Abstract
Invasive plants can reduce plant diversity and abundance in native grassland communities; however, the effect on the native seed bank is less clear. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of invasion by the exotic grass old world bluestem (OWB; Bothriochloa spp.) on native aboveground plant species composition and seed bank diversity and abundance (i.e., cover, density). In this central Great Plains grassland, OWB invasion had differential effects on native diversity and abundance of both aboveground and seed bank plant communities. Native plant species diversity and cover showed a steep decline as OWB cover increased. No change in native seed density or richness was observed in response to OWB invasion, however, OWB seed density increased with increasing invasion, thus increasing total seed density. Our results indicate that as OWB invasion increases, the native plant community decreases in diversity and abundance. Although, no effect on native seed bank diversity and density was observed in this study, as native seeds are lost through a loss of native species in the plant communities, native seed bank diversity and density is expected to decline.
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Acknowledgments
The authors thank K. Nelson for technical support and C. Worthington. K. Parsons, K. Cothren, J. Worthington, K. Spears, and C. Walden for assistance with data collection. G.W.T. Wilson and an anonymous reviewer provided helpful comments to an earlier version of the manuscript. Research was funded by State Wildlife Grant Project T-36-P of the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation and Oklahoma State University and the National Research Initiative of the US Department of Agriculture Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, Grant No. 2006-35320-17476.
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Robertson, S.G., Hickman, K.R. Aboveground plant community and seed bank composition along an invasion gradient. Plant Ecol 213, 1461–1475 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-012-0104-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-012-0104-7