scholarly journals Specialist Bee Species Are Larger and Less Phylogenetically Distinct Than Generalists in Tropical Plant–Bee Interaction Networks

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael Lobo Raiol ◽  
Markus Gastauer ◽  
Alistair John Campbell ◽  
Rafael Cabral Borges ◽  
Marcelo Awade ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Interaction Networks ◽  
Set Covering ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Tropical Plant ◽  
Ecological Features ◽  
Evolutionary Distinctiveness ◽  
Specialist Bees

Bee pollinators are key components of terrestrial ecosystems. Evidence is mounting that bees are globally in decline, and species with a higher degree of specialization are the most vulnerable to local extinction. However, ecological features that could explain bee specialization remain poorly tested, especially in tropical species. Here, we aim to determine the most specialized bee species and their associated ecological traits in tropical plant–bee interaction networks, answering three questions: (1) Which bees in the interaction networks are specialists? (2) Is body size related to their role as specialists in interaction networks? (3) Are there phylogenetic relationships between the bee species identified as specialists? We used fifteen quantitative plant–bee interaction networks from different Brazilian biomes covering 1,702 interactions (386 bee and 717 plant species). We used the normalized degree (standardized number of partners) as a metric to determine trophic specialization of bee species. Body size was estimated by measuring intertegular distance (ITD), i.e., the distance between the bases of the wings on the thorax. Evolutionary distinctiveness (ED) was used to quantify species uniqueness, i.e., the singularity of species in the phylogenetic tree. Relationships between dietary specialism, ITD and ED were assessed using generalized linear models. We detected 34 specialist bee species (9% of total species), distributed in 13 genera, and four families. ITD and ED were important variables explaining the specialization of tropical bee species. Specialists were larger and less phylogenetically distinct than expected by chance. Based on a large data set covering some of the main tropical biomes, our results suggest that loss of specialist bees from Brazilian plant–bee networks could have deleterious consequences for native plant species preferentially pollinated by large-bodied bees. Moreover, by affecting more evolutionarily distinct species, i.e., those with fewer extant relatives, the loss of specialist bees will likely affect few clades but can result on considerable loss of evolutionary history and phylogenetic diversity in the Brazilian bee communities. The results are important for decision-making concerning conservation measures for these species and may also encourage the development of sustainable management techniques for bees.

scholarly journals Land-Use Change in a Mexican Dry Forest Promotes Species Turnover and Increases Nestedness in Plant-Hummingbird Networks: Are Exotic Plants Taking Over?

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 194008292097895
Author(s):  
Sergio Díaz Infante ◽  
Carlos Lara ◽  
María del Coro Arizmendi
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Species Turnover ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Tropical Dry Forest ◽  
Exotic Plants ◽  
Dry Forest ◽  
Interaction Networks ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Plant Interactions

Background Despite the increasing knowledge of plant-pollinator interaction networks, the effects of human-induced disturbances on them have barely been studied. We analyzed whether land-use changes modified the structure and topology of plant-hummingbird interaction networks or promoted the integration of exotic plant species. Methods Fieldwork was carried out in two vegetation areas in Mexico: a protected tropical dry forest and nearby disturbed sites. For two years we registered hummingbird-plant interactions monthly in each area. Then, we constructed interaction matrices from these data and compared their assemblage structure. Results The conversion of original dry forest to disturbed habitats impacted some assemblage attributes of the plant-hummingbird network. In the disturbed sites, there were more plant species, mainly exotics, and one additional hummingbird species. Most network attributes remained the same except niche width and nestedness (pattern of interactions where generalists and specialists tend to interact with generalists whereas specialist-to-specialist interactions are infrequent), which were higher in the disturbed network. The generalist core in the disturbed network contained half of the core species in the conserved network. Implications for conservation Exotic plants that strongly integrated into the disturbed network may exert a large influence on network dynamics in these areas. Identifying the interacting species and their role provides valuable insights for their conservation and protection. Hummingbirds attracting native plant species have a potential for practical or ornamental use, and hummingbirds presence in human-modified landscapes not only provides positive aesthetic value to people but can additionally contribute to conserving native plants and the biodiversity associated with them.

scholarly journals Characterising the response of plant-mycorrhizal networks to a changing alpine environment

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lesley Wild
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Global Environmental Change ◽  
Calluna Vulgaris ◽  
Interaction Networks ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Alpine Plant ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Mycorrhizal Networks ◽  
Alpine Plant Communities

