Mechanisms of resistance of freshwater macrophytes to herbivory by invasive juvenile common carp

1. Herbivory on freshwater macrophytes has been assumed to be insignificant and rare. More recent evidence suggests herbivory is common and the impact of invasive invertebrate herbivores can be substantial. However, little is known about consumption of macrophytes by fish. 2. We performed a series of feeding assays, based on the consumption by common carp (Cyprinus carpio), to determine if any mechanisms of resistance, structural or chemical, were present in five species of macrophytes (Stuckenia pectinata, Typha latifolia, Scirpus validus, Chara aspera and Ceratophyllum demersum). 3. Carp consumed more fresh whole plant tissue of C. aspera than any other macrophyte, suggesting a lack of structural or chemical deterrents. Typha latifolia, S. validus and C. demersum were consumed least as whole plants, but consumption increased when they were offered in pellet form suggesting structural defence. Crude chemical extracts from S. pectinata significantly reduced consumption of pellets by carp. Thus, plant chemistry and structure both deterred feeding by carp. 4. Experiments that focus on theory are common but their application to managing landscapes is substantially lacking. Our results provide a basis for recommending plants to be used in restoring larval habitat refugia with the aim of increasing the probability for long‐term recovery of an endangered species. Thus, this paper is an example of how experiments that tie theory to application are important for practical applications and for continued testing of theory. 5. We suggest that macrophyte–herbivore interactions play an integral part in aquatic food webs and may be as important in freshwater communities as in marine and terrestrial systems.     

安徽省外来植物入侵状况分析

【目的】了解安徽省入侵植物的现状,明确分布格局对制定预防与控制管理措施具有重要意义。【方法】通过文献整理与实地调查分析了安徽省外来入侵植物的种属、来源地、引入途径、入侵时间、入侵生境以及各市(地区)的分布状态。【结果】1.安徽省共有入侵植物158种,共计102属40科,其中菊科植物最多为25属36种,占安徽省入侵植物总数的22.8%。2.安徽省入侵植物主要来源于美洲,共98种,占总种数的57.7%;60.1%的入侵植物(95种)为有意引入,其余均为无意引入;69.9%的入侵植物于近现代(1840年之后)入侵安徽。3.入侵植物中75.5%分布于“道路旁,荒地生态系统”“森林、灌木”、“内陆水域、湿地”、“草地、城市绿地”、“农田、耕作用地”等5种生境中。4.不同的地区入侵植物的分布存在差异,芜湖市入侵植物种类最多,占总全省的78.5%,其次为黄山市(77.5%)和合肥市(76.6%),亳州市(62.7%)入侵植物的种类最少。【结论】安徽省入侵种数量由东南向西北逐步减少,各城市入侵状况存在一定差异,但总体均属易受入侵环境,应加强监管,及时对入侵外来种进行治理。     

Same species,same habitat preferences? The distribution of aquatic plants is not explained by the same predictors in lakes and streams

1. Studying the geographical distribution of species can reveal conditions and processes that may drive species presence and abundance. Organism distribution has frequently been explained by climate, but the relative role of local environmental predictors is not fully understood. Moreover, in the freshwater realm, intrinsic differences existing between different categories of water bodies can lead to significant differences in species–environment relationships. Here, we tested the relative importance of broad-scale climate and local environmental predictors in explaining plant species distributions in freshwater lakes and streams.
2. We built species distribution models to investigate which predictors best explain aquatic plant distribution in two categories of water bodies. We used species inventories and records of three climate and eight local environmental predictors for 150 lakes and 150 streams in Finland.
3. We found that sets of predictors that explain the distribution of macrophyte species are unique depending on if species are in a lake or a stream. Overall, air temperature and ecosystem size were essential to predict aquatic plant species presence in both water body categories. Broad-scale climate predictors were always very important in explaining species distribution, while local environmental conditions such as water chemistry were of variable influence, depending on species and water body category.
4. These results are probably due to high spatial and temporal variability and range of water physico-chemical parameters, especially in streams. Nonetheless, despite a lower relative importance than climatic factors, local environmental predictors also strongly affected species distributions.
5. Our findings highlight that incorporating local environmental conditions to species distribution models in addition to climate predictors is necessary to improve predictions, particularly for distribution of stream flora. Considering the species-specific responses of aquatic plants to their environment, studying species individually with species distribution models represents a useful analysis.

