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Influence of invasive Spartina growth stages on associated macrofaunal communities

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Abstract

In coastal wetlands, invasive plants often act as ecosystem engineers altering flow, light and sediments which, in turn, can affect benthic animal communities. However, the degree of influence of the engineer will vary significantly as it grows, matures and senesces, and surprisingly little is known about how the influence of an ecosystem engineer varies with ontogeny. We address this issue on the tidal flats of San Francisco Bay where hybrid Spartina (foliosa ×  alterniflora) invaded 30 years ago. The invasion has altered the physico-chemical properties of the sediment habitat, which we predicted should cause changes in macrofaunal community structure and function. Through mensurative and manipulative approaches we investigated the influence of different growth stages of hybrid Spartina on macrobenthos and the underlying mechanisms. Cross-elevation sampling transects were established covering 5 zones (or stages) of the invasion, running from the tidal flat (pre-invasion) to an unvegetated dieback zone. Additionally, we experimentally removed aboveground plant structure in the mature (inner) marsh to mimic the ’unvegetated areas’. Our results revealed four distinct faunal assemblages, which reflected Spartina-induced changes in the corresponding habitat properties along an elevation gradient: a pre-invaded tidal flat, a leading edge of immature invasion, a center of mature invasion, and a senescing dieback area. These stages of hybrid Spartina invasion were accompanied by a substantial reduction in macrofaunal species richness and an increase in dominance, as well as a strong shift in feeding modes, from surface microalgal feeders to subsurface detritus/Spartina feeders (mainly tubificid oligochaetes and capitellid polychaetes). Knowledge of the varying influence of plant invaders on the sediment ecosystem during different phases of invasion is critical for management of coastal wetlands.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank R. Blake, C. Tyler, U. Mahl, C. Whitcraft, N. Christiansen, C. Love, N. Rayl, E. Brusati, P. McMillan, and J. Gonzalez for assistance in the field and in the laboratory. We gratefully acknowledge S. Maezumi for her dedication and thorough sorting of invertebrates. We are grateful to C. Janousek who kindly assisted with HPLC pigment analyses, and M. Vernet for providing HPLC facilities. We acknowledged Steve Fend (US Geological Survey) for identification of Monopylephorus evertus. We thank C. Nordby, R. Blake, and E. Brusati for providing compliance with California Clapper Rail permit requirements. We thank C. Whitcraft and A. Demopoulus for comments and literature suggestions. Comments by two anonymous reviewers are highly appreciated. Support was provided by the National Science Foundation Biocomplexity Program (DEB 0083583) to L.A.L and E.D.G.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Integrative Oceanography Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0218, USA

    Carlos Neira, Lisa A. Levin & Guillermo Mendoza

  2. Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA, 95616, USA

    Edwin D. Grosholz

Authors
  1. Carlos Neira
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  2. Lisa A. Levin
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  3. Edwin D. Grosholz
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  4. Guillermo Mendoza
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Carlos Neira.

Appendices

 

Appendix A Relationships among sediment variables, diversity, total macrofaunal density, and selected macrofaunal species, whose densities significantly changed within a transect of different stages of hybrid Spartina invasion in Elsie Roemer, San Francisco Bay
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Appendix B Comparisons of macrofaunal assemblages of dieback area, dieback-area adjacent hybrid (Exp 1), sampled in April 2003, clipped and unclipped habitats (Exp 2), sampled after 90 d plant removal in July 2002, and five zones representing hybrid Spartina invasion stages (Exp 3), sampled in June 2004 in Elsie Roemer (San Francisco Bay). Pairwise Analysis of Similarity (ANOSIM) tests for macrofaunal similarities between habitats are given above the diagonal. Values on the diagonal are percent similarity within habitat (SIMPER); values below the diagonal are percent dissimilarity between habitats (SIMPER). Significance was set at α = 0.05. Experiment 1 includes: D = dieback area and AH = adjacent hybrid Spartina, Experiment 2 includes: C = clipped area and U = unclipped control, and Experiment 3 includes: Z1 = pre-invaded tidal flat, Z2 = hybrid leading edge (immature invasion), Z3 = hybrid inner (mature invasion), Z4 = dieback area-adjacent hybrid (senescing invasion), and Z5 = dieback area
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Neira, C., Levin, L.A., Grosholz, E.D. et al. Influence of invasive Spartina growth stages on associated macrofaunal communities. Biol Invasions 9, 975–993 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-007-9097-x

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