Positive Plant Interactions and Community Dynamics

✍ Scribed by Francisco Pugnaire

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 170
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Ever since the concept of the "struggle for life" became the heart of Darwin’s theory of evolution, biologists have studied the relevance of interactions for the natural history and evolution of organisms. Although positive interactions among plants have traditionally received little attention, there is now a growing body of evidence showing the effects of positive interactions between higher plant species. Written by international experts, Positive Plant Interactions and Community Dynamics reviews these developments with particular emphasis on positive interactions and spatial and temporal gradients. The text addresses key issues in plant ecology and anthropogenic impacts through reviews, syntheses, and the proposition of new concepts. The book begins with coverage of the different approaches used over time and the tools currently available for analyzing the direction, intensity, and importance of plant interactions, and to quantify them accurately. It explains, at least in part, the success of invasive plant species. The book also shows the existence of evolutionary relationships among plants, a decidedly non-individualistic process, which plays an important role in the organization of communities. The book’s focus then shifts to the scale at which facilitation works, assessing its effects from the individual plant to the landscape level, and the impacts of climate change on plant-plant interactions using case studies to illustrate underlying fundamental points relevant to all plant communities. After analyzing the role of positive and negative interactions and their relationship with biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, the text reviews the role of mychorrizal symbiosis in plant-plant interactions, focusing on the effect of mychorhizal-mediated facilitation on the structure and dynamics of plant communities. A good understanding of natural processes is necessary to manage natural habitats properly, prevent environmental risks, and secure continued ecosystem services. Clearly and concisely written, this book challenges the paradigm that interactions should be considered independently, with little regard to context. Addressing the complex processes at the foundation of ecosystem diversity, the book promotes more rigorous experimental design and opportunities for further research developments in this field.

✦ Table of Contents

Positive Plant Interactions and Community Dynamics......Page 1
Contents......Page 5
Preface......Page 7
Editor......Page 9
Contributors......Page 11
Positive Plant Interactions and Community Dynamics: An Introduction......Page 13
1.1 Introduction......Page 19
1.2 Facilitation and Productivity......Page 20
1.3 Positive Interactions and Diversity–Ecosystem Function......Page 22
1.4 Facilitation and Exotic Invasion......Page 25
1.5 Facilitation and Evolution in Plant Communities......Page 27
References......Page 30
2.1 Introduction......Page 35
2.2 Experimental Approaches for Studying Plant Interactions......Page 37
2.2.1 Neighbor Effects on One Species: Experimentsin Controlled Conditions......Page 38
2.2.3 Data Analyses and Interaction Indices......Page 40
2.2.4 Interactions among Two or a Few Species......Page 43
2.2.5 Multispecies Experiments......Page 44
2.3 Importance and Intensity of Plant Interactions......Page 46
2.4 The Problem with Initial Biomass......Page 49
2.4.1 Implications for Intensity Indices......Page 50
2.4.2 Relationship of Interaction Importance Index to Initial Biomass......Page 52
References......Page 53
3.1 Introduction......Page 57
3.2.1 Species Richness......Page 59
3.2.2 Diversity and Species Abundance Relations......Page 61
3.2.3 Species Composition......Page 62
3.2.4 Effects of Nurse Size: When Size Does Matter......Page 64
3.2.5 Changes along Severity Gradients......Page 67
3.3 Effects at the Entire Community Level......Page 68
3.4 Taking a Look Beyond the Species Level......Page 71
References......Page 72
4.1 Introduction......Page 77
4.2.1 Competition and Biodiversity......Page 78
4.2.2 Facilitation and Biodiversity......Page 84
4.3 Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function:The Role of Biotic Interactions......Page 86
4.3.2 Facilitation......Page 87
4.4.1 The Debate......Page 88
4.4.3 Productive Environments and Niche Complementarity......Page 89
References......Page 93
5.1 Introduction......Page 97
5.2.1 Experimental Evidence of Mycorrhizal Interferenceof Plant–Plant Interactions......Page 98
5.2.2 The Mechanism of AM Effects......Page 103
5.3.2 Plant Predators and Mycorrhizae......Page 105
5.4.1 Mycorrhizae and Succession......Page 106
5.4.2 The Spatial Pattern of AM Fungal Communities......Page 107
5.4.3 Invasion......Page 108
5.4.4 Restoration......Page 109
5.5 Conclusions......Page 110
References......Page 111
6.1 Introduction......Page 117
6.2 Climate Change: A Brief Overview......Page 118
6.3.1 Sources of Information......Page 119
6.3.2 Climate Change and Community Composition......Page 121
6.3.2.1 Seed Production and Dispersal......Page 122
6.3.2.2 Interactions in Communities......Page 123
6.3.2.3 Competitive Plant–Plant Interactions......Page 125
6.3.2.4 Facilitative Plant–Plant Interactions......Page 126
6.4 Predicting Plant Community Responses: Considering Interactions......Page 129
6.5.1 Plant Functional Types......Page 131
6.5.3 The Importance and Intensity of Interactions......Page 132
6.5.4 The Hump-Backed Diversity Model......Page 133
6.6 Conclusions......Page 134
References......Page 135
7.1 I ntroduction......Page 143
7.3.1 Definition of an Ecological Gradient......Page 145
7.3.2 Degree of Extraction......Page 146
7.4.2 The Concept of Gradient Length......Page 150
7.4.3 The Importance of Species-Specific Responses to Gradients......Page 152
7.5 Stress as Shorthand for Environmental Variation:Should We Be Stressed about Using Stress?......Page 154
7.6 A Meta-Analytical Test of the Top 10 PublishedStudies of the Stress–Gradient Hypothesis......Page 158
7.7 Why Use Gradients and How ToDo So: Recommendations forStructuring Gradient Studies......Page 161
References......Page 162
9781439824955-s......Page 167
Color Insert
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