Determinants of macrophyte palatability to the pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis

Summary 1. This study aimed to identify the chemical and structural determinants of macrophyte palatability to the pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis . Eleven macrophyte species were investigated, and one of them ( Potamogeton lucens ) was collected at four sites, on two different dates in the year, to study palatability determinants at an intra-specific level.
2. Plant palatability to L. stagnalis was determined through non-choice feeding assays. Dry matter content (DMC), total phenolic content and protein content were measured for each macrophyte species. These parameters, and soluble carbohydrate content, were also measured for each sample of P. lucens .
3. The palatability of macrophytes was positively related to their protein content (between species only) and negatively related to their DMC (both between species and within P. lucens ). No simple relationship was found between the palatability of macrophytes and their phenolic content, but highly palatable macrophytes consistently exhibited a low phenolic content.
4. These results emphasise that macrophyte palatability is a multifactorial attribute, potentially depending on both structural and chemical traits. Because some of these traits were correlated, further investigations are required to assess their respective influence on macrophyte palatability.     

Plant community changes induced by experimental climate change: Seedling and adult species composition

Experimental manipulation of climate provides a powerful tool for studying plant community dynamics with respect to current climate change. We experimentally investigated the vegetation dynamics of a Mediterranean shrubland under directional climate change by manipulating rain and temperature at stand level throughout 7 years. We focused on seedling establishment in relation to the between-year variability of drought conditions. We also compared seedling dynamics to changes in the established adult vegetation to assess the coupling between both dynamics. We used multivariate techniques (principal response curves (PRC) and redundancy analysis (RDA)) to explore changes in the whole community, and Generalized Linear Model (GLZM) to analyse the influence of drought on the abundance and survival of the most abundant species.Drought treatment induced significant changes in the species composition of the seedlings, via a differential decrease in the seedling density of most species. No species was particularly favoured in terms of seedling abundance under water-deficit conditions. Warming only explained a low percentage of the variability in seedling species composition. The emergence of seedlings in control plots – which may be considered an estimation of the between-year variability in the conditions for seedling establishment – was a better predictor of seedling emergence in experimental plots than climate manipulation treatments. The PRC analysis of the adults showed dynamics that were different from those recorded for seedlings, and it also showed that drought treatment significantly explained species composition. This result is reinforced by the change in the relative abundance of seedling and adults of the more common species in the drought and warming treatments, supporting the hypothesis that climatic directional change heightens discrepancies between recruitment and the adult performance. The RDA analysis applied to species composition at the end of the experiment failed, however, to attain any statistical significance. The warming treatment did not produce any significant shifts in adult vegetation.In conclusion, directional climate change – particularly drier conditions in Mediterranean shrublands – would result in a change in the recruitment of the plant community. This change in seedling recruitment tends to be different from the dynamics of adults, suggesting that potential adult mortality would not be compensated by actual seedling recruitment, thus enhancing shifts in community composition.     

Seed dispersal, seedling establishment and gap partitioning among tropical pioneer trees

1 We examined the abundance and distribution patterns of pioneer seeds in the soil seed bank, and of pioneer seedlings in 53 recently formed gaps, in a 50‐ha forest dynamics plot on Barro Colorado Island (BCI), Panama. The aim was to assess the importance of dispersal limitation (failure of seeds to arrive at all sites suitable for their germination) and establishment limitation (failure of seeds having reached a site to germinate successfully and establish as seedlings) in determining patterns of gap occupancy.
2 The abundance of seeds in the soil seed bank was strongly negatively correlated with seed size, but was not correlated with the abundance of reproductive‐sized adult trees in the plot. In contrast, the abundance of pioneer seedlings > 10 cm height in natural gaps was strongly correlated with adult abundance, but was not correlated with seed size.
3 Seedlings were non‐randomly distributed among gaps, but seedling abundance was not directly related to gap size, and there was no evidence of partitioning of the light environment of gaps by small seedlings. Large differences in growth and mortality rates among species were observed after 1 year, and this may result in the gap size partitioning previously found in saplings of the same species.
4 Seedlings of most species, particularly those with large seeds, were relatively more abundant than expected in gaps close to their conspecific adults. Proximity to reproductives, and by inference dispersal limitation, therefore exerts some effect on seedling distribution. None the less, large differences between seed and seedling abundances for some species, and low seedling occupancy rates in some gaps close to adult conspecifics, suggest that seedling emergence probabilities and species‐specific establishment requirements may also be important determinants of local abundance.     