<p>Anthropogenic climate change effects are particularly acute in alpine ecosystems. New Zealand’s alpine regions are experiencing climatic changes at higher than global mean rates, particularly warming and drying. These communities are also facing increasing rates of invasion by exotic plant species. Notably, multiple drivers of change, such as warming and invasion, have been evidenced to interact and facilitate greater ecosystem change. This is of particular concern as New Zealand's alpine plant communities are unique globally and represent national hotspots of biodiversity. Therefore there is a pressing need to understand how they may be affected by the independent and interactive drivers of global environmental change. Alpine plant species form ubiquitous and obligate symbiotic associations with mutualistic mycorrhizal fungi. Plant-mycorrhiza networks are foundational interactions that underpin the diversity and function of terrestrial communities. Plant-mycorrhiza networks are also particularly sensitive to temperature shifts and plant invasions. In this thesis, I investigate the independent and interactive effects of warming and the presence of an invasive species (Common Heather, Calluna vulgaris) on the fungal community composition and the network of mycorrhiza interactions of alpine plants in Tongariro National Park, New Zealand. I sampled the roots of plant species within the Warming and species Removal in Mountains (WaRM) experiment, a factorial combination of warming and Calluna vulgaris removals (n = 8 per treatment) established in TNP in 2015. The plant community at the site consists of plant species that form either arbuscular mycorrhizas or ericoid mycorrhizas. I selected the three most abundant plant species of each mycorrhizal type at the site scale for sampling in each of the 32 plots. DNA was extracted from plant roots, and the internal transcribed spacer of the fungal rRNA gene was amplified by PCR and sequenced on the Illumina Mi-seq platform. Sequence data was demultiplexed and fungal OTUs were identified using the PIPITS pipeline, referencing the UNITE fungal database. In my second chapter, I consider plant species and treatment effects on the diversity and community composition of mycorrhizal fungi. I found WaRM treatments were significant determinants of mycorrhizal compositions in host plant species. Warming simultaneously increased the mycorrhizal fungal diversity and richness of invasive Calluna vulgaris and reduced that of the native host plant species. In chapter 3, using network analyses from the bipartite package of R, I constructed 32 plant mycorrhizal networks of the plot sampled and calculated metrics pertaining to properties of network structure and robustness at the whole network, trophic-level and species/mycorrhizal fungal OTU scales. I then examined the responses of these metrics to the WaRM treatments. I found that warming significantly reduced the robustness of native plant-mycorrhizal networks and increased the strength of the interaction network associated with invasive C. vulgaris. The removal of C. vulgaris had a secondary effect on how mycorrhizal fungal compositions and interaction networks responded to warming. As a generalist C. vulgaris was critical for the ongoing diversity of ericoid mycorrhizal fungi, particularly under warming. However, C. vulgaris simultaneously suppressed the mycorrhizal interaction- networks of native plant species, which further fragmented under warming. I conclude that warming and the presence of invasive C. vulgaris synergistically reduced and decentralised the native plant-mycorrhizal interactions within the network. In summary, my thesis demonstrates the below-ground interactions of alpine plant communities are destabilising under multiple interacting drivers of global environmental change.</p>

scholarly journals Characterising the response of plant-mycorrhizal networks to a changing alpine environment

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lesley Wild
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Global Environmental Change ◽  
Calluna Vulgaris ◽  
Interaction Networks ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Alpine Plant ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Mycorrhizal Networks ◽  
Alpine Plant Communities

