Abstract
Understanding the influence of spatial scale on ecological processes that occur with exotic plant invasion can help us identify underlying mechanisms of successful invasion. Here we studied spatial associations between Thymus vulgaris invasion and plant community species richness, composition and abundance at multiple spatial scales. These scales included among-sites, differences between aspects at the same site, and differences that occur between the inside, edge and outside of thyme stands at the same site. We examined how aspect (north or south) and site location influence spatial distribution patterns of thyme (cover and canopy height). We also quantified the relationship between variability in plant community composition inside, at the edge and outside of thyme-invaded communities and soil physical and chemical properties, cover of animal faeces, bare ground and schist, altitude and slope. We found lower species richness inside thyme-dominated communities, and this change was often greater on the north-facing slopes than the south-facing slopes. Plant species and plant functional groups had individualistic abundance patterns associated with thyme’s invasion. Exotic grasses, exotic forbs and native shrubs showed significant decreases in cover inside thyme stands, but native forb and native grass abundances were not significantly affected by thyme’s presence. Thyme density varied with aspect at some sites, generally being less dense on the south-facing slopes compared to the north-facing slopes. A subset of 15 environmental variables explained 54 % of plant assemblage variation inside, at the edge and outside of thyme-invaded communities, highlighting the important influence of site differences on invaded plant community assemblages.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adams SN, Engelhardt KA (2009) Diversity declines in Microstegium vimineum (Japanese stiltgrass) patches. Biol Conserv 142:1003–1010
Akaike H (1973) Information theory and an extension of the maximum likelihood principle. In: Petrov BN, Caski F (eds) Proceedings of the second international symposium on information theory. Akademiai Kiado, Budapest, pp 267–281
Allan HH (1961) Flora of New Zealand, vol 1., Indigenous TracheophytaR. E. Owen, Government Printer, Wellington
Amiot J, Salmon Y, Collin C, Thompson JD, Waller D (2005) Differential resistance to freezing and spatial distribution in a chemically polymorphic plant Thymus vulgaris. Ecol Lett 8:370–377
Anderson MJ (2001) A new method for non-parametric multivariate analysis of variance. Austral Ecol 26:32–46
Blumenthal DM, Norton AP, Cox SE et al (2012) Linaria dalmatica invades south-facing slopes and less grazed areas in grazing-tolerant mixed-grass prairie. Biol Invasions 14:395–404. doi:10.1007/s10530-011-0085-9
Bolton H, Wildung RE, Smith JL (1990) Nitrogen mineralization potentials of shrub-steppe soils with different disturbance histories. Soil Sci Soc Am J 54:887–891
Brothers TS, Spingarn A (1992) Forest fragmentation and alien plant invasion of Central Indiana old-growth forests. Conserv Biol 6:91–100
Brown KA, Spector S, Wu W (2008) Multi-scale analysis of species introductions: combining landscape and demographic models to improve management decisions about non-native species. J Appl Ecol 45:1639–1648
Callaway RM, Aschehoug ET (2000) Invasive plants versus their new and old neighbors: a mechanism for exotic invasion. Science 290:521–523
Clarke KR (1993) Non-parametric multivariate analyses of changes in community structure. Aust J Ecol 18:117–143
Cockayne L (1928) The vegetation of New Zealand. W. Engelmann, Leipzig
Connor HE, Edgar E (1987) Name changes in the indigenous New Zealand flora, 1960–1986 and Nomina Nova IV, 1993–1986. N Z J Bot 25:115–170
Corbin JD, D’Antonio CM (2011) Abundance and productivity mediate invader effects on nitrogen dynamics in a California grassland. Ecosphere 2:art32
Davies KW (2011) Plant community diversity and native plant abundance decline with increasing abundance of an exotic annual grass. Oecologia 167:481–491
Davis MA (2009) Impacts of invasions. Invasion biology (MA Davis edr). Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 101–131
Edgar E, Connor HE (2000) Flora of New Zealand Volume V: Gramineae (Grasses). Manaaki Whenua Press, Lincoln
Egli M, Sartori G, Mirabella A, Favilli F, Giaccai D, Delbos E (2009) Effect of north and south exposure on organic matter in high Alpine soils. Geoderma 149:124–136
Ehlers BK, Thompson J (2004) Do co-occurring plant species adapt to one another? The response of Bromus erectus to the presence of different Thymus vulgaris chemotypes. Oecologia 141:511–518
Ehlers B, Grøndahl E, Ronfort J, Bataillon T (2012) “Ménage à trois”: the presence/absence of thyme shapes the mutualistic interaction between the host plant Medicago truncatula (Fabaceae) and its symbiotic bacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti. Ecol Evol. doi:10.1002/ece3.270
Ehlers B, Charpentier A, Grøndahl E (2013) An allelopathic plant facilitates species richness in the Mediterranean garrigue. J Ecol. doi:10.1111/1365-2745.12171