Consequences of differing competitive abilities between juvenile and adult plants

The competitive ability of perennial plants can change with life-stage, but whether these changes have fitness consequences is unknown. We present a simple model of two components of fitness, mortality and flowering rates, for two grassland species with very different patterns of competitive ability and life-stage. Achillea millefolium seedlings are poor competitors while the adults are good competitors. In contrast, Solidago missouriensis seedlings and adults have similar competitive ability. Models of the two species show that the overall effects of competition on growth are more important than interspecific differences in competitive ability in determining mortality and flowering rates, though the higher seedling competitive ability of S. missouriensis relative to A. millefolium seedlings does result in slightly lower mortality and higher flowering rates for the former species. Simulations where both average competitive ability and relative seedling and adult competitive ability are varied predict that dominant species with high overall competitive ability should experience no advantage or disadvantage from varying competitive ability through development. When overall competitive ability is moderate, the relative costs and benefits of differential competitive abilities among adults and seedlings are variable. High seedling competitive ability relative to adult competitive ability should be favored among species with low overall competitive ability. We predict that communities with high intensity of competition should have a high frequency of species with high seedling competitive ability, while communities with lower intensity of competition should have species with a wide range of relative seedling and adult competitive ability.     

Grazing by a native and an exotic crayfish on aquatic macrophytes

1. We compared grazing by native noble crayfish ( Astacus astacus ) and the exotic signal crayfish ( Pacifastacus leniusculus ) on seedling or well-established macrophytes.
2. In a pool experiment, seedlings of emergent Scirpus lacustris and floating-leaved Potamogeton natans were heavily grazed by adult signal crayfish, whereas established plants of the same species sustained only minor damage.
3. In a preference experiment two submerged macrophytes ( Chara vulgaris and Elodea canadensis ), and both seedlings and established plants of S. lacustris and P. natans , were presented pairwise to signal and noble crayfish. There was no significant difference in preference by the two crayfish species. Chara vulgaris was preferred to all other plants presented, established plants of S. lacustris and P. natans were never preferred, and seedlings of P. natans were preferred to established P. natans .
4. An aquarium experiment was conducted in which the consumption of Chara by signal and noble crayfish was measured in relation to water temperature. Signal crayfish consumed significantly more Chara than noble crayfish, especially at higher temperatures.
5. Our results indicate that the signal crayfish is the more voracious grazer especially at higher temperatures. There may be negative effects on vegetation (emergents and floating-leaved, as well as submerged species) when the signal crayfish is introduced. Chara species are particularly susceptible, since they are preferred by crayfish and the genus includes a large number of rare species. Stocking of crayfish therefore could lead to the decline or removal of submerged species in order of crayfish feeding preferences and could prevent the spread or cause a decline of emergent and floating-leaved vegetation.     

Plant competitive ability and the transitivity of competitive hierarchies change with plant age

Plant competitive effect and response ability are known to change with plant age, however it remains unclear how competitive hierarchies among plant species change as plants age and transition between life stages. We examined the competitive interactions among seven species in all pairwise combinations in a greenhouse experiment. Competitive effect and response were measured as the relative yield (RY) for each target-neighbor species combination for both seedling and adult plants. Competitive hierarchies were constructed based on competitive effect and response scores, and we examined the degree of transitivity in the seedling and adult competitive hierarchies. The competitive effect hierarchy did not vary substantially with plant age, while the competitive response hierarchy was highly variable between juvenile and adult plants. Competitive effect and response ability were positively correlated at both plant stages. The seedling relative yield matrix was predominantly transitive, while there were far fewer transitive competitive relationships among the adult plants. The breakdown of the clear competitive hierarchy among seedlings as plants aged may explain why competition does not appear to be an active mechanism structuring some late-successional plant communities. In early-successional communities, interactions among seedlings with a clear competitive hierarchy may establish competitive ability—abundance relationships that persist as a legacy effect even though the breakdown of the competitive hierarchy among adult plants removes competition as an active mechanism structuring some late-successional plant communities.     

