The bud and root sprouting capacity of Alternanthera philoxeroides after over-wintering on sediments of a drained canal

Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb. is one of many aggressive invasive plants that can grow in diverse habitats. Aquatic A. philoxeroides forms dense floating mats over the water surface. However, when water levels decrease during winter, some mats become stranded on exposed sediments and are thus exposed to air. Do the stems of these mats possess the capacity to develop new shoots during the next growing season? In this study, we examined the sprouting of sediment-stranded over-wintering mats of A. philoxeroides. Stems of the over-wintering mats were divided into three types (dry, withered, and fresh stems) depending on moisture content and were immersed in water for 4 weeks to observe the sprouting of axillary buds and roots. The results showed that withered stems yielded much more biomass than dry or fresh stems. Stem moisture content significantly affected the sprouting rate and the length growth rate of buds and roots. Dry stems lacked reproductive capacity. The sprouting rate and length growth rate of the buds and roots were higher in fresh stems than in withered stems. Furthermore, the mean values of the bud sprouting rate and the bud length growth rate were highest during the first week, i.e., most of buds sprouted within 1 week or less. Our results suggest that more than 70% (on a dry weight basis) of the stems in stranded mats possessed rapid sprouting capacity even after over-wintering on the sediment for more than 2 months. This strategy may be an adaptation to the fluctuations inherent in many aquatic habitats, and it possibly explains why A. philoxeroides can flourish even after a dry winter. Handling editor: S. M. Thomaz     

Phenotypic plasticity of invasive Alternanthera philoxeroides in relation to different water availability, compared to its native congener

Phenotypic plasticity and genetic differentiation are two possible mechanisms that plants use to cope with varying environments. Although alligator weed (Alternanthera philoxeroides) possesses very low genetic diversity, this alien weed has successfully invaded diverse habitats with considerably varying water availability (from swamps to dry lands) in China. In contrast, its native congener (Alternanthera sessilis) has a much narrower ecological breadth, and is usually found in moist habitats. To understand the mechanisms underlying the contrasting pattern, we performed a greenhouse experiment to compare the reaction norms of alligator weed with those of its native congener, in which water availability was manipulated. Our results revealed that the two congeners had similar direction of phenotypic plasticity. However, A. philoxeroides showed greater plasticity in amount than did A. sessilis in many traits examined during the switch from wet to drought treatment. Nearly all of the phenotypic variance in A. philoxeroides could be ascribed to plasticity, while A. sessilis had a much higher fraction of phenotypic variance that could be explained by genotypic variation. These interspecific differences in plastic responses to variable water availability partially explained the difference in spatial distribution of the two congeners.     

水体溶氧影响陆生植物喜旱莲子草(Alternanthera philoxeroides)和牛鞭草(Hemarthria altissima)对完全水淹的耐受力

溶氧是水环境中一个重要的环境因子,为了探讨水中的溶氧含量水平是否会对陆生植物的耐淹能力造成影响,研究了陆生植物喜旱莲子草(Alternanthera philoxeroides)和牛鞭草(Hemarthria altissima)在遭受不同溶氧含量水体完全淹没后的生长表现、存活情况和非结构碳水化合物的变化。实验结果表明:(1)水体中的溶氧含量显著影响了处于完全水淹环境中的喜旱莲子草和牛鞭草的存活。受高溶氧水体完全水淹的喜旱莲子草和牛鞭草主茎的完好程度和存活叶的数量均显著高于遭受低溶氧水体完全水淹的喜旱莲子草和牛鞭草,喜旱莲子草和牛鞭草在高溶氧水体完全水淹后的生物量比低溶氧水体完全水淹后要高;(2)水体中的溶氧含量显著影响了处于完全水淹环境中的喜旱莲子草和牛鞭草的生长,受高溶氧水体完全水淹的喜旱莲子草主茎伸长生长和不定根生长显著强于受低溶氧水体完全水淹的喜旱莲子草,在不定根的生长上牛鞭草也具有同样的表现。(3)高溶氧水环境有利于减小被完全淹没的喜旱莲子草和牛鞭草的碳水化合物消耗,两种植物在受高溶氧完全水淹后体内具有的非结构性碳水化合物含量均比受低溶氧完全水淹后高。(4)喜旱莲子草比牛鞭草能更好地耐受完全水淹,当处于低溶氧完全水淹时表现得更为明显,本研究表明入侵物种喜旱莲子草比本地物种牛鞭草具有更强的环境适应能力和水淹耐受能力。     

