Latest Articles from Plant Ecology and Evolution Latest 3 Articles from Plant Ecology and Evolution https://plecevo.eu/ Fri, 29 Mar 2024 00:14:49 +0200 Pensoft FeedCreator https://plecevo.eu/i/logo.jpg Latest Articles from Plant Ecology and Evolution https://plecevo.eu/ Diversity and distribution of ferns and clubmosses in the eastern canyons of Isalo National Park, Madagascar https://plecevo.eu/article/101827/ Plant Ecology and Evolution 157(1): 3-19

DOI: 10.5091/plecevo.101827

Authors: Rivoharifara Randrianarimanana, France Rakotondrainibe, Elodie Boucheron-Dubuisson, Lovanomenjanahary Marline, Mijoro Rakotoarinivo, Catherine Reeb

Abstract: Background and aims – In contrast to the flowering plants, the pteridophyte flora of Madagascar is still understudied. While several studies have been published on the eastern and central parts of the island, there are currently few works dedicated to the pteridophytes of southwestern Madagascar. The aim of this work is to increase the knowledge of the pteridophyte flora of the Isalo massif in southwestern Madagascar. It presents a checklist of Isalo’s pteridophytes and an analysis of the diversity and distribution patterns of pteridophyte communities across ecological gradients in the eastern canyons of Isalo. Material and methods – Eighty plots were placed in six canyons. In each plot, pteridophyte species abundance was inventoried, as well as several ecological and geomorphological variables. A census in the field and observations on specimens in herbaria were carried to make a checklist of all the pteridophyte species known for Isalo. Statistical analysis was carried out to understand the pteridophyte diversity and distribution patterns in the Isalo’s canyons: (1) exploratory analysis (FAMD and HCPC) highlights the general patterns of ecological gradients, (2) a rarefaction curve was used to compare species diversity, and (3) co-inertia analysis investigated the relationship between ecological gradient and pteridophyte communities. Key results – In total, 60 species of ferns and lycophytes have been recorded in the massif, including ten endemic species to Madagascar and 11 species reported for the first time in the Isalo massif. Species diversity is especially high in the northern canyons (Anjofo, Andramanero, Antsifotra) in contrast to the middle (Maki and Rats) and southern (Namaza) canyons. Fern distribution patterns were correlated to a combination of environmental factors, highlighting species-specific ecological preferences.

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Research Article Wed, 10 Jan 2024 10:29:00 +0200
Why fitness impacts of different herbivores may combine nonadditively, and why it matters to the ecology and evolution of plant-herbivore communities https://plecevo.eu/article/95982/ Plant Ecology and Evolution 156(1): 13-28

DOI: 10.5091/plecevo.95982

Authors: Michael J. Wise

Abstract: Background and aims – The manner by which the effects of multiple antagonists combine is a fundamental issue in ecology. This issue has been especially important in plant-herbivore evolutionary ecology—particularly predicting whether the combined fitness impacts of multiple herbivores on a shared host plant can be inferred by simply adding the individual impacts that each herbivore has when feeding alone. Despite accumulating empirical data, relatively little theoretical progress has been made in explaining why impacts of herbivore damage often combine nonadditively, as well as predicting the conditions that lead to a greater-than-additive (synergistic) or to a less-than-additive (subadditive) pattern. Material and methods – Based on considerations of limiting resources and source-sink relationships, I proposed and tested two hypotheses: 1) The fitness impacts of two species of herbivores that affect the same resource (i.e. feed on the same tissue in a similar fashion) will combine in a synergistic pattern (if that resource is not limiting reproduction when plants do not experience herbivory), and 2) The fitness impacts of two herbivores that affect different resources (i.e. feed on different tissues) will combine in a subadditive pattern. I performed a field experiment in which horsenettle (Solanum carolinense) was exposed to a factorial combination of four levels of leaf herbivory and five levels of simulated floral herbivory. Key results – The results were consistent with both hypotheses: 1) The combined fitness impact of flower damage that was simulated as being caused by two florivorous species feeding on the same plants was greater than the sum of the same total amount of damage when the two species were simulated as feeding individually; and 2) The combined fitness impact of the leaf and floral damage was less than the sum of the same total amount of damage when the two species fed individually. Conclusions – The main ecoevolutionary implication of these results is that subadditive impacts of leaf- and flower-feeding herbivores could weaken selection for resistance in horsenettle (or any plant species that hosts multiple herbivores), and thus subadditive impacts may contribute to the maintenance of diverse herbivore communities sharing a species of host plant.

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Research Article Wed, 8 Feb 2023 11:00:00 +0200
Assessment of plant species diversity associated with the carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua, Fabaceae) at the Mediterranean scale https://plecevo.eu/article/24537/ Plant Ecology and Evolution 151(2): 185-193

DOI: 10.5091/plecevo.2018.1423

Authors: Alex Baumel, Pascal Mirleau, Juan Viruel, Magda Bou Dagher Kharrat, Stefano La Malfa, Lahcen Ouahmane, Katia Diadema, Marwa Moakhar, Hervé Sanguin, Frédéric Médail

Abstract: Background and aims – The thermophilous woodlands of the Mediterranean region constitute reservoirs of genetic resources for several fruit trees. Among them, the carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua) is a key component of traditional Mediterranean agroecosystems but its ecology was never assessed at the scale of its whole distribution area. Fortunately, phytosociological literature shelters invaluable resources for several issues in conservation, among them the possibility to analyse plant biodiversity at regional or continental scale. Here, we present the results of a comprehensive survey of the phytosociological literature associated to carob tree. Methods – We collected 1542 floristic relevés performed in 18 geographical areas distributed around the Mediterranean in which the presence of C. siliqua was recorded. Species composition of the plant communities was analysed by multivariate ordination and hierarchical classification, and species diversity was evaluated by rarefaction and prediction analyses of Hill numbers. Key results – Multivariate analyses revealed that plant communities associated with the carob tree are well differentiated between the Western and Eastern basins. A wider range of floristic differentiation is revealed in the Western basin where the vegetation reaches its maximal heterogeneity. By comparison, in the Eastern basin the plant assemblages associated with the carob tree are more homogeneous and with a lower species richness but a higher Simpson diversity. Conclusions – The large ecological range of the Mediterranean carob trees is potentially an important evolutionary legacy for the conservation of genetic resources and seed sourcing for new uses such as restoration ecology.

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