The influence of shrubs on the diversity and abundance of herbaceous plants in the Prepuna at different scales
Keywords:
herbs, species richness, subtropical Andes, rarefaction, facilitationAbstract
Shrubs usually have a beneficial effect on herb species richness. In this study, the importance of shrubs/small trees on herb species richness and abundance in the Prepuna biogeographical region was evaluated at the patch (individual patches and all individual patches considered together, i.e., patch types), community (landscape) and regional levels. At individual patch level, a tendency towards more herb species in association with shrub undercanopies was found, although only in two of the four localities studied the differences were statistically significant. At patch type level, more species were found associated to the below shrub microhabitats in all four localities. The analyses conducted with rarefaction runs confirmed a greater species number beneath shrubs and showed the positive effect of the shrubs on species richness at community scale, although showing variations in magnitude in the different localities. The patterns found were consistent across the latitudinal gradient studied, indicating that, at least in certain years, the positive influence of shrubs on herbs is not only a local phenomenon. Moreover, as shrubs harbor different herb communities depending on locality, their positive effect seems to increase at regional scales. This study is the first reporting the beneficial role of shrubs on herb richness in the subtropical Andes.
References
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AGUIAR, MR & OE SALA. 1999. Patch structure, dynamics and implications for the functioning of arid ecosystems. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 14:273-277.
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ARRIAGA, L; Y MAYA; S DÍAZ & J CANCINO. 1993. Association between cacti and nurse perennials in a heterogeneous tropical dry forest in northwestern Mexico. Journal of Vegetation Science 4:349-356.
BADANO, EI & LA CAVIERES. 2006a. Impacts of ecosystem engineers on community attributes: effects of cushion plants at different elevations of the Chilean Andes. Diversity and Distributions 12:388-396.
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BADANO, EI; CG JONES; LA CAVIERES & JP WRIGHT. 2006. Assessing impacts of ecosystem engineers on community organization: a general approach illustrated by effects of a high-Andean cushion planta. Oikos 115:369-385.
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CALLAWAY, RM. 1995. Positive interactions among plants. Botanical Review 61:306-349.
CALLAWAY, RM & LR WALKER. 1997. Competition and facilitation: a synthetic approach to interactions in plant communities. Ecology 78:1958-1965.
CAVIERES, L; MTK ARROYO; A PEÑALOZA; M MOLINA- MONTENEGRO & C TORRES. 2002. Nurse effect of Bolax gummifera cushion plants in the alpine vegetation of the Chilean Patagonian Andes. Journal of Vegetation Science 13:547-554.
CHOLER, P; R MICHALET & R CALLAWAY. 2001. Facilitation and competition on gradients in alpine plant communities. Ecology 82:3295-3308.
DE VIANA, M; MLS SÜHRING & BFJ MANLY. 2001. Application of randomization methods to study the association of Trichocereus pasacana (Cactaceae) with potential nurse plants. Plant Ecology 156:193-197.
FACELLI, JM & DJ BROCK. 2000. Patch dynamics in arid lands: localized effects of Acacia papyrocarpa on soils and vegetation of open woodlands of South Australia. Ecography 23:479-491.
FACELLI, JM & AM TEMBY. 2002. Multiple effects of shrubs on annual plant communities in arid lands of South Australia. Austral Ecology 27:422-432.
GÓMEZ-APARICIO, L; JM GÓMEZ; R ZAMORA & JL BOETTINGER. 2005. Canopo vs. soil effects of shrubs facilitating tree seedlings in Mediterranean montane ecosystems. Journal of Vegetation Science 16:191-198.
Gotelli, NJ & RK Colwell. 2001. Quantifyng biodiversity: procedures and pitfalls in the measurement and comparison of species richness. Ecology Letters 4:379-391.
GUTIÉRREZ, JR; PL MESERVE; LC CONTRERAS; H VÁSQUEZ & FABIÁN M JAKSIC. 1993. Spatial distribution of soil nutrients and ephemeral plants underneath and outside the Canopo of Porlieria chilensis (Zygophyllaceae) in arid coastal Chile. Oecologia 95:347-352.
HAASE, P; FI PUGNAIRE; SC CLARK & LD INCOLL. 1996. Spatial patterns in a two-tiered semi-arid shrubland in southeastern Spain. Journal of Vegetation Science 7: 527-534.
JONES, CG; JH LAWTON & M SACHAK. 1997. Positive and negative effects of organisms as physical ecosystem engineers. Ecology 78(7):1946-1957.
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LARREA-ALCÁZAR, D; RP LÓPEZ & D BARRIENTOS. 2006. The nurse plant effect of Prosopis flexuosa DC (Leg. Mim.) in a dry valley of the Bolivian Andes. Ecotrópicos 18(2):89-95.
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LÓPEZ, RP. 2003. Soil seed banks in the semiarid Prepuna of Bolivia. Plant Ecology 168:85-92.
LÓPEZ, RP & BECK, S. 2002. Phytogeographical affinities and life form composition of the Bolivian Prepuna. Candollea 57:77-96.
LÓPEZ, RP & S VALDIVIA. 2007. The importance of shrub cover for four cactus species differing in growth form in an Andean semi-desert. Journal of Vegetation Science 18:263-270.
LÓPEZ, RP; S VALDIVIA; N SANJINÉS & D DE LA QUINTANA. 2007. The role of nurse plants in the establishment of shrub seedlings in the semi-arid subtropical Andes. Oecologia 152:779-790.
MCAULIFFE, JR. 1986. Herbivore-limited establishment of a Sonoran Desert tree, Cercidium microphyllum. Ecology 67:276-280.
MONTAÑA, C. 1992. The colonization of bare areas in two-phase mosaics of an arid ecosystem. Journal of Ecology 80:315-327.
MORALES, MA; R VILLALBA; HR GRAU; PE VILLAGRA; JA BONINSEGNA; A RIPALTA & L PAOLINI. 2001. Potencialidad de Prosopis feroz Grises. (Legiminosar, subfamilia Mimosoideae) para estudios dendrocronológicos en desiertos. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 4:865-872.
MORO, MJ; FI PUGNAIRE & J PUIGDEFÁBREGAS. 1997. Mechanisms of interaction between a leguminous shrub and its understorey in a semi-arid environment. Ecography 20:175-184.
MULLER, CH. 1953. The association of desert annuals with shrubs. American Journal of Botany 40(2):53-60.
MUNZBERGOVA, Z & D WARD. 2002. Acacia trees as keystone species in Negev desert ecosystems. Journal of Vegetation Science 13:227-236.
OESTERHELD, M & M OYARZABAL. 2004. Grass-to-grass protection from grazing in a semi-arid steppe: facilitation, competition, and mass effect. Oikos 107:576-582.
OUTON, V. 1991. Prosopis ferox (Griseb.): usos, importancia e impacto ambiental. Tesis de Licenciatura. Universidad Nacional de Salta, Argentina.
PUGNAIRE, FI; C ARMAS & F VALLADARES. 2004. Soil as a mediator in plant-plant interactions in a semi- arid community. Journal of Vegetation Science 15:85-92.
PUGNAIRE, FI.; P HAASE; M PUIGDEFÁBREGAS; M CUETO; SC CLARK & LD INCOLL. 1996. Facilitation and succession under the canopy of a leguminous shrub, Retama sphaerocarpa, in a semi-arid environment in south-east Spain. Oikos 76:455-464.
ROSSI, BE & PE VILLAGRA. 2003. Effects of Prosopis flexuosa on soil properties and the spatial pattern of understorey species in arid Argentina. Journal of Vegetation Science 114:543-550.
SCHADE, JD; R SPONSELLER; SL COLLINS & A STYLES. 2003. The influence of Prosopis canopies on understorey vegetation: effects of landscape position. Journal of Vegetation Science 14: 743-750.
TEWKSBURY, JT & JD LLOYD. 2001. Positive interactions under nurse-plants: spatial scale, stress gradients and benefactor size. Oecologia 127:425-434.
TIELBÖRGER, K & R KADMON. 1997. Relationships between shrubs and annual communities in a sandy desert ecosystem: a three-year study. Plant Ecology 130:191-201.
TORRICO, G; C PECA; S BECK & E GARCÍA. 1994. Leñosas útiles de Potosí.
WENT, FW. 1942. The dependence of certain annual plants on shrubs in Southern Californian deserts. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 69:100-114.
WILBY, A & M SACHAK. 2004. Shrubs, granivores, and annual plant community stability in arid ecosystems. Oikos 106:209-216.
WRIGHT, JP; CG JONES & AS FLECKER. 2002. An ecosystem engineer, the beaver, increases species richness at the landscape scale. Oecologia 132: 96–101
AGUIAR, MR & OE SALA. 1999. Patch structure, dynamics and implications for the functioning of arid ecosystems. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 14:273-277.
AKPO, LE; PI SAMB & M GROUZIS. 1997. Effet du couvert des arbres sur la structure spécifique de la strate herbacée en savane subhumide soudanienne (Senegal, Afrique de l’ouest). Candollea 52:287-299.
ARRIAGA, L; Y MAYA; S DÍAZ & J CANCINO. 1993. Association between cacti and nurse perennials in a heterogeneous tropical dry forest in northwestern Mexico. Journal of Vegetation Science 4:349-356.
BADANO, EI & LA CAVIERES. 2006a. Impacts of ecosystem engineers on community attributes: effects of cushion plants at different elevations of the Chilean Andes. Diversity and Distributions 12:388-396.
BADANO, EI & LA CAVIERES. 2006b. Ecosystem engineering across ecosystems: do engineer specis sharing common features have generalized or idiosyncratic effects on species diversity? Journal of Biogeography 33:304-313.
BADANO, EI; CG JONES; LA CAVIERES & JP WRIGHT. 2006. Assessing impacts of ecosystem engineers on community organization: a general approach illustrated by effects of a high-Andean cushion planta. Oikos 115:369-385.
CABRERA, AL & A WILLINK. 1973. Biogeografía de América latina. OEA, Washington DC. CABRERA, AL. 1976. Regiones fitogeográficas argentines. Pp. 1-85. En: WF Kugler (ed.): Enciclopedia Argentina de Agricultura y Jardinería, vol 2(1). ACME, Buenos Aires.
CALLAWAY, RM. 1995. Positive interactions among plants. Botanical Review 61:306-349.
CALLAWAY, RM & LR WALKER. 1997. Competition and facilitation: a synthetic approach to interactions in plant communities. Ecology 78:1958-1965.
CAVIERES, L; MTK ARROYO; A PEÑALOZA; M MOLINA- MONTENEGRO & C TORRES. 2002. Nurse effect of Bolax gummifera cushion plants in the alpine vegetation of the Chilean Patagonian Andes. Journal of Vegetation Science 13:547-554.
CHOLER, P; R MICHALET & R CALLAWAY. 2001. Facilitation and competition on gradients in alpine plant communities. Ecology 82:3295-3308.
DE VIANA, M; MLS SÜHRING & BFJ MANLY. 2001. Application of randomization methods to study the association of Trichocereus pasacana (Cactaceae) with potential nurse plants. Plant Ecology 156:193-197.
FACELLI, JM & DJ BROCK. 2000. Patch dynamics in arid lands: localized effects of Acacia papyrocarpa on soils and vegetation of open woodlands of South Australia. Ecography 23:479-491.
FACELLI, JM & AM TEMBY. 2002. Multiple effects of shrubs on annual plant communities in arid lands of South Australia. Austral Ecology 27:422-432.
GÓMEZ-APARICIO, L; JM GÓMEZ; R ZAMORA & JL BOETTINGER. 2005. Canopo vs. soil effects of shrubs facilitating tree seedlings in Mediterranean montane ecosystems. Journal of Vegetation Science 16:191-198.
Gotelli, NJ & RK Colwell. 2001. Quantifyng biodiversity: procedures and pitfalls in the measurement and comparison of species richness. Ecology Letters 4:379-391.
GUTIÉRREZ, JR; PL MESERVE; LC CONTRERAS; H VÁSQUEZ & FABIÁN M JAKSIC. 1993. Spatial distribution of soil nutrients and ephemeral plants underneath and outside the Canopo of Porlieria chilensis (Zygophyllaceae) in arid coastal Chile. Oecologia 95:347-352.
HAASE, P; FI PUGNAIRE; SC CLARK & LD INCOLL. 1996. Spatial patterns in a two-tiered semi-arid shrubland in southeastern Spain. Journal of Vegetation Science 7: 527-534.
JONES, CG; JH LAWTON & M SACHAK. 1997. Positive and negative effects of organisms as physical ecosystem engineers. Ecology 78(7):1946-1957.
JOSHI, B; SP SINGH; YS RAWAT & D GOEL. 2001. Facilitative effect of Coriaria nepalensis on species diversity and growth of herbs on severely eroded hill slopes. Current Science 80(5):678-682.
LARREA-ALCÁZAR, D; RP LÓPEZ & D BARRIENTOS. 2006. The nurse plant effect of Prosopis flexuosa DC (Leg. Mim.) in a dry valley of the Bolivian Andes. Ecotrópicos 18(2):89-95.
