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1.
Spartina alterniflora, smooth cordgrass, invading San Francisco Bay, California (USA), is attacked by high densities of a plant hopper, Prokelisia marginata, and a mirid bug, Trigonotylus uhleri. Both herbivores are sap-feeders. We investigated the impact of these herbivores on S. alterniflora's growth rate, vegetative spread, and seed production by manipulating herbivore densities in the field and in a greenhouse. Herbivore densities in the field peaked in early fall, with P. marginata averaging more than 300 individuals per mature culm of S. alterniflora (about 100,000 per m2) and T. uhleri densities exceeding 10 per culm (about 3,000 per m2). Field reductions of herbivore densities by approximately 70% with insecticidal soap did not result in greater vegetative growth rates or lateral spread of plants; plants grew vigorously with the highest densities of insects. In the greenhouse study, conducted with seedlings, herbivory significantly reduced plant mass and tiller number in some but not all replicate herbivory treatments. In both field and greenhouse, there were significant differences between some clones' growth rates independent of herbivory. Inflorescence production in the field was not affected by reduced-herbivory treatments. Seed set was low under conditions of both natural and reduced herbivory, averaging 0.4%. Despite densities of P. marginata and T. uhleri that are much higher than typically observed in areas where S. alterniflora is native, herbivory by these particular insects appears to have little impact and in unlikely to limit S. alterniflora’s spread through San Francisco Bay. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A01BY070 00009  相似文献   

2.
The ecological impact from the establishment of dense intertidal beds of introduced Asian date mussels (Musculista senhousia) and cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) in five northern New Zealand estuaries and harbours was documented in 2005–2006, using the fossil record of the shells of foraminifera, ostracods and molluscs in paired sediment cores and surface samples taken from inside and outside selected beds. The most significant changes in faunal composition in all, but the most saline sites, generally occurred in both cores in each pair and could be attributed to the impact of decreased salinity and pH as a result of increased freshwater runoff following clearance of the surrounding forest in the 19th century and urban development in the late 20th century. Establishment of Asian date mussel beds had a greatest impact on the composition of ostracod faunas. At near oceanic salinity, the mussels had completely replaced the native infaunal bivalve fauna, but had little impact on the foraminifera. At more brackish sites, the presence of mussel shells appears to have buffered the calcareous foraminifera from the effects of lowered pH, which had dissolved this component outside the beds. Establishment of cordgrass patches had no impact on ostracod faunas, and little on molluscs except at Kaipara, where introduced Pacific oysters had colonised the cordgrass. Cordgrass had the most impact on the foraminifera. At brackish sites, cordgrass patches had been colonised by agglutinated foraminiferal species different from those that dominate outside. In cordgrass at more saline sites, agglutinated foraminifera have invaded and bloomed at the expense of calcareous Ammonia spp., which dominated outside the patches.  相似文献   

3.
Monitoring of small-scale distribution patterns of benthic invertebrates has demonstrated distinct trends in faunal abundances with position relative to individual culms of saltmarsh cordgrass,Spartina alterniflora, at Tar Landing Bay Marsh, near Morehead City, North Carolina. Samples containing culms ofSpartina yielded significantly higher abundances (at least three times) than did samples without them. Among common species, onlyNereis succinea did not show this effect. Matrix-arranged and randomly placed sets of samples have confirmed a positive relationship between cross-sectional area of culms in a sample (at the sediment-water interface) and contained numbers of macrofauna, juvenile macrofauna and meiofauna. These patterns occurred despite a decreased volume of sediment in samples containing culms. Heightened abundances of benthic invertebrates associated with structural elements at the sediment-water interface may result from either nonrandom recruitment (either active via recruit selectivity or passive through hydrogeographic effects of culms) or differential post-recruitment mortality (resulting from inhibition of epibenthic predators or from variable habitat quality).  相似文献   

