Linking responses of native and invasive plants to hurricane disturbances: implications for coastal plant community stru
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Linking responses of native and invasive plants to hurricane disturbances: implications for coastal plant community structure Shishir Paudel
. Loretta L. Battaglia
Received: 17 October 2019 / Accepted: 19 October 2020 Ó Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract Hurricane disturbances produce significant changes in forest microclimates, creating opportunities for seedling regeneration of native and invasive plant species alike. However, there is limited information on how changes in microclimates and preexisting forest conditions affect native and invasive plants responses to hurricane disturbances. In this manipulative study, we examined the responses of three common shrub/small stature tree species, two of which are native to the coastal region of the southeastern USA (Baccharis halimifolia and Morella cerifera) and one that is invasive (Triadica sebifera), to two key components of hurricane disturbance (canopy damage and saline storm surge). In a greenhouse, we grew seedlings of these species under a range of shade levels that mimicked pre-and posthurricane canopy conditions for wet pine forest and mixed hardwood forest, two forest communities common in coastal areas of the southeastern USA.
Communicated by Christopher Anderson. S. Paudel (&) L. L. Battaglia School of Biological Sciences, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Carbondale, IL 62901, USA e-mail: [email protected]
Seedlings were subjected to saline storm surges equivalent to full strength sea water for 3 days. Seedling responses (mortality and growth) to the treatments were monitored for 16 months. All species benefitted from higher canopy openness. Storm surge effects were short-lived and seedlings readily recovered under high light conditions. The storm surge had stronger negative effects on survival and growth of all species when coupled with high shade, suggesting storm surge has greater negative impacts on seedlings where hurricane winds cause minimal or no canopy damage. The invasive T. sebifera was by far more shade tolerant than the natives. Survival of T. sebifera seedlings under highly shaded conditions may provide it a competitive edge over native species during community reassembly following tropical storms. Differential responses of native and invasive species to hurricane disturbances will have profound consequences on community structure across coastal forest stands, and may be regulated by legacies of prior disturbances, community structure, extent of canopy damage, and species’ tolerance to specific microclimates. Keywords Canopy openness Coastal forests Invasion Light Salinity Storm surge
Present Address: S. Paudel Research and Science Education, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, 1 Schenley Park, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
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Plant Ecol
Introduction Tropical cyclones, also known regionally as hurricanes and typhoons, are large-scale natural disturbances affecting the structure, composition, and function of coastal forested ecosystems in many parts of the
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