Interspecific Interactions among High Marsh Perennials in a New England Salt Marsh

Ecology ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark D. Bertness
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
New England ◽  
Interspecific Interactions ◽  
High Marsh ◽  
England Salt Marsh

scholarly journals Facilitative and competitive interaction components among New England salt marsh plants

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
John F Bruno ◽  
Tatyana A Rand ◽  
Nancy C Emery ◽  
Mark D Bertness
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
New England ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Community Organization ◽  
Interspecific Interactions ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Positive Interactions ◽  
Life Stages ◽  
England Salt Marsh ◽  
Natural Communities

Intra- and interspecific interactions can be broken down into facilitative and competitive components. The net interaction between two organisms is simply the sum of these counteracting elements. Disentangling the positive and negative components of species interactions is a critical step in advancing our understanding of how the interaction between organisms shift along physical and biotic gradients, and whether component interactions are unique or redundant across species in natural communities. We performed a manipulative field experiment to quantify the positive and negative components of the interactions between a perennial forb, Aster tenuifolius, and three dominant, matrix-forming grasses and rushes in a New England salt marsh. Specifically, we asked whether positive and negative interaction components: (1) are unique or redundant across three matrix-forming grass and rush species (Juncus gerardi, Distichlis spicata, and Spartina patens), and (2) change across Aster life stages (seedling, juvenile, and adult). For adult forbs, the strength of the facilitative component of the matrix-forb interaction was stronger than the competitive component for two of the three matrix species, leading to net positive interactions. There was no statistically significant variation among matrix species in their net or component effects, however, the competitive effect of J. gerardi was negligible, especially compared to that of D. spicata. We found little difference in the effects of J. gerardi on Aster at later life-history stages; interaction component strengths did not differ between juveniles and adults. However, mortality of seedlings in neighbor removal plots was 100%, indicating a particularly strong and critical facilitative effect of matrix species on this forb during the earliest life stages. Overall, our results indicate that matrix forming grasses and rushes have important, yet largely redundant, positive net effects on Aster performance across its life cycle. Studies that untangle various components of interactions and their contingencies are critical to both expanding our basic understanding of community organization, and predicting how natural communities and their component parts will respond to environmental change.

scholarly journals Facilitative and competitive interaction components among New England salt marsh plants

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
John F Bruno ◽  
Tatyana A Rand ◽  
Nancy C Emery ◽  
Mark D Bertness
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
New England ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Community Organization ◽  
Interspecific Interactions ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Positive Interactions ◽  
Life Stages ◽  
England Salt Marsh ◽  
Natural Communities

Intra- and interspecific interactions can be broken down into facilitative and competitive components. The net interaction between two organisms is simply the sum of these counteracting elements. Disentangling the positive and negative components of species interactions is a critical step in advancing our understanding of how the interaction between organisms shift along physical and biotic gradients, and whether component interactions are unique or redundant across species in natural communities. We performed a manipulative field experiment to quantify the positive and negative components of the interactions between a perennial forb, Aster tenuifolius, and three dominant, matrix-forming grasses and rushes in a New England salt marsh. Specifically, we asked whether positive and negative interaction components: (1) are unique or redundant across three matrix-forming grass and rush species (Juncus gerardi, Distichlis spicata, and Spartina patens), and (2) change across Aster life stages (seedling, juvenile, and adult). For adult forbs, the strength of the facilitative component of the matrix-forb interaction was stronger than the competitive component for two of the three matrix species, leading to net positive interactions. There was no statistically significant variation among matrix species in their net or component effects, however, the competitive effect of J. gerardi was negligible, especially compared to that of D. spicata. We found little difference in the effects of J. gerardi on Aster at later life-history stages; interaction component strengths did not differ between juveniles and adults. However, mortality of seedlings in neighbor removal plots was 100%, indicating a particularly strong and critical facilitative effect of matrix species on this forb during the earliest life stages. Overall, our results indicate that matrix forming grasses and rushes have important, yet largely redundant, positive net effects on Aster performance across its life cycle. Studies that untangle various components of interactions and their contingencies are critical to both expanding our basic understanding of community organization, and predicting how natural communities and their component parts will respond to environmental change.

scholarly journals Facilitative and competitive interaction components among New England salt marsh plants

PeerJ ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. e4049 ◽  
Author(s):  
John F. Bruno ◽  
Tatyana A. Rand ◽  
Nancy C. Emery ◽  
Mark D. Bertness
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
New England ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Community Organization ◽  
Interspecific Interactions ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Positive Interactions ◽  
Life Stages ◽  
England Salt Marsh ◽  
The Matrix

Intra- and interspecific interactions can be broken down into facilitative and competitive components. The net interaction between two organisms is simply the sum of these counteracting elements. Disentangling the positive and negative components of species interactions is a critical step in advancing our understanding of how the interaction between organisms shift along physical and biotic gradients. We performed a manipulative field experiment to quantify the positive and negative components of the interactions between a perennial forb, Aster tenuifolius, and three dominant, matrix-forming grasses and rushes in a New England salt marsh. Specifically, we asked whether positive and negative interaction components: (1) are unique or redundant across three matrix-forming species (two grasses; Distichlis spicata and Spartina patens, and one rush; Juncus gerardi), and (2) change across Aster life stages (seedling, juvenile, and adult). For adult Aster the strength of the facilitative component of the matrix-forb interaction was stronger than the competitive component for two of the three matrix species, leading to net positive interactions. There was no statistically significant variation among matrix species in their net or component effects. We found little difference in the effects of J. gerardi on Aster at later life-history stages; interaction component strengths did not differ between juveniles and adults. However, mortality of seedlings in neighbor removal plots was 100%, indicating a particularly strong and critical facilitative effect of matrix species on this forb during the earliest life stages. Overall, our results indicate that matrix forming grasses and rushes have important, yet largely redundant, positive net effects on Aster performance across its life cycle. Studies that untangle various components of interactions and their contingencies are critical to both expanding our basic understanding of community organization, and predicting how natural communities and their component parts will respond to environmental change.

Nutrients, competition and plant zonation in a New England salt marsh

1998 ◽  
Vol 86 (2) ◽  
pp. 285-292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan M. Levine ◽  
J. Stephen Brewer ◽  
Mark D. Bertness
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
New England ◽  
Plant Zonation ◽  
England Salt Marsh

The dynamics of bottom-up and top-down control in a New England salt marsh

Oikos ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 117 (7) ◽  
pp. 1050-1056 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. M. Sala ◽  
M. D. Bertness ◽  
B. R. Silliman
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
New England ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
England Salt Marsh

scholarly journals Long-term nutrient addition increases respiration and nitrous oxide emissions in a New England salt marsh

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 4958-4966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rose M. Martin ◽  
Cathleen Wigand ◽  
Elizabeth Elmstrom ◽  
Javier Lloret ◽  
Ivan Valiela
Keyword(s):  
Nitrous Oxide ◽  
Salt Marsh ◽  
New England ◽  
Nutrient Addition ◽  
Nitrous Oxide Emissions ◽  
England Salt Marsh
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document