Effects of simulated herbivory and resource availability on the invasive plant, Alternanthera philoxeroides in different habitats

In biological control programs, the insect natural enemy’s ability to suppress the plant invader may be affected by abiotic factors, such as resource availability, that can influence plant growth and reproduction. Understanding plant tolerance to herbivory under different environmental conditions will help to improve biocontrol efficacy. The invasive alligator weed (Alternanthera philoxeroides) has been successfully controlled by natural enemies in many aquatic habitats but not in terrestrial environments worldwide. This study examined the effects of different levels of simulated leaf herbivory on the growth of alligator weed at two levels of fertilization and three levels of soil moisture (aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial habitats). Increasing levels of simulated (manual) defoliation generally caused decreases in total biomass in all habitats. However, the plant appeared to respond differently to high levels of herbivory in the three habitats. Terrestrial plants showed the highest below–above ground mass ratio (R/S), indicating the plant is more tolerant to herbivory in terrestrial habitats than in aquatic habitats. The unfertilized treatment exhibited greater tolerance than the fertilized treatment in the terrestrial habitat at the first stage of this experiment (day 15), but fertilizer appears not to have influenced tolerance at the middle and last stages of the experiment. No such difference was found in semi-aquatic and aquatic habitats. These findings suggest that plant tolerance is affected by habitats and soil nutrients and this relationship could influence the biological control outcome. Plant compensatory response to herbivory under different environmental conditions should, therefore, be carefully considered when planning to use biological control in management programs against invasive plants.     

Phenotypic plasticity rather than locally adapted ecotypes allows the invasive alligator weed to colonize a wide range of habitats

Both phenotypic plasticity and locally adapted ecotypes may contribute to the success of invasive species in a wide range of habitats. Here, we conducted common garden experiments and molecular marker analysis to test the two alternative hypotheses in invasive alligator weed (Alternanthera philoxeroides), which colonizes both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Ninety individuals from three pairs of aquatic versus terrestrial populations across southern China were analyzed, using inter simple sequence repeat (ISSR) marker, to examine population differentiation in neutral loci. Two common gardens simulating aquatic and terrestrial habitats were set up to examine population differentiation in quantitative traits. We found no evidence of population differentiation in both neutral loci and quantitative traits. Most individuals shared the same ISSR genotype. Meanwhile, plants from different habitats showed similar reaction norms across the two common gardens. In particular, plants allocated much more biomass to the belowground roots in the terrestrial environment, where alligator weed may lose part or all of the aboveground shoots because of periodical or accidental disturbances, than those in the aquatic environment. The combined evidence from molecular marker analysis and common garden experiments support the plasticity hypothesis rather than the ecotype hypothesis in explaining the adaptation of alligator weed in a wide range of habitats.     

Recovery dynamics of growth, photosynthesis and carbohydrate accumulation after de-submergence: a comparison between two wetland plants showing escape and quiescence strategies

Background and Aims

The capacity for fast-growth recovery after de-submergence is important for establishment of riparian species in a water-level-fluctuation zone. Recovery patterns of two wetland plants, Alternanthera philoxeroides and Hemarthria altissima, showing ‘escape’ and ‘quiescence’ responses, respectively, during submergence were investigated.

Methods

Leaf and root growth and photosynthesis were monitored continuously during 10 d of recovery following 20 d of complete submergence. Above- and below-ground dry weights, as well as carbohydrate concentrations, were measured several times during the experiment.

Key Results

Both species remobilized stored carbohydrate during submergence. Although enhanced internode elongation depleted the carbohydrate storage in A. philoxeroides during submergence, this species resumed leaf growth 3 d after de-submergence concomitant with restoration of the maximal photosynthetic capacity. In contrast, some sucrose was conserved in shoots of H. altissima during submergence, which promoted rapid re-growth of leaves 2 d after de-submergence and earlier than the full recovery of photosynthesis. The recovery of root growth was delayed by 1–2 d compared with leaves in both species.