Grazing by a native and an exotic crayfish on aquatic macrophytes

1. We compared grazing by native noble crayfish ( Astacus astacus ) and the exotic signal crayfish ( Pacifastacus leniusculus ) on seedling or well-established macrophytes.
2. In a pool experiment, seedlings of emergent Scirpus lacustris and floating-leaved Potamogeton natans were heavily grazed by adult signal crayfish, whereas established plants of the same species sustained only minor damage.
3. In a preference experiment two submerged macrophytes ( Chara vulgaris and Elodea canadensis ), and both seedlings and established plants of S. lacustris and P. natans , were presented pairwise to signal and noble crayfish. There was no significant difference in preference by the two crayfish species. Chara vulgaris was preferred to all other plants presented, established plants of S. lacustris and P. natans were never preferred, and seedlings of P. natans were preferred to established P. natans .
4. An aquarium experiment was conducted in which the consumption of Chara by signal and noble crayfish was measured in relation to water temperature. Signal crayfish consumed significantly more Chara than noble crayfish, especially at higher temperatures.
5. Our results indicate that the signal crayfish is the more voracious grazer especially at higher temperatures. There may be negative effects on vegetation (emergents and floating-leaved, as well as submerged species) when the signal crayfish is introduced. Chara species are particularly susceptible, since they are preferred by crayfish and the genus includes a large number of rare species. Stocking of crayfish therefore could lead to the decline or removal of submerged species in order of crayfish feeding preferences and could prevent the spread or cause a decline of emergent and floating-leaved vegetation.     

Plant palatability to leaf‐cutter ants (Atta laevigata) and litter decomposability in a Neotropical woodland savanna

Although leaf‐cutter ants have been recognized as the dominant herbivore in many Neotropical ecosystems, their role in nutrient cycling remains poorly understood. Here we evaluated the relationship between plant palatability to leaf‐cutter ants and litter decomposability. Our rationale was that if preference and decomposability are related, and if ant consumption changes the abundance of litter with different quality, then ant herbivory could affect litter decomposition by affecting the quality of litter entering the soil. The study was conducted in a woodland savanna (cerrado denso) area in Minas Gerais, Brazil. We compared the decomposition rate of litter produced by trees whose fresh leaves have different degrees of palatability to the leaf‐cutter ant Atta laevigata. Our experiments did not indicate the existence of a significant relationship between leaf palatability to A. laevigata and leaf‐litter decomposability. Although the litter mixture composed of highly palatable plant species showed, initially, a faster decay rate than the mixture of poorly palatable species, this difference was no longer visible after about 6 months. Results were consistent regardless of whether litter invertebrates were excluded or not from litter bags. Similarly, experiments comparing the decomposition rate of litter from pairs of related plant species also showed no association between plant palatability and decomposition. Decomposition rate of the more palatable species was faster, slower or similar to that of the less palatable species depending upon the particular pair of species being compared. We suggest that the traits that mostly influence the decomposition rate of litter produced by cerrado trees may not be the same as those that influence plant palatability to leaf‐cutter ants. Atta laevigata select leaves of different species based – at least in part – on their nitrogen content, but N content was a poor predictor of the decomposition rates of the species we studied.     

Evolutionary history and distance dependence control survival of dipterocarp seedlings

One important hypothesis to explain tree-species coexistence in tropical forests suggests that increased attack by natural enemies near conspecific trees gives locally rare species a competitive advantage. Host ranges of natural enemies generally encompass several closely related plant taxa suggesting that seedlings should also do poorly around adults of closely related species. We investigated the effects of adult Parashorea malaanonan on seedling survival in a Bornean rain forest. Survival of P. malaanonan seedlings was highest at intermediate distances from parent trees while heterospecific seedlings were unaffected by distance. Leaf herbivores did not drive this relationship. Survival of seedlings was lowest for P. malaanonan , and increased with phylogenetic dissimilarity from this species, suggesting that survival of close relatives of common species is reduced. This study suggests that distance dependence contributes to species coexistence and highlights the need for further investigation into the role of shared plant enemies in community dynamics.
Ecology Letters (2010) 13: 51–59     

Are irrigation and grazing effects transferred,accumulated, or counteracted during plant recruitment?

