decrease in the functional diversity of plant communities and to a lesser extent of Collembola communities. P. coronata invasion led to a decrease of leaf carbon–nitrogen ratio (LCN), Leaf nitrogen content (LN), specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf dry matter content (LDMC) of plant communities, suggesting a change in litter properties compared to non-invaded communities. Plots with P. coronata were associated with large Collembola living at the soil surface with more trichobothria and pseudocelli, which are used as defence mechanisms. Using trait-matching, we also found that the strength of plant-soil relationships was higher (i.e. more stable) in non-invaded plots than in P. coronata-invaded plots. Lastly this study suggests that the main mechanism through which P. coronata alters soil communities is a change in plant properties rather than a change in the abiotic environment. Our trait-based approach underlines the negative impact of this alien palm invasion on native rainforest plant and soil fauna in Fiji, and the urgent need for on-the-ground action to conserve terrestrial island biodiversity in Fiji´s rainforests.
AB - In island ecosystems, biological invasions are one of the major threats to native biodiversity and to ecosystem functioning. Invasive ornamental plants such as the alien palm tree Pinanga coronata in the Fiji islands can form mono-dominant stands in rainforests and displace native species. Using a functional trait-based approach, we investigated the impact of P. coronata on both above and belowground communities (i.e. plants and Collembola). Within a rainforest reserve on Fiji´s principal island, we sampled a total of 10 invaded and non-invaded plots and recorded five functional traits for plants and six for Collembola. We found that invasion by P. coronata led to a strong and significant decrease of native plants and Collembola taxonomic diversity. Ingress of P. coronata also induced a decrease in the functional diversity of plant communities and to a lesser extent of Collembola communities. P. coronata invasion led to a decrease of leaf carbon–nitrogen ratio (LCN), Leaf nitrogen content (LN), specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf dry matter content (LDMC) of plant communities, suggesting a change in litter properties compared to non-invaded communities. Plots with P. coronata were associated with large Collembola living at the soil surface with more trichobothria and pseudocelli, which are used as defence mechanisms. Using trait-matching, we also found that the strength of plant-soil relationships was higher (i.e. more stable) in non-invaded plots than in P. coronata-invaded plots. Lastly this study suggests that the main mechanism through which P. coronata alters soil communities is a change in plant properties rather than a change in the abiotic environment. Our trait-based approach underlines the negative impact of this alien palm invasion on native rainforest plant and soil fauna in Fiji, and the urgent need for on-the-ground action to conserve terrestrial island biodiversity in Fiji´s rainforests.
KW - above-belowground interactions
KW - biodiversity
KW - biological invasion
KW - collembola
KW - functional traits
KW - Pinanga coronata
KW - plant communities
KW - rainforest
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85099225482&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/aec.12995
DO - 10.1111/aec.12995
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85099225482
VL - 46
SP - 398
EP - 410
JO - Austral ecology
JF - Austral ecology
SN - 1442-9985
IS - 3
ER -