Conclusions

Submergence tolerance of the escape and quiescence strategies entails not only the corresponding regulation of growth, carbohydrate catabolism and energy metabolism during submergence but also co-ordinated recovery of photosynthesis, growth and carbohydrate partitioning following de-submergence.     

Plasticity and ontogenetic drift of biomass allocation in response to above- and below-ground resource availabilities in perennial herbs: a case study of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Alternanthera philoxeroides</Emphasis>

Changes in plant biomass allocation in response to varying resource availabilities may result from ontogenetic drift caused by allometric growth (i.e., apparent plasticity), a true adjustment of ontogenetic trajectories (true plasticity) or both (complex plasticity). Given that the root allocation of annual species usually decreases during the growth, the developmentally explicit model predicts that annual herbs will exhibit true plasticity in root allocation under above-ground resource limitation and apparent plasticity for moderate stress of below-ground resource. For perennial species, the root allocation of which increases during growth, the reverse patterns would be expected. In this study, we tested the developmentally explicit model with a perennial weed, Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb. We report its adaptive changes and ontogenetic drift of root allocation in response to different resource levels (i.e., light, water and nutrient availability) by comparing root allocation on both an age and a size basis. The root allocation of A. philoxeroides increased with the size (i.e., ontogenetic drift) during the growth, and exhibited significant changes in response to different resource availabilities. Furthermore, the root allocation in response to water or nutrient availability exhibited typical complex plasticity, while the light stress only slowed down the growth, with the ontogenetic trajectory unchanged (apparent plasticity). The contrasting responses to above-ground and below-ground stresses were consistent with the prediction of the developmentally explicit model.     

Effects of a vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus and other soil microorganisms on growth,mineral nutrient acquisition and root exudation of soil-grown maize plants

Maize (Zea mays L. cv. Alize) plants were grown in a calcareous soil in pots divided by 30-m nylon nets into three compartments, the central one for root growth and the outer ones for hyphal growth. Sterle soil was inoculated with either (1) rhizosphere microorganisms other than vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi, (2) rhizosphere microorganisms together with a VAM fungus [Glomus mosseae (Nicol. and Gerd.) Gerdemann and Trappel], or (3) with a gamma-irradiated inoculum as control. Plants were grown under controlled-climate conditions and harvested after 3 or 6 weeks. VAM plants had higher shootroot ratios than non-VAM plants. After 6 weeks, the concentrations of P, Zn and Cu in roots and shoots had significantly increased with VAM colonization, whereas Mn concentrations had significantly decreased. Root exudates were collected on agar sheets placed on the interface between root and hyphal compartments. Six-week-old VAM and non-VAM plants had similar root exudate compositions of 72–73% reducing sugars, 17–18% phenolics, 7% organic acids and 3% amino acids. In another experiment in which root exudates were collected on agar sheets with or without antibiotics, the amounts of amino acids and carbohydrates recovered were similar in VAM and non-VAM plants. However, threeto sixfold higher amounts of carbohydrates, amino acids and phenolics were recovered when antibiotics were added to the agar sheets. Thus, the high microbial activity in the rhizosphere and on the rhizoplane limits the exudates recovered from roots.     

Differential responses of lipid peroxidation and antioxidants in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Alternanthera philoxeroides</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Oryza sativa</Emphasis> subjected to drought stress

To evaluate oxidative stress and the plant antioxidant system of Alternanthera philoxeroides [Mart.] Griseb and Oryza sativa L. in the response to drought, root and leaf tissues of drought-treated A. philoxeroides and O. sativa were collected and relative water content, stomatal conductance, the concentrations of malondialdehyde, proline and the activities of superoxide dismutase, peroxidases, catalase and total antioxidative activity investigated. The results showed that drought treatment had almost no effect on relative water content in A. philoxeroides but reduced relative water content in O. sativa. A. philoxeroides maintained a greater stomatal conductance than O. sativa under drought stress. In A. philoxeroides levels of lipid peroxidation were lower than in O. sativa and did not change during the experiment. After exposure to drought, concentrations of proline and activities of superoxide dismutase, peroxidases and catalase in A. philoxeroides were between 10% and 30% higher than in O. sativa, whereas total antioxidative activity in A. philoxeroides was several-fold higher than in O. sativa.     