     

Chlorophyll fluorometry sheds light on the role of desiccation resistance for vegetative overland dispersal of aquatic plants

相似文献   

Biological invasion by a benthivorous fish reduced the cover and species richness of aquatic plants in most lakes of a large North American ecoregion

Biological invasions are projected to be the main driver of biodiversity and ecosystem function loss in lakes in the 21st century. However, the extent of these future losses is difficult to quantify because most invasions are recent and confounded by other stressors. In this study, we quantified the outcome of a century‐old invasion, the introduction of common carp to North America, to illustrate potential consequences of introducing non‐native ecosystem engineers to lakes worldwide. We used the decline in aquatic plant richness and cover as an index of ecological impact across three ecoregions: Great Plains, Eastern Temperate Forests and Northern Forests. Using whole‐lake manipulations, we demonstrated that both submersed plant cover and richness declined exponentially as carp biomass increased such that plant cover was reduced to <10% and species richness was halved in lakes in which carp biomass exceeded 190 kg ha^?1. Using catch rates amassed from 2000+ lakes, we showed that carp exceeded this biomass level in 70.6% of Great Plains lakes and 23.3% of Eastern Temperate Forests lakes, but 0% of Northern Forests lakes. Using model selection analysis, we showed that carp was a key driver of plant species richness along with Secchi depth, lake area and human development of lake watersheds. Model parameters showed that carp reduced species richness to a similar degree across lakes of various Secchi depths and surface areas. In regions dominated by carp (e.g., Great Plains), carp had a stronger impact on plant richness than human watershed development. Overall, our analysis shows that the introduction of common carp played a key role in driving a severe reduction in plant cover and richness in a majority of Great Plains lakes and a large portion of Eastern Temperate Forests lakes in North America.     

Development of fish communities in lakes after biomanipulation

Biomanipulation measures in the Netherlands are usually a combination of a drastic fish stock reduction and an introduction of pike fingerlings. In three small shallow lakes (Noorddiep, Bleiswijkse Zoom and Zwemlust) these measures resulted in a clear water state and the development of macrophytes. After the measures the fish community developed differently because of the new physical and biological conditions. Results of lake Noorddiep and lake Bleiswijkse Zoom showed that the fish community became more divers. Bream and carp became less dominant and were partly replaced by roach and perch. The importance of the main predator pike-perch was strongly reduced and replaced by pike and perch. The share of piscivorous fish in the total fish stock increased at all sites. The recruitment of young-of-the-year was similar or even higher in the clear overgrown areas than in the turbid water before the measures, but the recruitment of young-of-the-year to older fish differed between the species. Predation by pike and perch could not control the young-of-the-year cyprinids, but their predation may have contributed to the shift from bream to roach, because of selective predation on bream in the open water, while roach was hiding in the vegetation. The macrophytes provide new refugia and feeding conditions that favour roach and perch, but offer relatively poor survival conditions for bream and carp.     

Underwater light attenuation inhibits native submerged plants and facilitates the invasive co-occurring plant Cabomba caroliniana

Aim

Decreasing in the diversity and distribution of native submerged plants have been widely observed in recent decades. Global underwater darkening, which is mainly caused by radiation dimming and a decrease in transparency due to, e.g. eutrophication, has emerged as a general trend that strongly hampers the growth of submerged plants in lakes by decreasing the light available for photosynthesis. However, few studies have attempted to compare the responses of native and invasive submerged plants to underwater darkening. In this study, we aimed to compare the effects of light attenuation on the growth and photosynthesis traits of native and invasive submerged plants.