How do effects from perturbations such as irrigation and grazing that have an impact at one stage of the recruitment process (e.g., seedling) affect performance at later stages (e.g., adult)? Such effects may be transferred to later stages without any further change (transferred effects), reinforced by a similar effect so that their importance increases (accumulative effect), or counteracted at later stages by an opposite effect (counteractive effect). We analysed the predominance of transferred, accumulative, and counteractive effects depending on (1) organization level (community, functional group, and species levels), (2) life cycle stage (seeds, seedlings, and adults), (3) grass/forb functional group (forbs versus grasses), and (4) seed mass (small-seeded species, medium-seeded species, and large-seeded species). The study was conducted in Alcalá de Henares, central Spain. During one annual cycle, we counted the number of readily germinable seeds (3,909 seeds: 2,156 forbs and 1,753 grasses), emerged seedlings (2,126 seedlings: 1,238 forbs and 888 grasses), and surviving seedlings up to reproductive adult status (917 adults: 217 forbs and 700 grasses) of all species (74 species) in a factorial field experiment under three different simulated rainfall and three seasonal sheep grazing regimes in a natural Mediterranean annual plant community composed of forbs (dicotyledonous herbs) and grasses (monocotyledonous herbs). Our main results were: (1) the proportion of transferred and counteractive effects was similar between the three studied organization levels (community, functional group, and species levels); (2) we detected many more counteractive effects in the seedling stage than in the adult stage; (3) we did not find more counteractive effects in forbs versus grasses, but transferred effects were more frequent in grasses; and (4) we found more counteractive effects with decreasing seed mass and more transferred effects with increasing seed mass. Our main conclusions were that the prevalence of counteractive effects reduces the sensitivity of the whole recruitment process and enhances the relative importance of the final stage (adults). The prevalence of transferred effects makes the recruitment process more predictable and more dependent on the early stages (seeds and seedlings).     

Effects of slug herbivory on the seedling establishment of two montane Asteraceae species

Seedling establishment as the life stage transition most sensitive to herbivory might be impossible even if the herbivory losses suffered by adult plants of the same species are tolerable. We tested the hypothesis that herbivory impedes seedling establishment of two montane Asteraceae species on their lower altitudinal distribution border.In a submontane meadow in the Harz Mountains, Germany, the montane grassland perennials Arnica montana and Centaurea pseudophrygia (Asteraceae) were sown into artificially created gaps of two different sizes, half of which were protected from slug grazing by molluscicide application in the initial phase of the experiments. The Arnica experiments started in spring and late summer of 1999 and in spring of 2000; whereas Centaurea was only sown in the spring of 2000. Seedling survival was monitored until the autumn of 2000.Ten weeks after sowing, mollusc exclusion resulted in significantly higher Arnica or Centaurea seedling numbers in all experiments; whereas grasses and dicotyledons that emerged from the seedbank were promoted by slug exclosure in only one experiment. Species diversity was not affected by molluscicide application. By the end of the second growing season, the survivorship of Arnica sown in the spring of 1999 was reduced to less than 1% of the number of sown seeds in the gaps with natural slug grazing, compared to 7–15% in the gaps with molluscicide treatment. Plant density of most species was higher in the small than in the large gaps, indicating a microclimatic shelter effect of the surrounding vegetation.The results show that slug herbivory might exert large effects on species composition in grassland; it does strongly influence the seedling establishment of the highly palatable, slow-growing A. montana, while the seedlings of C. pseudophrygia, although of similar palatability, are more able to tolerate slug feeding because of their higher growth rate.     