Genetic diversity of alligator weed in China by RAPD analysis

Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) was applied to analyze geneticdiversity of an invasive weedy species, alligator weed (Alternantheraphiloxeroides (Martius) Grisebach), collected from eight differentsites in southern China. Amplified by 108 RAPD primers, 391 bands wereidentified from samples collected from three of the eight sites withconsiderably large spatial intervals, but no genetic variation was detectedamong the samples. A total number of 196 RAPD fragments were amplified from allsamples collected in the eight sites by 31 primers that produced the mostconsistent results, but no genetic variation was detected within or betweenpopulations. The molecular data indicated extremely low genetic diversity in thealligator weed. Given the fact that the alligator weed is a serious invasiveweed, and widely found in China, we consider that the low genetic diversity ofthe alligator weed does not affect the success of its expansion in China, andlow genetic diversity does not necessarily lead to endangered status of a plantspecies. In addition, molecular evidence from this study suggests that thealligator weed in southern China might originate from a very few clones or evenonly from a single clone. Therefore, the rapid range expansion of the alligatorweed is most likely the result of a massive vegetative propagation since it wasintroduced in China.     

Soil modification by invasive plants: effects on native and invasive species of mixed-grass prairies

Invasive plants are capable of modifying attributes of soil to facilitate further invasion by conspecifics and other invasive species. We assessed this capability in three important plant invaders of grasslands in the Great Plains region of North America: leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula), smooth brome (Bromus inermis) and crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum). In a glasshouse, these three invasives or a group of native species were grown separately through three cycles of growth and soil conditioning in both steam-pasteurized and non-pasteurized soils, after which we assessed seedling growth in these soils. Two of the three invasive species, Bromus and Agropyron, exhibited significant self-facilitation via soil modification. Bromus and Agropyron also had significant facilitative effects on other invasives via soil modification, while Euphorbia had significant antagonistic effects on the other invasives. Both Agropyron and Euphorbia consistently suppressed growth of two of three native forbs, while three native grasses were generally less affected. Almost all intra- and interspecific effects of invasive soil conditioning were dependent upon presence of soil biota from field sites where these species were successful invaders. Overall, these results suggest that that invasive modification of soil microbiota can facilitate plant invasion directly or via ‘cross-facilitation’ of other invasive species, and moreover has potential to impede restoration of native communities after removal of an invasive species. However, certain native species that are relatively insensitive to altered soil biota (as we observed in the case of the forb Linum lewisii and the native grasses), may be valuable as ‘nurse’species in restoration efforts.     

Alien seedling recruitment as a response to altitude and soil disturbance in the mountain grasslands of central Argentina

Climate and disturbance are considered key factors in explaining plant invasion, mainly by their effect on alien seedling recruitment. We tested whether soil disturbance by digging and altitude, as a sub-set of climate, affected the seedling recruitment of two alien species (Cirsium vulgare and Melilotus alba) in the mountain grasslands of central Argentina. We performed a seed-addition factorial experiment with altitude as a fixed factor co-variable (6 levels), time since sowing (6 levels) as an autoregressive co-variable, and soil disturbance by digging (two levels) and seed addition (two levels) as fixed factors. Seeds of the studied species were sown in replicated undisturbed and disturbed soil plots, in grassland stands located every 200 m from 1200 to 2200 m a.s.l. The number of emerging seedlings at each plot was recorded during a period of 8 months, at intervals of 30–60 days. Seedlings of both alien species emerged at all the studied altitudes, but only the recruitment of C. vulgare increased linearly with altitude. Moreover, the time window of seedling recruitment for this species increased with altitude. Soil disturbance produced a significant decrease in overall seedling emergence of both species; however, an increase in emergence was observed for C. vulgare at an altitude over 2000 m a.s.l. Natural emergence inside control plots without seed addition was only observed for Cirsium vulgare, which indicates that this species was not seed limited. Our results show that altitude and the absence of disturbance do not restrict the recruitment of C. vulgare and M. alba in these natural mountain grasslands. Moreover, these alien species seem to be tolerant to and even favoured by conditions occurring at higher altitudes and in absence of micro-site soil disturbances in the Córdoba mountain grasslands.     

