Homogenization of soil seed bank communities by fire and invasive species in the Mojave Desert

IF 2.4 3区 环境科学与生态学 Q2 ECOLOGY
Steven Lee, Robert Klinger, Matthew L. Brooks, Scott Ferrenberg
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Soil seed banks help maintain species diversity through temporal storage effects and function as germination pools that can optimize fitness across varying environmental conditions. These characteristics promote the persistence of native plant communities, yet disturbances such as fire and associated invasions by non-native species can disrupt these reserves, fundamentally altering successional trajectories. This may be particularly true in deserts, where native plant communities are less adapted to fire. While studies of fire effects on desert plant communities are not uncommon, information regarding the short- and long-term effects of fire on seed banks is less available. To better understand the influence of fire and invasive species on desert seed banks, we investigated soil seed bank biodiversity from 30 wildfires that burned between 1972 and 2010 across the Mojave Desert ecoregion of North America. We assessed how characteristics of fire regimes (frequency, time since fire, and burn severity) interacted with climate and invasive plants on measures of α-, β-, and γ-diversities. Because β-diversity is a direct measure of community variability and reveals important information about biodiversity loss, we further examined the nestedness and turnover components of β-diversity. Mean α- and γ-diversities were generally higher for burned locations than in unburned reference sites, however individual fire variables had little influence on patterns of seed bank diversity. Burned area seed banks tended to be dominated by non-native invasive species, primarily two grasses, (Bromus rubens, Bromus tectorum), as well as an invasive forb (Erodium cicutarium). The most striking pattern we observed was a collective sharp decline in α-, β-, and γ-diversities with increased invasive species dominance, indicating the homogenization of seed bank communities with the colonization of invasive species after fire. Evidence of homogenization was further supported by reduced turnover and increased nestedness in burn areas compared to reference areas indicating potential biodiversity loss. Our findings highlight how biological processes such as plant invasions can combine with disturbance from fire to alter patterns of seed bank composition and diversity in desert ecosystems.
莫哈韦沙漠火灾和入侵物种导致土壤种子库群落同质化
土壤种子库通过时间储存效应帮助维持物种多样性,并作为发芽池发挥作用,可在不同环境条件下优化适应性。这些特点促进了本地植物群落的持续存在,然而火灾等干扰和非本地物种的相关入侵会破坏这些储备,从根本上改变演替轨迹。这种情况在沙漠中尤为明显,因为沙漠中的本地植物群落对火灾的适应能力较弱。有关火灾对沙漠植物群落影响的研究并不少见,但有关火灾对种子库的短期和长期影响的信息却较少。为了更好地了解火灾和入侵物种对沙漠种子库的影响,我们调查了 1972 年至 2010 年间北美莫哈韦沙漠生态区发生的 30 场野火中的土壤种子库生物多样性。我们评估了火灾机制的特征(频率、火灾发生后的时间和燃烧严重程度)与气候和入侵植物对α-、β-和γ-多样性的影响。由于 β 多样性是群落变异性的直接测量指标,能揭示生物多样性丧失的重要信息,因此我们进一步研究了 β 多样性的嵌套性和周转成分。焚烧区的α和γ多样性平均值普遍高于未焚烧的参照地,但个别火灾变量对种子库多样性模式的影响不大。焚烧区域的种子库往往以非本地入侵物种为主,主要是两种禾本科植物(Bromus rubens、Bromus tectorum)以及一种入侵禁草(Erodium cicutarium)。我们观察到的最显著的模式是,随着入侵物种优势的增加,α-、β-和γ-多样性集体急剧下降,这表明火灾后随着入侵物种的定殖,种子库群落发生了同质化。与参照区相比,燃烧区的更替率降低,嵌套度增加,这进一步证实了同质化的证据,表明潜在的生物多样性损失。我们的研究结果突显了植物入侵等生物过程如何与火灾干扰相结合,从而改变沙漠生态系统种子库的组成和多样性模式。
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来源期刊
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution Environmental Science-Ecology
CiteScore
4.00
自引率
6.70%
发文量
1143
审稿时长
12 weeks
期刊介绍: Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution publishes rigorously peer-reviewed research across fundamental and applied sciences, to provide ecological and evolutionary insights into our natural and anthropogenic world, and how it should best be managed. Field Chief Editor Mark A. Elgar at the University of Melbourne is supported by an outstanding Editorial Board of international researchers. This multidisciplinary open-access journal is at the forefront of disseminating and communicating scientific knowledge and impactful discoveries to researchers, academics and the public worldwide. Eminent biologist and theist Theodosius Dobzhansky’s astute observation that “Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution” has arguably even broader relevance now than when it was first penned in The American Biology Teacher in 1973. One could similarly argue that not much in evolution makes sense without recourse to ecological concepts: understanding diversity — from microbial adaptations to species assemblages — requires insights from both ecological and evolutionary disciplines. Nowadays, technological developments from other fields allow us to address unprecedented ecological and evolutionary questions of astonishing detail, impressive breadth and compelling inference. The specialty sections of Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution will publish, under a single platform, contemporary, rigorous research, reviews, opinions, and commentaries that cover the spectrum of ecological and evolutionary inquiry, both fundamental and applied. Articles are peer-reviewed according to the Frontiers review guidelines, which evaluate manuscripts on objective editorial criteria. Through this unique, Frontiers platform for open-access publishing and research networking, Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution aims to provide colleagues and the broader community with ecological and evolutionary insights into our natural and anthropogenic world, and how it might best be managed.
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