4.
Salt marsh zonation patterns generate different abiotic and biotic conditions that can accentuate species inherent differences in primary production and biomass. In South West Atlantic marshes, there are two Spartina species: Spartina alterniflora in the low intertidal and Spartina densiflora in the high intertidal. These two species are generally found in all marshes but with different dominance: In some marshes, the S. densiflora zone occupies higher extents, and in others, the S. alterniflora zone is the one that prevails. We found through field sampling that, in six studied marshes, there is greater S. densiflora live and total (i.e., dead+live) aboveground biomass (g m?2) in the marshes dominated by S. densiflora than in the ones dominated by S. alterniflora. Spartina alterniflora had similar aboveground biomass in the six marshes, regardless of the dominance of each species. When comparing the two Spartina species within each marsh, S. densiflora had greater live and total biomass in the marshes it dominates. In the marshes dominated by S. alterniflora, both species had similar live and total biomass. In all marshes, there was greater dead S. densiflora biomass. A multivariate analysis using selected abiotic factors (i.e., salinity, latitude, and tidal amplitude) showed that S. alterniflora aboveground biomass patterns are mainly correlated with salinity, while S. densiflora live biomass is mainly correlated with salinity and latitude, dead biomass with salinity and tidal amplitude, and total biomass with salinity alone. We conclude that in S. densiflora dominated marshes, the main processes of that species zone (i.e., nutrient accumulation) will be accentuated because of its higher biomass. We also conclude that climatic conditions, in combination with specific Spartina biotic and ambient abiotic parameters, can affect marsh ecological functions.  相似文献   

5.
The tropically associated black mangrove (Avicennia germinans) is expanding into salt marshes of the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGOM). This species has colonized temperate systems dominated by smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) in Texas, Louisiana, Florida and, most recently, Mississippi. To date, little is known about the habitat value of black mangroves for juvenile fish and invertebrates. Here we compare benthic epifauna, infauna, and nekton use of Spartina-dominated, Avicennia-dominated, and mixed Spartina and black mangrove habitats in two areas with varying densities and ages of black mangroves. Faunal samples and sediment cores were collected monthly from April to October in 2012 and 2013 from Horn Island, MS, and twice yearly in the Chandeleur Islands, LA. Multivariate analysis suggested benthic epifauna communities differed significantly between study location and among habitat types, with a significant interaction between the two fixed factors. Differences in mangrove and marsh community composition were greater at the Chandeleurs than at Horn Island, perhaps because of the distinct mangrove/marsh ecotone and the high density and age of mangroves there. Infaunal abundances were significantly higher at Horn Island, with tanaids acting as the main driver of differences between study locations. We predict that if black mangroves continue to increase in abundance in the northern GOM, estuarine faunal community composition could shift substantially because black mangroves typically colonize shorelines at higher elevations than smooth cordgrass, resulting in habitats of differing complexity and flooding duration.  相似文献   

6.
To predict the impacts of climate change, a better understanding is needed of the foundation species that build and maintain biogenic ecosystems. Spartina alterniflora Loisel (smooth cordgrass) is the dominant salt marsh-building plant along the US Atlantic coast. It maintains salt marsh elevation relative to sea level by the accumulation of aboveground biomass, which promotes sediment deposition and belowground biomass, which accretes as peat. Peat accumulation is particularly important in elevation maintenance at high latitudes where sediment supply tends to be limited. Latitudinal variation in S. alterniflora growth was quantified in eight salt marshes from Massachusetts to South Carolina. The hypothesis that allocation to aboveground and belowground biomass is phenotypically plastic was tested with transplant experiments among a subset of salt marshes along this gradient. Reciprocal transplants revealed that northern S. alterniflora decreased allocation to belowground biomass when grown in the south. Some northern plants also died when moved south, suggesting that northern S. alterniflora may be stressed by future warming. Southern plants that were moved north showed phenotypic plasticity in biomass allocation, but no mortality. Belowground biomass also decomposed more quickly in southern marshes. Our results suggest that warming will lead northern S. alterniflora to decrease belowground allocation and that belowground biomass will decompose more quickly, thus decreasing peat accumulation. Gradual temperature increases may allow for adaptation and acclimation, but our results suggest that warming will lower the ability of salt marshes to withstand sea-level rise.  相似文献   

7.
The distribution of macroinvertebrates on Connecticut tidal marshes corresponds well with that reported for other marshes along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. The greatest densities and biomass of the ribbed mussel,Geukensia demissa, were found on marshes in the central and western part of the state where both the annual production ofSpartina alterniflora and tidal range are large. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A01BY019 00011  相似文献   