Location

East China.

Method

Through field investigations and a mesocosm experiment, the responses of functional traits of two representative native [water thyme (Hydrilla verticillata), Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum)] and one invasive [Carolina fanwort (Cabomba caroliniana)] plant species to various environmental factors, notably to underwater light attenuation, were studied.

Results

Underwater photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) exerted a substantial effect on the relative coverage and abundance of the three studied submerged plants in their natural freshwater habitats. Invasive C. caroliniana showed relatively superior growth (total biomass and relative growth rate) and photosynthesis traits (maximum quantum yield of photosystem II F_v/F_m, chlorophyll a content, chlorophyll b content and the ratio of Chl a and b contents) compared to the two native plants under low underwater PAR conditions. In contrast, under high underwater PAR conditions, C. caroliniana showed the opposite response.

Main Conclusions

Light attenuation inhibits the growth of native submerged plants but facilitates the growth of invasive plant species. Restoration of freshwater lakes by reducing deterioration from underwater darkening (for instance, by reducing of external nutrients loading) may therefore constrain the growth and spread of the invasive C. caroliniana.     

The impacts of invasive ecosystem engineers in freshwaters: A review

1. Invasive species are a key stressor in freshwater ecosystems. When these species are also ecosystem engineers, their impacts are exacerbated because they modulate resource availability for a wide range of other species. The aim of this review is to synthesise existing knowledge of the impacts of invasive ecosystem engineers in freshwaters and identify knowledge gaps requiring further research.
2. The four questions explored in this review are: (1) What are the trends in research into invasive ecosystem engineers? (2) What are common negative effects of invasive ecosystem engineers in freshwater? (3) Do all impacts of invasive ecosystem engineers have negative consequences for biodiversity? (4) What happens when multiple ecosystem engineers interact? Four literature searches in Web of Science have been used to identify articles for the review and to estimate relative research effort between terrestrial, marine and freshwater ecosystems.
3. The number of research articles focusing on ecosystem engineers across all ecosystem types is increasing. Despite well-known examples of ecosystem engineer species in freshwaters (e.g. beaver), more research has focussed on terrestrial environments and invasive species.
4. The effects of invasive ecosystem engineers in freshwater systems are varied and often context dependent. Their effects on biodiversity or native ecosystem engineers are often shown to be negative; however, not all effects associated with these species are deleterious to native species. For instance, some invasive ecosystem engineers support native species through the provision of food or refuges.
5. Although freshwater ecosystems are often influenced by multiple species of ecosystem engineers (including native, invasive or both), little is known about interactions between these species or the combined effects of multiple ecosystem engineers. More research is also needed that relates the results of laboratory experiments to the field and develops methods for measuring factors that govern the impact of engineers on ecosystems. Understanding the spatial variability of the impacts of invasive ecosystem engineers as well as their interaction with anthropogenic stressors (e.g. hydrologic modification) is also necessary.
6. The lag in research surrounding invasive ecosystem engineers in freshwater compared to other biomes is concerning, as freshwater ecosystems support biodiversity disproportionate to the area they occupy. Creating predictive models of the impacts of freshwater ecosystem engineers would help anticipate the effects of invasive ecosystem engineers in freshwater and add to the broader understanding of their effects in other biomes.

     

中国香港外来入侵植物

该文于2015—2016年通过野外实地调查并结合整理、查阅相关的文献资料,研究了中国香港特别行政区外来入侵植物的种类组成、原产地、生活型、入侵途径和危害状况等。结果表明:(1)中国香港有外来入侵植物共101种,隶属于36科77属,其中菊科(Asteraceae)植物的种类最多,有17种。(2)来源于美洲的外来入侵植物种类最多,占入侵植物总数的77.2%。(3)外来种类中草本植物占了绝大多数,占总种数的80.2%。(4)恶意入侵与严重入侵植物共42种,占总种数的41.6%。同时,通过与邻近的珠海、深圳、澳门、广州四个地区的外来入侵植物进行比较,提出了珠三角区域共防共治外来植物入侵、保障环境生态安全的建议。     

