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BIOMASS, PRODUCTIVITY, AND DOMINANCE OF ALIEN PLANTS: A MULTIHABITAT STUDY IN A NATIONAL PARK
Author(s) -
de Gruchy M. A.,
Reader R. J.,
Larson D. W.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.144
H-Index - 294
eISSN - 1939-9170
pISSN - 0012-9658
DOI - 10.1890/04-0840
Subject(s) - dominance (genetics) , species richness , ecology , habitat , alien , biomass (ecology) , productivity , ordination , biology , national park , geography , population , biochemistry , demography , macroeconomics , sociology , gene , economics , census
The invasion of natural and anthropogenic habitats by alien plants is a global problem. To understand the factors that regulate the success of alien plant species we sampled alien plant biomass and species composition in 66 sites representing a wide variety of habitat types within Bruce Peninsula National Park, Ontario, Canada. We quantified the response of existing alien biomass to a suite of habitat variables including habitat productivity, standing biomass, species richness, soil nutrients and disturbance factors. Standing biomass in the sites varied from 0 to nearly 60 000 g/m 2 and annual productivity ranged from 0 to nearly 800 g·m −2 ·yr −1 . The response of both absolute and relative alien biomass (dominance) to the independent variables was assessed using univariate plots and multivariate canonical correspondence analysis. The results show that total standing alien biomass and site disturbance history can predict alien dominance, but other factors including primary productivity, nutrient levels, and site species richness cannot. In the multivariate analysis, species composition of both aliens and natives was best explained by nutrient levels, disturbance type, biomass, and, to a lesser extent, productivity. The study illustrates the value of examining both absolute abundance and dominance of aliens across a broad array of habitat types, and in the context of a large suite of possible driving functions.