Forest succession suppressed by an introduced plant-fungal symbiosis

Microbial symbionts can affect plant nutrition, defensive chemistry, and biodiversity. Here we test the hypothesis that symbionts alter the speed and direction of plant succession in communities that are shifting from grasslands to forests. A widespread C₃ grass introduced to the United States, Loli...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ecology (Durham) 2007, Vol.88 (1), p.18-25
Main Authors: Rudgers, Jennifer A., Holah, Jenny, Orr, Samuel P., Clay, Keith
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Arvicolinae - physiology
Biodiversity
Biological and medical sciences
Botany
C3 plants
community structure
Ecological succession
Ecosystem
endophyte
endophytes
Endosymbionts
Festuca arundinacea subsp. arundinacea
field experimentation
foraging
Forest succession
forest trees
Forestry
Forests
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
General aspects
General forest ecology
Generalities. Production, biomass. Quality of wood and forest products. General forest ecology
Grasses
Grasslands
herbivores
herbivory
Highlands
Hypocreales - physiology
Indiana
indirect effect
introduced species
invasive species
Lolium
Lolium - microbiology
Lolium arundinaceum
Microtus
Neotyphodium
Plant ecology
Plant interaction
Plants
Population Dynamics
Seedlings
symbionts
Symbiosis
Symbiosis - physiology
tree growth
Trees
Voles
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Summary:Microbial symbionts can affect plant nutrition, defensive chemistry, and biodiversity. Here we test the hypothesis that symbionts alter the speed and direction of plant succession in communities that are shifting from grasslands to forests. A widespread C₃ grass introduced to the United States, Lolium arundinaceum (tall fescue), hosts a fungal endophyte that is toxic to herbivores. In replicated experimental grasslands, the presence of the endophyte in tall fescue reduced tree abundance and size, altered tree composition, and slowed plant species turnover. In addition, consumption of tree seedlings by voles (Microtus spp.) was 65% higher in plots with the endophyte at the one grassland site where these data were collected. Despite its negligible contribution to community biomass, a microbial symbiont suppressed tree establishment, posing an important constraint on the natural transition from grasslands to forests.
ISSN:0012-9658
1939-9170
DOI:10.1890/0012-9658(2007)88[18:FSSBAI]2.0.CO;2