Macrophyte depth limits in North Island (New Zealand) lakes of differing clarity

The seasonal variation in water clarity, as indicated by the attenuation coefficient for photosynthetically active radiation, K _d (m^-1), was determined by monthly measurements for a year in 9 North Island, New Zealand lakes. K _d varied by a factor of 2 to 3 in 8 of the lakes, and a factor of 5 in one. Annual mean K _d (symbol% MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafiart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaam4saaaa!36BD!\[K\] _d) varied by a factor of approximately 15 between lakes. The maximum depth of water colonized by macrophytes (z _c)was also determined. Values of z _c were in the range 1.5–12.5 m. The relationship z _c =4.34/% MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafiart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGaam4saaaa!36BD!\[K\]_d accounted for most (93 percent) of the variability in z _c , indicating that average annual clarity was probably a useful predictor of z _c in lakes in this region. The values of z _c in these North Island lakes were generally greater than values calculated using previously published empirical relationships derived for northern hemisphere groups of lakes. The extent to which these relationships underestimated z _c in the North Island lakes was broadly related to latitude. Estimated average irradiance at z _c in each lake was similar to compensation point irradiances reported previously for freshwater macrophytes.     

云南的外来入侵植物

综述云南外来入侵植物的现状、分布、入侵的主要途径和危害等。列出云南外来入侵植物75种的详细资料,详细论述其中危害较严重的紫茎泽兰、飞机草、凤眼莲、空心莲子草、马缨丹和肿柄菊等,并讨论应采取的防治对策。提出云南是我国生物多样性最丰富的地区,但也是外来入侵植物危害最严重的地区;虽然很多外来入侵植物都能在云南蔓延,但真正引起严重危害的却不多;恢复本地植被,减少对生态系统的干扰,建立外来入侵物种监测机制和风险评价体系将是防范外来入侵植物的有效途径。     

Mammals of the northern Philippines: tolerance for habitat disturbance and resistance to invasive species in an endemic insular fauna

Aim Island faunas, particularly those with high levels of endemism, usually are considered especially susceptible to disruption from habitat disturbance and invasive alien species. We tested this general hypothesis by examining the distribution of small mammals along gradients of anthropogenic habitat disturbance in northern Luzon Island, an area with a very high level of mammalian endemism. Location Central Cordillera, northern Luzon Island, Philippines. Methods  Using standard trapping techniques, we documented the occurrence and abundance of 16 endemic and two non‐native species along four disturbance gradients where habitat ranged from mature forest to deforested cropland. Using regression analysis and AIC_c for model selection, we assessed the influence of four predictor variables (geographic range, elevational range, body size and diet breadth) on the disturbance tolerance of species. Results Non‐native species dominated areas with the most severe disturbance and were rare or absent in mature forest. Native species richness declined with increasing disturbance level, but responses of individual species varied. Elevational range (a measure of habitat breadth) was the best predictor of response of native species to habitat disturbance. Geographic range, body size and diet breadth were weakly correlated. Main conclusions The endemic small mammal fauna of northern Luzon includes species adapted to varying levels of natural disturbance and appears to be resistant to disruption by resident alien species. In these respects, it resembles a diverse continental fauna rather than a depauperate insular fauna. We conclude that the long and complex history of Luzon as an ancient member of the Philippine island arc system has involved highly dynamic ecological conditions resulting in a biota adapted to changing conditions. We predict that similar responses will be seen in other taxonomic groups and in other ancient island arc systems.     

