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Leaf litter of the invasive Casuarina equisetifolia decomposes at the same rate as that of native woody species on oceanic islands but releases more nitrogen
Author(s) -
HATA K,
KATO H,
KACHI N
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
weed research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1365-3180
pISSN - 0043-1737
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3180.2012.00945.x
Subject(s) - casuarina equisetifolia , litter , biology , plant litter , casuarina , agronomy , botany , ecology , ecosystem
H ata K, K ato H & K achi N (2012). Leaf litter of the invasive Casuarina equisetifolia decomposes at the same rate as that of native woody species on oceanic islands but releases more nitrogen. Weed Research 52 , 542–550. Summary We tested whether the decomposition rates and N loss of leaf litter of an alien invasive tree, Casuarina equisetifolia , are affected by litter traits and environmental conditions in the Ogasawara Islands in the north‐western Pacific Ocean. In a field experiment, we compared mass loss and N loss of leaf litter among four treatments in a 2 × 2 design of forest type (native and C. equisetifolia ) × litter type (native and C. equisetifolia ). The dry weight of C. equisetifolia litter remaining at the end of the experiment was significantly less than that of the litter of native species in both forest types. The dry weight of decomposing litter at the C. equisetifolia sites was significantly less than that at native forest sites, regardless of litter type. The dry weight of C. equisetifolia litter at the C. equisetifolia sites was similar to that of the litter of native species at the native forest sites. The C. equisetifolia leaf litter was significantly greater in N content and rate of N loss than the litter of native species. Our results demonstrate that the decomposition rate of C. equisetifolia litter is affected by both litter type and the forest type of the invaded sites and suggest that litter decomposition of C. equisetifolia may alter the total N and N cycling in invaded forest ecosystems.