Multi-host ectomycorrhizal fungi are predominant in a Guinean tropical rainforest and shared between canopy trees and seedlings

The diversity of ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi on adult trees and seedlings of five species, Anthonotha fragrans, Anthonotha macrophylla, Cryptosepalum tetraphyllum, Paramacrolobium coeruleum and Uapaca esculenta, was determined in a tropical rain forest of Guinea. Ectomycorrhizae were sampled within a surface area of 1600 m(2), and fungal taxa were identified by sequencing the rDNA Internal Transcribed Spacer region. Thirty-nine ECM fungal taxa were determined, of which 19 multi-hosts, 9 single-hosts and 11 singletons. The multi-host fungi represented 92% (89% when including the singletons in the analysis) of the total abundance. Except for A. fragrans, the adults of the host species displayed significant differentiation for their fungal communities, but their seedlings harboured a similar fungal community. These findings suggest that there was a potential for the formation of common mycorrhizal networks in close vicinity. However, no significant difference was detected for the δ(13)C and δ(15)N values between seedlings and adults of each ECM plant, and no ECM species exhibited signatures of mixotrophy. Our results revealed (i) variation in ECM fungal diversity according to the seedling versus adult development stage of trees and (ii) low host specificity of ECM fungi, and indicated that multi-host fungi are more abundant than single-host fungi in this forest stand.     

Inter- and intraspecific variation in the resistance of winter-dormant birch (Betula spp.) against browsing by the mountain hare

The palatability of saplings of several different species, geographic origins and F₂-families of Betula spp. to the mountain hare was tested in feeding trials with captive and free-ranging animals. Significant variation in the palatability was detected among species and among conspecifics representing different origins and families. The results show that the combination of genetic and environmental factors determines the resistance of individual plants to mammals. Saplings that were stressed by severe competition from surrounding weeds were more resistant than saplings of the same age grown under optimal conditions. One-yr-old seedlings were more resistant than 7-yr-old saplings of the same origin. Some of the exotic species tested were extremely resistant, whereas others were highly palatable. The most resistant species and origins came from Asia and Alaska.     

Old-field seedling responses to insecticide,seed addition,and competition

The controls of seedling emergence and survival determine the potential distribution of adult plants and, thereby, plant community structure. Seed availability, competition from established neighbors, and seedling predation may all limit seedling recruitment. In this field experiment, we followed the emergence and survival of seedlings of three perennial forbs, Achillea millefolium, Hypericum perforatum, and Monarda fistulosa, in old-fields in southeastern Michigan, USA. As adults, all three have aromatic foliage that may deter herbivory, but seedlings may be more susceptible than adults. To establish the relative importance of potential controls on seedling numbers, we manipulated seed availability through seed additions, the influence of competitors by neighbor-removals, and the influence of insect herbivores with insecticide in a fully factorial field experiment. Seed addition and insecticide never affected seedling emergence for any species. Competition from established neighbors controlled seedling emergence for all three species and decreased Achillea survival. Insecticide significantly increased Monarda seedling survival in competition plots, significantly increased Hypericum survival in open plots, and had no effect on Achillea. Notably, insecticide increased survival of the native Monarda fistulosa more than the two introduced species. While neighbors strongly reduced emergence and survival of all three species, herbivores acted on a species-specific basis. These results suggest the differential effects of insects may contribute more to the seedling species composition and abundance patterns than the less-selective influence of competition.     

Variability of seedling recruitment under dominant, moss, and litter removal over four years

In a four-year removal experiment we investigated the effect of removing a dominant species (Nardus stricta), the litter layer and moss layer on species composition of established vegetation and on numbers and species composition of seedlings. The experiment was conducted in an oligotrophic wet meadow (Molinion with some features ofViolion caninae according to phytosociological classification). After four years of the experiment, the redundancy analysis (RDA) did not reveal any changes in the composition of the established plant community. Seedling numbers and their species composition, however, varied significantly both among treatments and over years. Whereas the differences between treatments were mainly in total seedling numbers, the years differed in both seedling numbers and relative representation of individual species. In particular,Myosotis nemorosa seedlings highly increased their abundance in a favourable year 1995 constituting one third of all the seedlings found, whereas in other years their abundance was between 4% and 10%. The effects of year and treatment were not additive (significant year × treatment interaction). This means that plots under different treatments are differently affected by climatic conditions of individual years. The greatest increase of seedling recruitment was observed in the plots with the moss layer removed. Microsites with high seedling recruitment persisted in the plots for no more than two years. Why the established vegetation composition does not differ among treatments even after four years, despite the relatively pronounced and immediate response of seedlings? The number of species with regular seedling recruitment is limited. They are mostly perennials, and consequently, it might take even longer than four years before recruitment limitation affects the population size of established plants.     