8.
9.
An analysis of data relatingSpartina alterniflora Loisel. to tidal elevations along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts demonstrated that although this species is primarily confined to the intertidal zone, its elevational limits. of occurrence do not correspond to a consistent elevation relative to a tidal datum in all marsh locations. The variation in the vertical distribution of this species reported among marsh studies was attributed primarily to differences in mean tide range (MTR). A positive correlation between MTR and elevational growth range (r=0.91) demonstrated that theSpartina alterniflora zone expands with increasing tidal amplitude. Differences in MTR among marsh locations accounted for 70 and 68% of the statistical variation in the upper and lower limits, respectively, ofS. alterniflora growth. Among marshes of similar tidal amplitudes, the upper limit of occurrence ofS. alterniflora in northern marshes was significantly lower than that in marshes at lower latitudes. These results, in combination with regional differences in plant species distribution across the upper intertidal zone, suggested that some of the variation in the upper limit was due to latitudinal differences in growth conditions and/or differences in interspecific competition. Local and regional differences in other factors such as salinity, nutrients, or physical disturbance may have also contributed to the variation in the limits of growth relative to a tidal plane within and among marshes.  相似文献   

10.
As part of an effort to estimate estuarine habitat values with respect to ecological indicators of benthic macrofaunal community condition, an optimal (effective and least costly) sampling protocol (sample unit size [area x depth], sieve mesh size, and sample number [n]) was determined. The goal was to use four ecological indicators (number of species, abundance, biomass, and fish and crab prey abundance) to detect differences among four intertidal habitats in Willapa Bay, Washington, United States. The four habitats were eelgrass (Zostera marina), Atlantic cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), mud shrimp (Upogebia pugettensis), and ghost shrimp (Neotrypaea californiensis). Four sample unit areas (0.005, 0.010, 0.015, and 0.020 m2), two sample unit depths (0–5 and 0–10 cm), and two sieve mesh sizes (1.0 and 0.5 mm) were evaluated. The optimal sampling protocol was defined as the least costly protocol capable of reliably (statistical power, 1?β≥0.80) detecting significant (α=0.05) differences among ≥4 of the 6 pairwise habitat contrasts by ANOVA on all four ecological indicators. The relative cost of each sampling protocol was estimated as a direct function of the sample unit size and number and the cost-in-processing-time ratios of 1 (5 cm deep):1.7 (10 cm deep) and 1 (≥1.0 mm macrofauna size fraction); 2.5 (≥0.5 mm macrofauna size fraction), which were taken from previous studies. The optimal sampling protocol was 15–20, 0.01-m2×5-cm deep, 0.5-mm mesh samples per habitat.  相似文献   

11.
The dominant plant in Humboldt Bay salt marshes in Spartina densiflora, a species of cordgrass apparently introduced from South America. At several salt marshes and restoration sites around Humboldt Bay, distribution of this plant has increased significantly. We investigated the relative contributions of vegetative tiller production and seed germination to the establishment and expansion of S. densiflora. Lateral spread of plants surrounded by competitors were compared to areas without competing plant species. Plants growing in areas without competitors had significantly higher rates of vegetative expansion (p<0.0001). Viable seed production, germination rates, seedling survivorship, and growth of adult plants were measured in six salinity treatments. Approximately 1,977±80 viable seeds are produced per plant (0.25–0.5 m2). The number of germinating seeds was inversely related to increases in salinity. Salinity treatments between 19‰ and 35‰ produced significantly lower germination rates than salinities of 0–18‰ (p<0.0001). Seedling survivorship was 50% at ≤4‰ and 8–14% at ≥11‰. Lateral expansion of adult, greenhouse-grown plants occurred in all salinity treatments, with modest decreases in the highest salinity treatments (p<0.05). Our findings indicate that S. densiflora expands primarily by vegetative expansion, and lateral tillers are produced by throughout the year. Spartina densiflora produces prolific amounts of seed, but recruitment in mature salt marshes may be limited by competitors and higher salinities. At restoration sites, planting of native species such as Salicornia virginica, Distichlis spicata, or Jaumea carnosa may prevent monospecific stands of S. densiflora from developing.  相似文献   

12.
A laboratory experiment was conducted to determine whether retention of waterborne sand by salt marsh cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora Loisel, is directly related to the number of stems per unit area. Waves generated in a trough washed over a sloping beach planted with S. alterniflora sprigs: a range of stem densities (0–108 stems/m2) was examined in separate trials. The amount of sand accumulated after 60 waves is a positive nonlinear function of stem density. The greatest accretion coincided with the highest stem density tested. Shape of the beach profile was also strongly influenced by the number of stems per m2.  相似文献   

13.
Primary production by algal epiphytes of dead Spartina alterniflora shoots in a Georgia salt marsh was measured using the 14C technique. A 23 factorial design was used to quantify the effects of light intensity and inundation frequency (stem height) on carbon fixation at two sites along a salt marsh creek. Algae inundated daily fixed carbon more rapidly than those which had dried for several days, but this may have been the results of greater biomass on more frequently immersed stems. This result corroborates studies showing desiccation is not always a severe stress for intertidal algae. Similarity of epiphyte algal productivity to that of salt marsh benthic diatoms suggests that, given adequate substrate, the epiphytes may be an important source of primary production during some seasons of the year.  相似文献   