洞庭湖区外来入侵植物调查分析及防治对策

[目的] 了解洞庭湖区入侵植物分布规律及其危害,对洞庭湖区入侵植物区系、种类组成、类型、生活型和原产地进行较为深入的研究。[方法] 通过实地调查、采集标本、查阅资料进行统计分析。[结果] 洞庭湖区外来入侵植物共有86种,隶属于24科64属,原产于美洲的有51种,占总数的58.6%,双子叶植物有21科53属73种,单子叶植物仅有5科12属13种,草本植物共84种,占97.6%,洞庭湖区入侵植物科的区系类型主要为世界广布;入侵植物属的区系类型以泛热带分布和世界广布为主。[结论] 洞庭湖区入侵植物种类较多、适应性强、繁殖速度快、繁殖能力强、传播途径多样、区系成分复杂且危害严重,应根据入侵现状对洞庭湖区外来入侵植物采取相应的的防治措施。     

北京地区外来入侵植物分布特征及其影响因素

为研究北京地区入侵植物扩散与分布规律,探讨影响入侵植物分布的驱动因子,对北京郊区12区县入侵植物分布情况进行了实地调查,分析了北京地区入侵植物的水平分布格局和其随海拔梯度的变化规律,并对影响入侵植物种数和分布的各类因子进行了相关分析。结果表明:北京地区共有外来入侵植物47种,不同区县入侵植物物种数量差别较大,通州、门头沟等外来入侵植物分布较多;并形成3个明显的集中分布区域。入侵植物在不同海拔高度都有分布,其数量随海拔梯度的变化规律表现出线形关系,低海拔区域100—900 m是外来入侵植物分布数量较多的海拔范围。通过对不同影响因子与入侵植物物种多度相关分析表明,进口额、一级公路密度与外来入侵植物数量显著负相关,而与林木覆盖率显著正相关,这些结论与入侵植物分布与扩散一般规律相悖,这与北京地区森林起源与以及人类活动对于植被干扰多样性和不确定性形成的景观破碎化有关,多样性干扰为更多植物入侵提供了可能性。入侵植物分布格局和多样性人为活动的干扰使其防控难度加大。     

Go with the flow: Fragment retention patterns shape the vegetative dispersal of aquatic plants in lowland streams

1. The dispersal of aquatic plant propagules is highly facilitated in streams due to flow. As many aquatic plants predominantly spread through vegetative propagules, the specific retention and thus drift distance of dispersed plant fragments largely contribute to the rapid spread along the course of a stream.
2. We determined fragment retention for four aquatic plant species (Elodea canadensis, Myriophyllum spicatum, Ceratophyllum demersum, Salvinia natans; representing four different common morpho-structural groups) in sections of small to medium-sized German streams with different levels of stream sinuosity.
3. The number of fragments showed a logistic decline over drift distance. In two small streams, 90% of drifting fragments were retained at distances (D₉₀) of only 5–9 m and 19–70 m, while higher D₉₀ values of 116–903 m and 153–2,367 m were determined for sections of a medium-sized stream. The likelihood of retention thereby decreased significantly with increasing stream size and was reduced in straightened stream sections.
4. Differences in retention were more strongly related to fragment buoyancy rather than fragment size and morphology. Increasing buoyancy significantly lowered the likelihood of fragment retention over drift distance by a factor of 3–8, whereas contrasting effects were documented for size and morphology of fragments.
5. The relevance of different obstacles was highly stream section-specific and depended on obstacle abundance, distribution, and the degree of submergence/emergence.
6. Our findings elucidate the dynamic retention patterns of plant fragments and highlight the strong interplay between extrinsic (stream) and intrinsic (fragment) properties. We conclude that straightened lowland streams of intermediate size promote the rapid dispersal of invasive aquatic plants and are particularly prone to invaders producing large amounts of small and highly buoyant plant fragments. Information on the species-specific fragment colonisation dynamics in the field is further required to improve our understanding of the vegetative dispersal capacity of invasive aquatic plants in stream ecosystems.