3种菊科入侵植物不同生长时期的土壤酶活性和养分变化

【目的】黄顶菊、三叶鬼针草和豚草是我国危害较严重的3种菊科入侵植物。了解3种菊科植物生长过程中土壤养分和酶活性的变化,可以为研究其入侵机制提供依据。【方法】在中国农业科学院植物保护研究所廊坊中试基地开展同质园实验,比较分析了黄顶菊、三叶鬼针草和豚草3种菊科入侵植物在幼苗期、旺盛生长期和生殖生长期根际土壤养分和酶活性的变化。【结果】3种外来菊科植物的生长时期对土壤养分和酶活性存在显著影响。3种外来植物入侵域的土壤速效磷、硝态氮含量以及磷酸酶活性随生长时期变化都表现出先升高后降低的趋势,均在旺盛生长期达到最大值。入侵域土壤速效磷和硝态氮含量的变化趋势与狗尾草明显不同。3种外来植物入侵降低了土壤速效钾含量,提高了土壤脲酶、磷酸酶活性。【结论】3种外来菊科植物的入侵改变了土壤养分和酶活性,创造出更有利于自身生长和繁殖的条件,以利于其进一步扩张。     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Nimbya alternantherae</Emphasis> a potential biocontrol agent for alligatorweed, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Alternanthera philoxeroides</Emphasis>

Alligatorweed, (Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb.), an aquatic and wetland plant native to South America, is an aggressive weed in many parts of the world. Its ability to compete with other native plants and to impede waterways has made it a serious threat to aquatic ecosystems. Although biological control with insects has been fairly successful in aquatic habitats, there is a need for additional agents to manage the weed in upland sites. Accordingly, in a survey in Brazil in 1997 a fungus, Nimbya (=Alternaria) alternantherae (Holcomb and Antonopoulus) Simmons and Alcorn, was discovered and confirmed to be highly damaging to alligatorweed. Studies were conducted to determine the potential of this fungus for controlling this weed. Several isolates from Brazil, USA, and Puerto Rico were compared and no differences in virulence were observed, although a lower dew requirement was demonstrated for the Brazilian isolates. Conidia were more effective than mycelial suspension, and inoculum concentrations of 1×10⁵ and 1×10⁶ conidia per ml provided significant levels of control of the weed in greenhouse and field experiments, respectively. In a host-range study, N. alternantherae infected 6 plant species from a total of 42 species belonging to 23 families. N. alternantherae has the potential to be an effective mycoherbicide for alligatorweed.     

Insight into the basis of root growth in Arabidopsis thaliana provided by a simple mathematical model

Plant organ growth changes under genetic and environmental influences can be observed as altered cell proliferation and volume growth. The two aspects are mutually dependent and intricately related. For comprehensive growth analysis, it is necessary to specify the relationship quantitatively. Here, we develop a simple mathematical model for this purpose. Our model assumes that the biological activity of a given organ is proportional to the cell number of the organ and is allocated into three aspects: cell proliferation, volume growth, and organ maintenance. We analyzed the growth of primary roots of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. in one tetraploid and four diploid strains using this model. The analysis determined various growth parameters, such as specific cost coefficients of cell proliferation and volume growth for each strain. The results provide insight into the basis of interstrain variations and ploidy effects in root growth.     

Regeneration of plants from cultured root explants of mothbean (Vigna aconitifolia L. Jacq. Marechal)

Summary Decapitated seedling root explants of seven cultivars of mothbean (Vigna aconitifolia) cultured on Murashige and Skoog's basal medium without any phytohormone gave rise to plantlets at the end of 4–5 weeks. Addition of cytokinins such as BA, Z, Kn and 2,i-P enhanced the frequency of plant regeneration and also the average number of shoot buds/culture. The buds originated directly from cortical cells or through callussing and subsequent differentiation from the surface. The plantlets obtained were successfully transferred to the field.Abbreviations BA benzyladenine - 2,i-P 6---dimethylallylaminopurine - Kn kinetin - TIBA 2,3,5-Triiodobenzoic acid - Z zeatin     

入侵植物水花生解剖学和组织化学染色研究

水花生(Alternanthera philoxeroides)因其表型可塑性、高生长速率和快速无性繁殖能适应水、陆生境.该文利用光学显微镜和荧光显微镜对水、陆生境的水花生不定根、茎解剖结构、组织化学特征及质外体通透性进行了研究.结果表明:(1)水生境下,其不定根皮层中具较大裂生型通气组织,无次生生长,内皮层具凯氏带且...     

