Do the impacts of alien invasive plants differ from expansive native ones? An experimental study on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi communities

Marta L Majewska,Szymon Zubek,Anna M Stefanowicz,Marcin Nobis,Janusz Błaszkowski,Kaja Rola

doi:10.1007/s00374-018-1283-8

Abstract

No studies have compared so far the effects of alien invasive and expansive native (widespread, mono-dominant) plants on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). Four global or European most successful invaders (Impatiens glandulifera, Reynoutria japonica, Rudbeckia laciniata, Solidago gigantea) and two expansive plants native to Europe (Artemisia vulgaris, Phalaris arundinacea) were grown in pots to elucidate the magnitude and direction of changes in AMF abundance, species richness, and species composition in soils from under multispecies native vegetation. In a second stage, the effects of these changes on a native plant, Plantago lanceolata, were assessed. Plant species identity had larger impact on AMF abundance, species richness, and species composition as well as on P. lanceolata than origin of the species (alien vs. native). This could be due to the character of AMF relationships with the plants, i.e., their mycorrhizal status and dependency on AMF. However, the alterations induced by the plant species in soil chemical properties rather than in AMF community were the major drivers of differences in shoot mass and photosynthetic performance of P. lanceolata. We determined that the plants produced species-specific effects on soil properties that, in turn, resulted in species-specific soil feedbacks on the native plant. These effects were not consistent within groups of invaders or natives.

Highlights

Plant invasions are one of the most important threats to biodiversity and significant drivers of environmental degradation and change on a global scale
The roots of all surveyed plant species were colonized by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) except those of R. japonica
We compared for the first time the effects of invasive and expansive native plants on the aforementioned AMF community attributes and the performance of a native plant grown in soils conditioned by both groups of plants

Summary

Introduction

Plant invasions are one of the most important threats to biodiversity and significant drivers of environmental degradation and change on a global scale. The disturbance in the stable AMF communities as a result of invaders’ colonization can decrease native and increase alien plant performance, facilitating plant invasions (Stinson et al 2006; Shah et al 2009; Xiao et al 2014). The survey performed by Tanner and Gange (2013) and Zubek et al (2016) demonstrated that Reynoutria japonica reduced AMF abundance and species richness. The changes in AMF abundance, species richness, and species composition should be considered as an important mechanism by which invasive plants outcompete native species (Hawkes et al 2006; Zhang et al 2010; Tanner and Gange 2013)

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion