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Forests
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The Effects of Species Invasions and Dispersal on Forest Communities
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The Effects of Species Invasions and Dispersal on Forest Communities

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Ecology and Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (5 April 2020) | Viewed by 14790

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Luís González

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Plant Biology & Soil Science Department, Universidad de Vigo, 36310 Vigo (Pontevedra), Spain
Interests: invasive species; plant ecophysiology; control and restoration; plant–soil micro-organisms interactions; plant–plant interactions; plant–insect interactions

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Non-native plants invade boreal, tropical, and temperate forests and severely impact native biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Exotics may modify soil fungal and bacterial communities, decrease species richness, affect soil properties and nutrient cycling, change socio-cultural and economic activities, and harm human health.

Many of the invasive species have exceeded the period of early detection for an effective eradication. Efficient and sustainable management is necessary to preserve biodiversity and, in the worst cases, to coexist with the exotic species. Management decisions based on environmental, economic, and social impacts need to distinguish between invasive species and their effects. These effects may have lasting legacies on the forest community composition and forest ecosystem function.

To contribute to this Special Issue of Forests, we encourage studies from all fields related to forest invasions, but especially those which attempt to report the ecophysiology of invasive species, soil or structural legacies, and possible controls in order to promote knowledge and improve effective control and restoration strategies. Invasive species will be considered in plants, animals, and micro-organisms and their relationships. Original works and reviews are both welcome.

Prof. Dr. Luís González
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • invasive species
  • ecophysiology
  • control and restoration
  • plant–soil micro-organisms interactions
  • plant–plant interactions
  • plant–insect interactions

