Plant competitive interactions and invasiveness: searching for the effects of phylogenetic relatedness and origin on competition intensity

0364289 - BÚ 2012 RIV US eng J - Journal Article
Dostál, Petr
Plant competitive interactions and invasiveness: searching for the effects of phylogenetic relatedness and origin on competition intensity.
American Naturalist. Roč. 177, č. 5 (2011), s. 655-667. ISSN 0003-0147. E-ISSN 1537-5323
R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP504/10/0132
Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60050516
Keywords : competitive equivalence * invasive plants * phylogenetic similarity
Subject RIV: EF - Botanics
Impact factor: 4.725, year: 2011

Competitive interactions were explored within 12 triplets, each consisting of an invasive species, a native congeneric (or confamilial) species, and a native heterogeneric species that are likely to interact in the field. Plants were grown in pots alone or in pairs and in the absence or the presence of activated carbon to control for allelopathy. I found that competition intensity was not influenced by the relatedness or origin of competing neighbors. Although some exotic species may benefit from size advantages and species-specific effects in competitive interactions, none of the three mechanisms investigated (small overlap in resource use with unrelated native species, improved competitiveness and production of novel allelochemicals of invaders) is likely to be a principal driver of their invasiveness.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0199811