     

DNA barcoding of invasive plants in China: A resource for identifying invasive plants

Invasive plants have aroused attention globally for causing ecological damage and having a negative impact on the economy and human health. However, it can be extremely challenging to rapidly and accurately identify invasive plants based on morphology because they are an assemblage of many different families and many plant materials lack sufficient diagnostic characteristics during border inspections. It is therefore urgent to evaluate candidate loci and build a reliable genetic library to prevent invasive plants from entering China. In this study, five common single markers (ITS, ITS2, matK, rbcL and trnH‐psbA) were evaluated using 634 species (including 469 invasive plant species in China, 10 new records to China, 16 potentially invasive plant species around the world but not introduced into China yet and 139 plant species native to China) based on three different methods. Our results indicated that ITS2 displayed largest intra‐ and interspecific divergence (1.72% and 91.46%). Based on NJ tree method, ITS2, ITS, matK, rbcL and trnH‐psbA provided 76.84%, 76.5%, 63.21%, 52.86% and 50.68% discrimination rates, respectively. The combination of ITS + matK performed best and provided 91.03% discriminatory power, followed by ITS2 + matK (85.78%). For identifying unknown individuals, ITS + matK had 100% correct identification rate based on our database, followed by ITS/ITS2 (both 93.33%) and ITS2 + matK (91.67%). Thus, we propose ITS/ITS2 + matK as the most suitable barcode for invasive plants in China. This study also demonstrated that DNA barcoding is an efficient tool for identifying invasive species.     

京津冀外来入侵植物的种类调查与分析

【目的】近年来,外来入侵植物对京津冀地区的生态安全和经济贸易发展构成了严重威胁。了解京津冀地区入侵植物种类组成,分析其分布特点,能够为京津冀地区外来入侵植物扩散的防控、生物多样性保护与生态安全提供理论依据。【方法】对京津冀外来入侵植物的种类、原产地、生活型、危害程度、引入途径等进行调查和分析。【结果】京津冀目前有99种外来入侵植物,其中恶性杂草11种。菊科和禾本科为优势科,所含种数分别为24和12种。京津冀外来入侵植物以一、二年草本植物为主;美洲是京津冀入侵植物的最大起源地,其中,北美地区23种,美洲热带和中、南美洲共32种;人为有意引进共56种,占外来入侵植物总种数的56.57%。【结论】当前京津冀地区外来植物入侵状况比较严重,且该地区入侵植物的入侵与其社会经济学因子和生物地理学因子密切有关,有意引入是京津冀地区外来植物入侵的主要途径。     

Global patterns of phylogenetic relatedness of invasive flowering plants

Aim

The ability of predicting which naturalized non-native species are likely to become invasive can help manage and prevent species invasions. The goal of this study is to test whether invasive angiosperm (flowering plant) species are a phylogenetically clustered subset of naturalized species at global, continental and regional scales, and to assess the relationships of phylogenetic relatedness of invasive species with climate condition (temperature and precipitation).

Location

Global.

Time period

Current.

Taxon

Angiosperms (flowering plants).

Methods

The globe is divided into 290 regions, which are grouped into seven biogeographic (continental) regions. Two phylogenetic metrics (net relatedness index and nearest taxon index), which represent different evolutionary depths, are used to quantify phylogenetic relatedness of invasive angiosperms, with respect to different tailor-made species pools. Phylogenetic relatedness of invasive angiosperms is related to climatic variables.

Results

The global assemblage of invasive angiosperm species is a strongly phylogenetically clustered subset of the species of the entire global angiosperm flora. Most invasive angiosperm assemblages are a phylogenetically clustered subset of their respective naturalized species pools, and phylogenetic clustering reflecting shallow evolutionary history is greater than that reflecting deep evolutionary history. In general, the phylogenetic relatedness of invasive species is greater in regions with lower temperature and precipitation across the world.

Main conclusions

The finding that invasive angiosperm assemblages across the globe are, in general, phylogenetically clustered subsets of their respective naturalized species pools has significant implications in biological conservation, particularly in predicting and controlling invasive species based on phylogenetic relatedness among naturalized species.