14.
The stable isotope signatures of marine transient and resident nekton were used to investigate trophic linkages between primary producers, marsh macrophytes, phytoplankton, benthic microalgae, and consumers within the Delaware Bay. A whole estuary approach was used to compare the flux of nutrients from primary producers to juvenile weakfish (Cynoscion regalis), bay anchovy (Anchoa mitchilli), and white perch (Morone americana) in open waters of the lower and upper Bay and adjacent salt marshes dominated by eitherSpartina alterniflora orPhragmites australis. Our results suggest that trophic linkages vary significantly along the salinity gradient, reflecting the transition fromSpartina toPhragmites-dominated marshes, and secondarily, in a marsh to open water (offshore) direction at a given salinity. Superimposed on this pattern was a gradient in the proximate use of organic matter that depended on life history traits of each species ranging from pelagic to benthic in the order bay anchovy > weakfish > white perch.  相似文献   

15.
Investigations into nematode density and species assemblages have been conducted in different types of mangroves worldwide, but these studies have typically been limited to one type of plant or tree species. The invasive salt marsh grass Spartina alterniflora has successively invaded native mangroves along the southern coasts of China during the preceding two decades. However, few meiofauna studies on the impacts of S. alterniflora have been conducted, and the consequences of this invasion on ecosystem composition and function remain unclear. The hypothesis of this study was that the spatial and seasonal distribution of nematode assemblages vary significantly among three native mangrove habitats (Kandelia obovata, Aegiceras corniculatum, and Avicennia marina) and between these habitats and a fourth habitat that was colonized by S. alterniflora, in Zhangjiang Estuary, China. Our results demonstrated that different species dominated in different habitats seasonally. Highly significant differences in density, number of species, diversity index, and maturity index were present among the four habitats. ANOSIM results revealed that there were significant differences in nematode assemblages among the four habitats and seasons, with the S. alterniflora habitat exhibiting the lowest mean values of number of species, Shannon-Wiener diversity index, richness index, and maturity index in the four seasons. This suggests that the presence of S. alterniflora disrupted nematode assemblages.  相似文献   

16.
Spartina alterniflora and Spartina densiflora are native salt marsh plants from the Atlantic coast; their habitats in Patos Lagoon estuary (southern Brazil) are characterized by a microtidal regime (<0.5 m) and, during El Niño events, high estuarine water levels and prolonged flooding due to elevated freshwater discharge from a 200,000-km2 watershed. During and between El Niño events, the vegetative propagation of these two Spartina species in the largest estuary of southern Brazil (Patos Lagoon) was evaluated by monitoring transplanted plants for 10 years (short-term study) and interpreting aerial photos of natural stands for 56 years (long-term study). During the short-term study, S. alterniflora quickly occupied mud flats (up to 208 cm year?1) by elongation of rhizomes, whereas S. densiflora showed a modest lateral spread (up to 13 cm year?1) and generated dense circular-shaped stands. However, moderate and strong El Niño events can promote excessive flooding and positive anomalies in the estuarine water level that reduce the lateral spread and competitive ability of S. densiflora. During the long-term study, natural stands of S. alterniflora and S. densiflora had steady lateral spread rates of 152 and 5.2 cm year?1, respectively, over mud flats. In the microtidal marshes of the southwest Atlantic, the continuous long-term lateral expansion of both Spartina species embodies periods of intense flooding stress (moderate and strong El Niños), when there is a decrease of vegetative propagation and less stressful low water periods of fast spread over mud flats (non-El Niño periods and weak intensity El Niños).  相似文献   

17.
Recently, strong top-down (consumer) control of cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) has been demonstrated. Here, we manipulated the densities of cordgrass consumers, acridid grasshoppers (Melanoplus bivittatus and Melanoplus femurrubrum), to examine their impact on cordgrass in the Plum Island Estuary (PIE), MA, USA. After 1 month, there was no detectable effect of grasshopper density on S. alterniflora biomass and grasshoppers at the highest densities (34 individuals per square meter) consumed only ~14% of the standing stock biomass. However, significant impacts of grasshopper density on grazing damage were seen. For example, plant damage and scarring length increased by 160% and 6,156%, respectively, at the highest grasshopper densities relative to exclusion (zero grasshoppers) densities. Plant height was significantly reduced with increasing grasshopper densities, although this may be a function of leaf tip removal instead of reduced plant growth. No other strong consumers of cordgrass (e.g., Littoraria irrorata, Prokelisia marginata) were observed in PIE and we suggest that consumer regulation of cordgrass is weak in this system.  相似文献   