Composition and temporal dynamics of tree seedlings at different successional stages of conifer and broad-leaved mixed forests in Jiaohe,Jilin Province,China

AimsOur objective was to explore the composition and temporal dynamics of woody plant seedlings and the ecological processes that affect the amount of seedlings in Jiaohe, Jilin Province, China. Methods We established a total of 415 seed-seedling census stations in three large permanent field plots belonging to three successional stages in the conifer and broad-leaved mixed forests. Based on three seedling censuses from 2012 to 2014, we analyzed species composition, quantitative character, height-classes structure and their inter-annual dynamics. Multiple linear regression was used to test the relationship between the abundance of seedlings for five major species and the forest types, the sum of the basal area of conspecific adult within 20 m away from a seed trap, as well as canopy openness.Important findings Our results show that: (1) The species composition of seedlings slightly varied among different successional stages, and was similar with that of trees in the plots. The rank of important values for seedling species among different years and successional stages varied slightly. (2) The number of seedlings and seedling species distributed mainly between 5-20 cm height classes, and decreased with the increasing height class. The number of seedlings decreased faster than that of seedling species, indicating that compared with interspecific competition, intraspecific competition was the main driver that led to seedling death. It confirmed the role of the negative density dependence in affecting seedling regeneration. (3) The amount of seedlings for all of the five major species was significantly positively related to the sum of the basal area of conspecific adults, which indicated that the quantity and distribution of seedlings were affected by dispersal limitation as well as niche processes. Our research confirmed the role of negative density dependence, dispersal limitation and niche processes on seedling composition.     

吉林蛟河不同演替阶段针阔混交林乔木幼苗数量组成及其时间动态

为了解蛟河地区木本植物幼苗的数量特征及其年际动态, 以及影响幼苗数量的生态学过程, 该文以不同演替阶段针阔混交林监测样地为基础, 在样地内共设置了451个种子雨-幼苗观测样站.通过2012-2014年连续3年的幼苗监测调查, 对木本植物幼苗物种组成,数量特征,高度级结构及其年际动态进行了分析, 并用多元回归的方法分析了幼苗数量与林分类型,同种成体胸高断面积之和及林冠开阔度的关系.结果表明: (1)林下幼苗层主要木本植物的组成在不同演替阶段林分中差异不大, 并与样地内主要树种组成保持着一定相似性, 但幼苗重要值排序在年际间和不同演替阶段稍有波动.(2) 3个样地内幼苗个体数量和物种数都主要集中在5-20 cm高度级之间, 之后随高度级增加而逐渐减少, 但幼苗个体数量减少更快.表明与种间竞争相比, 物种内部的相互作用是导致幼苗死亡的主要原因, 证实了负密度制约效应在幼苗更新过程中的作用.(3) 5个主要树种的幼苗数量都与同种成体胸高断面积之和呈显著的正相关关系, 还呈现出明显的生境偏好, 表明扩散限制和生态位过程也会影响幼苗的数量和分布.该文间接证实了负密度制约效应,扩散限制和生态位过程对温带地区不同演替阶段森林群落中幼苗数量组成的影响.     