LÓPEZ, RP. 2000. La Prepuna boliviana. Ecología en Bolivia 34:45-70.
LÓPEZ, RP. 2003. Soil seed banks in the semiarid Prepuna of Bolivia. Plant Ecology 168:85-92.
LÓPEZ, RP & BECK, S. 2002. Phytogeographical affinities and life form composition of the Bolivian Prepuna. Candollea 57:77-96.
LÓPEZ, RP & S VALDIVIA. 2007. The importance of shrub cover for four cactus species differing in growth form in an Andean semi-desert. Journal of Vegetation Science 18:263-270.
LÓPEZ, RP; S VALDIVIA; N SANJINÉS & D DE LA QUINTANA. 2007. The role of nurse plants in the establishment of shrub seedlings in the semi-arid subtropical Andes. Oecologia 152:779-790.
MCAULIFFE, JR. 1986. Herbivore-limited establishment of a Sonoran Desert tree, Cercidium microphyllum. Ecology 67:276-280.
MONTAÑA, C. 1992. The colonization of bare areas in two-phase mosaics of an arid ecosystem. Journal of Ecology 80:315-327.
MORALES, MA; R VILLALBA; HR GRAU; PE VILLAGRA; JA BONINSEGNA; A RIPALTA & L PAOLINI. 2001. Potencialidad de Prosopis feroz Grises. (Legiminosar, subfamilia Mimosoideae) para estudios dendrocronológicos en desiertos. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 4:865-872.
MORO, MJ; FI PUGNAIRE & J PUIGDEFÁBREGAS. 1997. Mechanisms of interaction between a leguminous shrub and its understorey in a semi-arid environment. Ecography 20:175-184.
MULLER, CH. 1953. The association of desert annuals with shrubs. American Journal of Botany 40(2):53-60.
MUNZBERGOVA, Z & D WARD. 2002. Acacia trees as keystone species in Negev desert ecosystems. Journal of Vegetation Science 13:227-236.
OESTERHELD, M & M OYARZABAL. 2004. Grass-to-grass protection from grazing in a semi-arid steppe: facilitation, competition, and mass effect. Oikos 107:576-582.
OUTON, V. 1991. Prosopis ferox (Griseb.): usos, importancia e impacto ambiental. Tesis de Licenciatura. Universidad Nacional de Salta, Argentina.
PUGNAIRE, FI; C ARMAS & F VALLADARES. 2004. Soil as a mediator in plant-plant interactions in a semi- arid community. Journal of Vegetation Science 15:85-92.
PUGNAIRE, FI.; P HAASE; M PUIGDEFÁBREGAS; M CUETO; SC CLARK & LD INCOLL. 1996. Facilitation and succession under the canopy of a leguminous shrub, Retama sphaerocarpa, in a semi-arid environment in south-east Spain. Oikos 76:455-464.
ROSSI, BE & PE VILLAGRA. 2003. Effects of Prosopis flexuosa on soil properties and the spatial pattern of understorey species in arid Argentina. Journal of Vegetation Science 114:543-550.
SCHADE, JD; R SPONSELLER; SL COLLINS & A STYLES. 2003. The influence of Prosopis canopies on understorey vegetation: effects of landscape position. Journal of Vegetation Science 14: 743-750.
TEWKSBURY, JT & JD LLOYD. 2001. Positive interactions under nurse-plants: spatial scale, stress gradients and benefactor size. Oecologia 127:425-434.
TIELBÖRGER, K & R KADMON. 1997. Relationships between shrubs and annual communities in a sandy desert ecosystem: a three-year study. Plant Ecology 130:191-201.
TORRICO, G; C PECA; S BECK & E GARCÍA. 1994. Leñosas útiles de Potosí.
WENT, FW. 1942. The dependence of certain annual plants on shrubs in Southern Californian deserts. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 69:100-114.
WILBY, A & M SACHAK. 2004. Shrubs, granivores, and annual plant community stability in arid ecosystems. Oikos 106:209-216.
WRIGHT, JP; CG JONES & AS FLECKER. 2002. An ecosystem engineer, the beaver, increases species richness at the landscape scale. Oecologia 132: 96–101
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2008-04-01
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López, R. P., & Ortuño, T. (2008). The influence of shrubs on the diversity and abundance of herbaceous plants in the Prepuna at different scales. Ecología Austral, 18(1), 119–131. Retrieved from https://ojs.ecologiaaustral.com.ar/index.php/Ecologia_Austral/article/view/1401
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