The invasive Opuntia ficus-indica homogenizes native plant species compositions in the highlands of Eritrea
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ORIGINAL PAPER
The invasive Opuntia ficus-indica homogenizes native plant species compositions in the highlands of Eritrea Yohannes B. Tesfay
. Juergen Kreyling
Received: 30 March 2020 / Accepted: 20 September 2020 The Author(s) 2020
Abstract Invasion by exotic species is recognized as one of the major threats to biodiversity. The effects of invasion by Opuntia ficus-indica (Cactaceae) on the species diversity, richness and composition of invaded communities were studied at three sites in the highlands of Eritrea, East Africa. This paper investigates whether the presence of O. ficus-indica causes a negative effect on the native biodiversity in a region rarely studied so far. The vegetation in invaded and uninvaded plots with similar habitat conditions was sampled and differences in the species composition, diversity and richness were compared between the plots. The overall plant species composition differed significantly with invasion by O. ficus-indica. The invasion by O. ficus-indica also led to a significant homogenization of community compositions. The species richness and Shannon diversity index did not differ significantly between the invaded and uninvaded plots. Nevertheless, we still detected species
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-020-02373-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Y. B. Tesfay (&) J. Kreyling Experimental Plant Ecology, Institute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, University of Greifswald, Soldmannstrasse 15, 17489 Greifswald, Germany e-mail: [email protected] J. Kreyling e-mail: [email protected]
with significantly lower occurrence in the invaded plots (Psiadia punctulata), but also species which preferred invaded plots (Plectranthus hadiensis). We conclude that O. ficus-indica exerts a negligible effect on the species diversity and richness but that it affects species composition and that there are species which suffer due to its presence. Due to the continuous pressure of the invasion by O. ficus-indica on the species composition and dry climates, further homogenization in the native species diversity is to be expected in the future for the highlands of Eritrea. Keywords Eritrea Opuntia ficus-indica Plant invasions Species composition Species diversity East-African highlands
Introduction Invasion by introduced exotic species is recognized as one of the major environmental problems and threats to biodiversity (Di Castri et al. 1989; Di Castri and Hansen 1990; Williamson 1996). Many of the deliberate introductions relate to the human interest in nurturing species for agricultural, forestry or ornamental uses (Staples 2001). Invasion by exotic plant species can significantly alter the native plant community composition and ecosystem processes (Vila` et al. 2011), although the types and magnitudes of
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impacts of individual invasive species can vary with
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