<p>Anthropogenic climate change effects are particularly acute in alpine ecosystems. New Zealand’s alpine regions are experiencing climatic changes at higher than global mean rates, particularly warming and drying. These communities are also facing increasing rates of invasion by exotic plant species. Notably, multiple drivers of change, such as warming and invasion, have been evidenced to interact and facilitate greater ecosystem change. This is of particular concern as New Zealand's alpine plant communities are unique globally and represent national hotspots of biodiversity. Therefore there is a pressing need to understand how they may be affected by the independent and interactive drivers of global environmental change. Alpine plant species form ubiquitous and obligate symbiotic associations with mutualistic mycorrhizal fungi. Plant-mycorrhiza networks are foundational interactions that underpin the diversity and function of terrestrial communities. Plant-mycorrhiza networks are also particularly sensitive to temperature shifts and plant invasions. In this thesis, I investigate the independent and interactive effects of warming and the presence of an invasive species (Common Heather, Calluna vulgaris) on the fungal community composition and the network of mycorrhiza interactions of alpine plants in Tongariro National Park, New Zealand. I sampled the roots of plant species within the Warming and species Removal in Mountains (WaRM) experiment, a factorial combination of warming and Calluna vulgaris removals (n = 8 per treatment) established in TNP in 2015. The plant community at the site consists of plant species that form either arbuscular mycorrhizas or ericoid mycorrhizas. I selected the three most abundant plant species of each mycorrhizal type at the site scale for sampling in each of the 32 plots. DNA was extracted from plant roots, and the internal transcribed spacer of the fungal rRNA gene was amplified by PCR and sequenced on the Illumina Mi-seq platform. Sequence data was demultiplexed and fungal OTUs were identified using the PIPITS pipeline, referencing the UNITE fungal database. In my second chapter, I consider plant species and treatment effects on the diversity and community composition of mycorrhizal fungi. I found WaRM treatments were significant determinants of mycorrhizal compositions in host plant species. Warming simultaneously increased the mycorrhizal fungal diversity and richness of invasive Calluna vulgaris and reduced that of the native host plant species. In chapter 3, using network analyses from the bipartite package of R, I constructed 32 plant mycorrhizal networks of the plot sampled and calculated metrics pertaining to properties of network structure and robustness at the whole network, trophic-level and species/mycorrhizal fungal OTU scales. I then examined the responses of these metrics to the WaRM treatments. I found that warming significantly reduced the robustness of native plant-mycorrhizal networks and increased the strength of the interaction network associated with invasive C. vulgaris. The removal of C. vulgaris had a secondary effect on how mycorrhizal fungal compositions and interaction networks responded to warming. As a generalist C. vulgaris was critical for the ongoing diversity of ericoid mycorrhizal fungi, particularly under warming. However, C. vulgaris simultaneously suppressed the mycorrhizal interaction- networks of native plant species, which further fragmented under warming. I conclude that warming and the presence of invasive C. vulgaris synergistically reduced and decentralised the native plant-mycorrhizal interactions within the network. In summary, my thesis demonstrates the below-ground interactions of alpine plant communities are destabilising under multiple interacting drivers of global environmental change.</p>

Native plant species field evaluation in salt desert: good materials, bad situation

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Grant-Hoffman ◽  
S. Parr ◽  
T. Blanke
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Field Evaluation ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Native Plant Species ◽  
Salt Desert

Ten-year persistence of native plant species on a green roof in Northeast US

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 227-234
Author(s):  
Jessica D Lubell ◽  
Bryan Connolly ◽  
Kristina N Jones
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Green Roof ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Native Plant Species ◽  
Northeast Us

ALTERED POLLINATION ECOLOGY OF A NATIVE PLANT SPECIES IN THE PRESENCE OF AN ATTRACTIVE NON-NATIVE PLANT SPECIES

Rhodora ◽  
10.3119/18-11 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 121 (987) ◽  
pp. 159
Author(s):  
Adam J. Ramsey ◽  
Steven M. Ballou ◽  
Jennifer R. Mandel
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Pollination Ecology ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Native Plant Species

scholarly journals Native Plant Capacity for Gentle Remediation in Heavily Polluted Mines

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1769
Author(s):  
María Noelia Jiménez ◽  
Gianluigi Bacchetta ◽  
Francisco Bruno Navarro ◽  
Mauro Casti ◽  
Emilia Fernández-Ondoño
Keyword(s):  
Trace Elements ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Contaminated Soils ◽  
Aerial Part ◽  
Bioaccumulation Factor ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Dittrichia Viscosa ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Cistus Salviifolius ◽  
Plant Capacity

The use of plant species to stabilize and accumulate trace elements in contaminated soils is considered of great usefulness given the difficulty of decontaminating large areas subjected to mining for long periods. In this work, the bioaccumulation of trace elements is studied by relating the concentrations in leaves and roots of three plants of Mediterranean distribution (Dittrichia viscosa, Cistus salviifolius, Euphorbia pithyusa subsp. cupanii) with the concentrations of trace elements in contaminated and uncontaminated soils. Furthermore, in the case of D. viscosa, to know the concentration of each element by biomass, the pool of trace elements was determined both in the aerial part and in the roots. The bioaccumulation factor was not high enough in any of the species studied to be considered as phytoextractors. However, species like the ones studied in this work that live on soils with a wide range of concentration of trace elements and that develop a considerable biomass could be considered for stabilization of contaminated soils. The plant species studied in this work are good candidates for gentle-remediation options in the polluted Mediterranean.

scholarly journals Herbivory and dominance shifts among exotic and congeneric native plant species during plant community establishment

Oecologia ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 180 (2) ◽  
pp. 507-517 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Engelkes ◽  
Annelein Meisner ◽  
Elly Morriën ◽  
Olga Kostenko ◽  
Wim H. Van der Putten ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Community ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Native Plant Species
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