Publication Date:
2019
Description:
Abstract
Question
Graminoid/shrubland communities include groups of forbs (herbaceous dicots) which differ in their traits, and in their direct and indirect responses to dominant neighbours. Although we have a growing knowledge of which traits might influence direct species’ responses to dominant neighbours, and in particular the crucial importance of plant stature over foliage traits, less is known about the relationship between species’ traits and indirect responses to dominant neighbours.
Location
An alpine graminoid/shrubland co‐dominated by the shrub Dasiphora fruticosa and graminoids such as the sedge Kobresia capillifolia on the Tibetan plateau (China).
Methods
The above‐ and below‐ground effects of the shrub in the absence or presence of the graminoids were manipulated to quantify direct and indirect responses of forb species, which were grouped with a PCA. For the forbs, six traits characterizing both plant stature and foliage traits were measured and a Redundancy Analysis was used to assess their patterns of direct and indirect responses to the dominant neighbours.
Results
We found contrasting direct and indirect responses of forb species to the graminoids, and the above‐ and below‐ground effects of the shrubs, separable into four species‐groups. A significant positive indirect net effect of the shrub was observed at the community‐level. Traits of forb species were more tightly related to direct than indirect responses to dominant neighbours, while plant stature had a primary influence over foliage traits, which was only very weakly related to indirect responses.
Conclusions
Although plant traits, in particular plant stature, have strong influences on direct species’ responses to dominant neighbours, relationships to indirect interactions are more subtle and variable. This inhibits our prediction of the influence of species’ traits on species’ composition through indirect interactions.
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Print ISSN:
1100-9233
Electronic ISSN:
1654-1103
Topics:
Biology
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