Explaining the variation in impacts of nonnative plants on localscale species richness: the role of phylogenetic relatedness

Explaining the variation in impacts of non - native plants on local - scale species 1 richness : the role of phylogenetic relatedness

Phylogenetic diversity of plants alters the effect of species richness on invertebrate herbivory

Long-standing ecological theory proposes that diverse communities of plants should experience a decrease in herbivory. Yet previous empirical examinations of this hypothesis have revealed that plant species richness increases herbivory in just as many systems as it decreases it. In this study, I ask whether more insight into the role of plant diversity in promoting or suppressing herbivory can ...

Trophic phylogenetics: evolutionary influences on body size, feeding, and species associations in grassland arthropods.

Contemporary animal-plant interactions such as herbivory are widely understood to be shaped by evolutionary history. Yet questions remain about the role of plant phylogenetic diversity in generating and maintaining herbivore diversity, and whether evolutionary relatedness of producers might predict the composition of consumer communities. We tested for evidence of evolutionary associations amon...

Effect of shrub type on species diversity and richness of soil seed bank in semiarid regions (case study: Chenarnaz rangelands, Khatam city, Yazd province)

Soil seed bank can facilitate natural regeneration of rangeland ecosystems. This bank is usually influenced by local plant species. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of canopy cover of three shrubs (Amygdalus scoparia, Daphne mezereum and Ebenus stellata) on the diversity and richness of soil seed bank under their canopies in Chenarnaz rangelands, Khatam city, Yazd province. Fi...

Historical land use and environmental determinants of nonnative plant distribution in coastal southern New England

The factors that influence the invasion of natural habitats by nonnative plants remain poorly understood. We investigated abiotic, biotic, and human influences on the distribution and abundance of nonnative species in coastal upland habitats of southern New England and adjacent New York, US. We censused vegetation and sampled soils in 776, 20 · 20 m plots in natural areas and constructed a spat...