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 2629 KiB  
Article
Impact of Invasive Tree Species on Natural Regeneration Species Composition, Diversity, and Density
by Marcin K. Dyderski and Andrzej M. Jagodziński
Forests 2020, 11(4), 456; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/f11040456 - 17 Apr 2020
Cited by 41 | Viewed by 6158
Abstract
Invasive tree species decrease ecosystem resilience with negative impacts on natural regeneration. The influence of alien tree species on ecosystems is unevenly recognized and does not always account for different habitat specificity. We assessed the impacts of the three most frequent invasive tree [...] Read more.
Invasive tree species decrease ecosystem resilience with negative impacts on natural regeneration. The influence of alien tree species on ecosystems is unevenly recognized and does not always account for different habitat specificity. We assessed the impacts of the three most frequent invasive tree species in European forests: Prunus serotina Ehrh., Quercus rubra L., and Robinia pseudoacacia L. on natural regeneration diversity, species composition, and density. We hypothesized that invaded forest types, in comparison with non-invaded, will differ in terms of species composition, will have lower taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity of natural regeneration, and will have lower densities of native tree species. We used a set of 189 study plots (200 m2) in a systematic design, established in various forest types in Wielkopolski National Park (West Poland). We analyzed impacts of forest type, accounting for soil C:N ratio, soil pH, and light availability on natural regeneration (woody species up to 0.5 m height) species composition, diversity, and density. We found an overlap of species composition among invaded and non-invaded forests and low impacts of invasive species on taxonomic diversity and functional richness. We found no impacts on phylogenetic diversity and other functional diversity components. In contrast, we found that the natural regeneration of forest-forming tree species reached lower densities in invaded than non-invaded forest types. However, sub-canopy and shrub species reached higher densities in invaded than non-invaded forest types. We confirmed that invasive tree species affect natural regeneration by decreasing the regeneration density of native tree species (in eight of nine tree species studied), species composition homogenization, and supporting natural regeneration of sub-canopy and shrub species. Therefore, the restoration of invaded forests requires eradication of invasive tree species to decrease propagule pressure and to stop decreases in the abundance of native tree species’ natural regeneration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effects of Species Invasions and Dispersal on Forest Communities)
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14 pages, 2314 KiB  
Article
Native Bamboo Invasions into Subtropical Forests Alter Microbial Communities in Litter and Soil
by Xiao-Kun Tian, Min-Yan Wang, Ping Meng, Jin-Song Zhang, Ben-Zhi Zhou, Xiao-Gai Ge, Fei-Hai Yu and Mai-He Li
Forests 2020, 11(3), 314; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/f11030314 - 13 Mar 2020
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 3073
Abstract
Both exotic and native plant invasions can have profound impacts on ecosystems. While many studies have examined the effects of exotic plant invasions on soil properties, relatively few have tested the effects of native plant invasions on soil microbial communities. Furthermore, we know [...] Read more.
Both exotic and native plant invasions can have profound impacts on ecosystems. While many studies have examined the effects of exotic plant invasions on soil properties, relatively few have tested the effects of native plant invasions on soil microbial communities. Furthermore, we know little about the effects of native plant invasions on microbial communities in litter. In subtropical forests in southern China, we sampled litter at three decomposition stages and top soil in three forest sands representing three stages of the invasion (not invaded, moderately and heavily invaded) by the Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis (Carriere) J. Houzeau), a native species in China. We measured chemical properties (concentrations of C, N, P, Mg, Al, K, Ca, Mn, Cu, and Zn, and concentrations of cellulose and lignin) and microbial communities in litter and/or soil. The bamboo invasion, in general, decreased the element concentrations in litter and soil and also decreased total microbial abundance and diversity. Considering bacteria and fungi separately, the bamboo invasion decreased fungal diversity in litter and soil, but had little impact on bacterial diversity, suggesting that fungi are more sensitive and vulnerable to the bamboo invasion than bacteria. We conclude that native Moso bamboo invasions into subtropical forests may lead to a complex biogeochemical process in the litter–soil system, which may threaten local forest ecosystems by affecting microbial communities and, thus, litter decomposition and nutrient cycling. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effects of Species Invasions and Dispersal on Forest Communities)
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12 pages, 10198 KiB  
Article
Contribution of Advanced Regeneration of Pinus radiata D. Don. to Transpiration by a Fragment of Native Forest in Central Chile Is out of Proportion with the Contribution to Sapwood Area
by Don A. White, Richard P. Silberstein, Francisco Balocchi-Contreras, Juan Jose Quiroga and Pablo Ramírez de Arellano
Forests 2020, 11(2), 187; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/f11020187 - 07 Feb 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1850
Abstract
The transpiration of Nothofagus glauca (Phil.) Krasser and advanced Pinus radiata D. Don. regeneration was measured in a fragment of native N. glauca forest. Over the eight months of this study, P. radiata contributed approximately 60% of the total stand transpiration. This was [...] Read more.
The transpiration of Nothofagus glauca (Phil.) Krasser and advanced Pinus radiata D. Don. regeneration was measured in a fragment of native N. glauca forest. Over the eight months of this study, P. radiata contributed approximately 60% of the total stand transpiration. This was out of proportion with the approximately 34% of the stand sapwood area contributed by P. radiata. This was due to the significantly greater sap flux density of the P. radiata compared to the N. glauca between May and October. Though the results are from a small study conducted as part of a larger experiment, it is argued that they suggest that invasion by P. radiata may substantially increase the risk from climate change to reserves of N. glauca forest in the Maule region of central Chile. In some reserves of N. glauca forest, Forestal Arauco S.A. manually removed P. radiata that regenerated after the wildfire of January 2017. This was a costly operation and there is a need for indices to assess competition. The ratio of sapwood area to leaf area is suggested as a potential index for assessing competition to identify stands at risk. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effects of Species Invasions and Dispersal on Forest Communities)
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15 pages, 1549 KiB  
Article
Similar Impacts of Alien and Native Tree Species on Understory Light Availability in a Temperate Forest
by Marcin K. Dyderski and Andrzej M. Jagodziński
Forests 2019, 10(11), 951; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/f10110951 - 25 Oct 2019
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 3151
Abstract
Research Highlights: We evaluated influence of alien and native trees and shrubs on stand leaf area index to basal area ratio, indicating that both groups provide similar amounts of foliage. Background and Objectives: Foliage traits determine tree species effect on understory light availability. [...] Read more.
Research Highlights: We evaluated influence of alien and native trees and shrubs on stand leaf area index to basal area ratio, indicating that both groups provide similar amounts of foliage. Background and Objectives: Foliage traits determine tree species effect on understory light availability. Direct comparisons of understory light availability due to different foliage traits of tree species are conducted less often at the stand level. We hypothesized that light availability is driven by canopy leaf area, and alien species contribution to canopy foliage will be similar to native species due to analogous patterns of biomass allocation in tree species. Materials and Methods: We studied forests dominated by alien and native tree species in Wielkopolski National Park (Western Poland). We measured light availability using the LAI-2200 canopy analyzer (Li-Cor Inc., Lincoln, NE, USA) and we calculated leaf area index (LAI) in 170 stands using published models of foliage biomass and data on specific leaf area. Results: Our study confirmed an impact of LAI on light availability in the understory layer. Analyzing the proportion of contribution to stand LAI and basal area (BA) we found that most alien species did not differ in LAI to BA ratio from native species. The exception was Prunus serotina Ehrh., with a LAI to BA ratio higher than all native and alien trees. However, the highest LAI to BA ratios we found were for the alien shrub Cotoneaster lucidus Schltdl. and native shrubs of fertile broadleaved forests. Conclusions: Our study showed that alien species contribution to shading the understory is comparable to native species, with the exception of P. serotina due to its dominance in the higher shrub canopy strata where it exhibits different patterns of biomass allocation than native trees. Our study explained that invasive tree species impact on light availability in forest ecosystems is mainly mediated by the increased quantity of foliage, not by more effective LAI to BA ratio. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effects of Species Invasions and Dispersal on Forest Communities)
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