Dynamics of seedling populations and tree species coexistence in a forest: a simulation study

Theoretically, temporal variation of reproduction promotes species coexistence of sessile and polycarpic organisms when the reproduction is synchronized within species but independent among species. Monopoly of vacant sites and high relative population growth rate of minor species in the absence of propagules of other species is the essence of this mechanism. The mechanism is expected to work in forests, but persistent populations of seedlings may affect the promotion of coexistence. Using a tree-based simulation model of forest dynamics, it was demonstrated that the number of coexisting tree species was sensitively affected by the seedling establishment rate. The coexistence was not enhanced by temporal variation of reproduction when seedling establishment rate was low. This is because the reproducing minor species fail to monopolize vacant sites and allow the establishment of seedlings of other species in later years. High mortality of established seedlings under shade also suppressed coexistence. This is likely to be the result of a reduced storage effect of the population of seedlings. A forest structure and dynamics pattern that appears when tree species coexistence is promoted by fluctuating reproduction was searched for, and the number of coexisting species was varied by manipulating the seedling establishment rate. No distinct difference other than the species number itself was found between species-rich and species-poor forests. For example, the seedling population size varied, reflecting the temporal variation of reproduction, irrespective of the seedling establishment rate. Further strategy development is needed to validate the proposed mechanisms of species coexistence.     

Importance of the ectomycorrhizal network for seedling survival and ectomycorrhiza formation in rain forests of south Cameroon

An investigation was undertaken at two sites south Cameroon to assess the importance of living roots of adult trees as sources of inoculum for survival, ectomycorrhizal colonisation and growth of seedlings of Paraberlinia bifoliolata. One-month-old seedlings of Paraberlinia bifoliolata, isolated from or in contact with roots of adult target trees, were transplanted in concentric circles 5, 10, 15, and 30 m away from the stem bases of four adult tree species (Afzelia bipindensis, Brachystegia cynometroides, Paraberlinia bifoliolata and Tetraberlinia bifoliolata). After 4 and 8 months, survival, ectomycorrhiza formation and seedling height were observed; plant biomass was determined after 8 months. After 4 months, there was no difference in seedling survival between seedlings in contact with roots of adult trees and isolated seedlings. The number of ectomycorrhizal seedlings was higher among seedlings in contact with adult trees than among isolated seedlings. After 8 months, both seedling survival and ectomycorrhiza formation were higher in seedlings in contact with roots than in isolated seedlings. Seedling survival and ectomycorrhiza formation were highest under Brachystegia. The fraction of surviving seedlings that had formed ectomycorrhizas was lowest under Afzelia. The fraction of surviving seedlings that were ectomycorrhizal declined monotonically towards the edge of the crown projection. Biomass of seedlings in contact with adult trees was significantly higher than that of isolated seedlings. This difference was consistent for all four tree species. The height of seedlings did not vary with the treatment.     

The nitrogen economy of mountain birch seedlings: implications for winter survival

1 Seedlings of mountain birch Betula pubescens ssp. czerepanovii were grown outdoors, under different environmental conditions, during their first growing season at Abisko, northern Sweden. Winter survival of seedlings was studied in relation to their growth and nitrogen (N) acquisition rate during the previous growing season.
2 Effects of fertilization and soil temperature on seedling growth and N acquisition were analysed in a factorial experiment including seven fertilizer levels and two temperature treatments. Effects of shading and neighbours ( B. p. ssp. czerepanovii and Empetrum hermaphroditum ) on seedling growth and N economy were evaluated in another experiment including five different neighbour interaction treatments.
3 An increase in either soil temperature or fertilization rate caused the birch seedlings to take up more N and grow faster. The relative growth rate and rate of N accumulation during the 12-week growing season were closely related to winter survival: at a relative growth rate of 2.0% and 3.8% day⁻¹, the winter survival of mountain birch seedlings was estimated to be 5% and 95%, respectively. This range corresponded to a relative N accumulation rate between 2.4% and 4.3% day⁻¹.
4 The relative N accumulation rate was clearly reduced by shading and by the plant–plant interactions studied. The effects of shading and birch neighbours but not of Empetrum on the rate of N accumulation could be explained by lower soil temperature.
5 Nutrient supply, soil temperature, vegetation shade and, presumably, allelopathy affect the N acquisition of first-year mountain birch seedlings, and thus also influence their winter survival. Soil temperature might be the major influence on the survival rate, due to its strong influence on the root N uptake rate.