Interactions between two co-dominant, invasive plants in the understory of a temperate deciduous forest

Negative interactions between non-indigenous and native species has been an important research topic of invasion biology. However, interactions between two or more invasive species may be as important in understanding biological invasions, but they have rarely been studied. In this paper, we describe three field experiments that investigated interactions between two non-indigenous plant species invasive in the eastern United States, Lonicera japonica (a perennial vine) and Microstegium vimineum (an annual grass). A press removal experiment conducted within a deciduous forest understory community indicated that M. vimineum was a superior competitor to L. japonica. We tested the hypothesis that the competitive success of M. vimineum was because it overgrew, and reduced light available to, L. japonica, by conducting a separate light gradient experiment within the same community. Shade cloth that simulated the M. vimineum canopy reduced the performance of L. japonica. In a third complementary experiment, we added experimental support hosts to test the hypothesis that the competitive ability of L. japonica is limited by support hosts, onto which L. japonica climbs to access light. We found that the abundance of climbing branches increased with the number of support hosts. Results of this experiment indicate that these two invasive species compete asymmetrically for resources, particularly light.     

水生空心莲子草入侵群落数量分类及其物种分布的环境解释

生境异质性在不同生态层次上影响物种分布与扩散,进而可能影响外来植物的入侵态势。该研究通过在中国21°N～31°N范围内设置23个10m×10m的样地,利用双向聚类(TWINSPAN)和除趋势对应分析(DCA)等数量生态学方法,研究水生型空心莲子草(Alternanthera philoxeroides)入侵群落的结构特征并划分其群丛类型,并采用冗余分析法(RDA)分析空心莲子草种群特征、群落物种分布与环境因子(经度、纬度、海拔、氨态氮、硝态氮、电导率、溶解氧)的关系,以期为生物入侵防治及本土生物多样性保护提供参考。结果显示:(1)23个样地共记录植物48种,隶属于21科42属,空心莲子草优势地位显著,主要伴生种为双穗雀稗(Paspalum paspaloides)、李氏禾(Leersia hexandra)和水蓼(Polygonum hydropiper)。(2)23个样地群落可划分为6组群丛类型,其中空心莲子草+双穗雀稗+水芹(Oenanthe javanica)是最主要的类型。(3)48种植物可划分为4类功能群,分别为先锋种型、优势伴生种型、次要伴生种型和逃避型,功能群的DCA分异性高于群丛类型。(4)群落物种分布状况主要由氨态氮和电导率决定,而物种丰富度及空心莲子草种群特征则受到电导率、经度、海拔和溶解氧等多个环境变量的影响;水生空心莲子草的入侵重要值取决于其无性分枝数和种群盖度。研究表明,水生空心莲子草入侵群落的结构相对简单,应加大对其入侵监测力度并维持较高的生境异质性,以延缓水域生态系统的生物入侵进程。     

The invasive green crab and Japanese shore crab: behavioral interactions with a native crab species,the blue crab

Blue crabs, Callinectes sapidus (Rathbun), are an ecologically and commercially important species along the East coast of North America. Over the past century and a half, blue crabs have been exposed to an expanding set of exotic species, a few of which are potential competitors. To test for interactions with invasive crabs, juvenile C. sapidus males were placed in competition experiments for a food item with two common non-indigenous crabs, the green crab Carcinus maenas (L.) and the Japanese shore crab, Hemigrapsus sanguineus (De Haan). Agonistic interactions were evaluated when they occurred. In addition, each species’ potential to resist predators was examined by testing carapace strength. Results showed that C. maenas was a superior competitor to both C. sapidus and H. sanguineus for obtaining food, while the latter two species were evenly matched against each other. Regarding agonism, C. sapidus, was the “loser” a disproportionate number of times. C. sapidus carapaces also had a significantly lower breaking strength. These experiments suggest that both as a competitor, and as potential prey, juvenile blue crabs have some disadvantages compared with these common sympatric exotic crab species, and in areas where these exotics are common, juvenile native blue crabs may be forced to expend more energy in conflict that could be spent foraging, and may be forced away from prime food items toward less optimum prey.