18.
Following heavy winter storms and sedimentation in 1993,Spartina foliosa (Pacific cordgrass) clones established on a 6.5-ha mudflat in Tijuana Estuary, with over 80 new clones counted by 1997. El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) storms in 1993 apparently facilitated the habitat conversion through river flooding, which caused a temporary reduction in soil salinity and delivered large volumes of sediment. Extreme sedimentation likely raised mudflat elevations enough to allowSpartina establishment. We hypothesized that clones, once established, increased sedimentation in a positive feedback loop leading to accelerated habitat conversion. We collected data on elevation,Spartina expansion, and sediment accretion in two consecutive years (1998–1999). The elevation range of the mudflats in 1998 (0.5–0.83 m NGVD) was within the elevation range ofSpartina at this site (0.39–0.83 m NGVD), indicating that remaining mudflats are at elevations suitable for further expansion. Sediment accretion ranged from 4.0–12.7 cm between 1997–1998 (ENSO conditions), but was close to long-term averages (? cm yr?1) in 1998–1999 (nonflood year) indicating how susceptible Tijuana Estuary is to sedimentation from episodic storms. Although accretion rates were similar withinSpartina clones and on bare mudflats over the ENSO winter, clones were typically dome-shaped suggesting higher sediment retention rates within clones. The radial expansion rates of clones (1.31±0.25 m in 1998; 1.12±0.07 m in 1999) approximated the maxima reported for this species and were not related to clone size or vigor. Conditions on the mudflat appear ideal forSpartina growth, masking differences that might otherwise be observed. Given the likelihood of sedimentation-driven habitat conversion in southern California and other Mediterranean-type estuaries, management efforts are needed to address sedimentation issues on a watershed scale. We recommend that wetland restoration projects in southern California include large areas of intertidal mudflat, both to maintain habitat for shorebird feeding and to allow colonization by salt marsh vegetation.  相似文献   

19.
Coastal salt marshes represent an important coastal wetland system. In order to protect coastlines from erosion and rapid increase in accumulation rate, Spartina alterniflora (S. alterniflora) was introduced into the Chinese coast. Two study areas (Wanggang and Quanzhou Bay) were selected that represent the plain type and embayment type of the coastal salt marshes. In situ measurements show that the tidal current velocities are stronger on the intertidal mudflat without S. alterniflora than that with S. alterniflora, and the velocity above the canopy surface is larger than that in the salt marsh canopy. The existence of S. alterniflora also influences the velocity structure above the bare flat during ebb tide. With the decrease in current flow velocity when seawater enters into the S. alterniflora marsh, suspended sediments are largely entrapped on the marsh surface, leading to increase in sedimentation rates and change in physical evolution processes of the coastal salt marshes. The highly developed root systemof S. alterniflora induces sediment mixing and exchange between subsurface sediment strata and affects the vertical sediment distribution remarkably. The sedimentation rate of S. alterniflora marsh at the Wanggang area is much higher than the relative sea level rise rate, where rapid progradation of theWanggang saltmarshes that is protecting the coast from sea erosion is observed.  相似文献   

20.
We investigated if the success of the invasive common reed Phragmites australis could be attributed to a competitive ability to use dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) when compared to the dominant macrophyte Spartina alterniflora in tidal wetlands. Short-term nutrient uptake experiments were performed in the laboratory on two genetic lineages of Phragmites (native and introduced to North America) and S. alterniflora. Our results provide the first evidence for direct assimilation of DON by temperate marsh plants and indicate that amino acids are assimilated intact by all plant types at similar rates. Both Phragmites lineages had significantly greater urea–N assimilation rates than S. alterniflora, and the affinity for dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) species was the greatest in native Phragmites > introduced Phragmites > S. alterniflora. Field studies demonstrated uptake of both DON and DIN in similar proportion as those determined in the laboratory experiments. Based on these uptake rates, we estimate that DON has the potential to account for up to 47% of N demand for Phragmites plants, and up to 24% for S. alterniflora plants. Additionally, we suggest that differences in N uptake between native and introduced Phragmites lineages explain one mechanism for the success of the introduced type under increasingly eutrophic conditions.  相似文献   

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