Ehrenfeld JG (2003) Effects of exotic plant invasions on soil nutrient cycling processes. Ecosystems 6:503–523
Ehrenfeld JG (2010) Ecosystem consequences of biological invasions. Annu Rev Ecol Evol S 41:59–80
Evans RD (2001) Physiological mechanisms influencing plant nitrogen isotope composition. Trends Plant Sci 6:121–126
Fan L, Chen Y, Yuan J, Yang Z (2010) The effect of Lantana camara Linn. invasion on soil chemical and microbiological properties and plant biomass accumulation in southern China. Geoderma 154:370–378
Fickbohm SS, Zhu W (2006) Exotic purple loosestrife invasion of native cattail freshwater wetlands: effects on organic matter distribution and soil nitrogen cycling. Appl Soil Ecol 32:123–131
Fried G, Laitung B, Pierre C, Chagué N, Panetta FD (2013) Impact of invasive plants in Mediterranean habitats: disentangling the effects of characteristics of invaders and recipient communities. Biol Invasions 16:1639–1658
Gaertner M, Breeyen AD, Hui C, Richardson DM (2009) Impacts of alien plant invasions on species richness in Mediterranean-type ecosystems: a meta-analysis. Prog Phys Geog 33:319–338
Grønberg Jensen C, Ehlers B (2010) Genetic variation for sensitivity to a thyme monoterpene in associated plant species. Oecologia 162:1017–1025
Healy AJ, Edgar E (1980) Flora of New Zealand, Volume III: Adventive cyperaceous, petalous and spathaceous monocotyledons. Government Printer. Wellington
Holmes PM, Richardson DM (1999) Protocols for restoration based on recruitment dynamics, community structure, and ecosystem function: perspectives from South African fynbos. Restor Ecol 7:215–230
Inderjit Evans H, Crocoll C, Bajpai D, Kaur R, Feng YL, Silva C et al (2011) Volatile chemicals from leaf litter are associated with invasiveness of a neotropical weed in Asia. Ecology 92:316–324
Keefover-Ring K (2008) One chemistry, two continents: function and maintenance of chemical polymorphism in the mint family (Lamiaceae). Ph.D. 3303896, University of Colorado at Boulder, USA. Retrieved from http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1507551951&Fmt=7&clientId=18927&RQT=309&VName=PQD
Knapp AK, Smith MD (2001) Variation among biomes in temporal dynamics of aboveground primary production. Science 291:481–484
Levine JM, Vilà M, D’Antonio CM, Dukes JS, Grigulis K, Lavorel S (2003) Mechanisms underlying the impacts of exotic plant invasions. Proc R Soc Lond B 270:775–781
Linhart YB, Keefover-Ring K, Mooney KA, Breland B, Thompson JD (2005) A chemical polymorphism in a multitrophic setting: thyme monoterpene composition and food web structure. Am Nat 166:517–529
Lonsdale WM (1999) Global patterns of plant invasions and the concept of invasibility. Ecology 80:1522–1536
Lyford ME, Jackson ST, Betancourt JL, Gray ST (2003) Influence of landscape structure and climate variability on a late Holocene plant migration. Ecol Monogr 73:567–583
Mahaney WM, Smemo KA, Yavitt JB (2006) Impacts of Lythrum salicaria invasion on plant community and soil properties in two wetlands in central New York, USA. Can J Bot 84:477–484
Mark AF (1965) The environment and growth rate of narrow-leaved snow tussock, Chionochloa rigida, in Otago. N Z J Bot 3:73–103
Mason TJ, French K (2008) Impacts of a woody invader vary in different vegetation communities. Divers Distrib 14:829–838
McArdle BH, Anderson MJ (2001) Fitting multivariate models to community data: a comment on distance based redundancy analysis. Ecology 82:290–297
Meffin R, Miller AL, Hulme PE, Duncan RP (2010) Experimental introduction of the alien plant Hieracium lepidulum reveals no significant impact on montane plant communities in New Zealand. Divers Distrib 16:804–815
Meiners SJ, Pickett STA (1999) Changes in community and population responses across a forest-field gradient. Ecography 22:261–267
Metservice.com (2012) Climate summary 1969–1988. Retrieved 30 June 2012
Meyerson LA, Mooney HA (2007) Invasive alien species in an era of globalization. Front Ecol Environ 5:199–208
Molloy BPJ (1976) An analysis of sweet briar on Molesworth. In: L Moore (ed) The changing vegetation of Molesworth Station, New Zealand, 1944 to 1971. DSIR Research Bulletin 217, pp 90–110
Molloy LF (1988) The living mantle: Soils in the New Zealand landscape. Wellington, New Zealand, Mallison Rendel in association with the New Zealand Society of Soil Science
Moore LB, Edgar E (1970) Flora of New Zealand, vol. II: Indigenous Tracheophyta–Monocotyledons except Graminae. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch, New Zealand
Morgan RK (1989) Chemotypic characteristics of Thymus vulgaris L. in Central Otago, New Zealand. J Biogeogr 16:483–491
Nielsen JA (2013) Aboveground-belowground ecological linkages in exotic plantinvasion: Thymus vulgaris L. in Central Otago New Zealand. Dissertation, University of Otago
Nielsen JA, Whigham PA, Frew RD, Callaway RM, Dickinson KJM (2014) Thyme invasion and soil properties in the Central Otago region of New Zealand. Geoderma Reg. doi:10.1016/j.geodrs.2014.08.002
NIWA (2012) New Zealand climate data climate summaries 2001—present. Retrieved 30 June 2012
O’Connor KF (1986) The influence of science on the use of tussock grasslands. Tussock Grassl Mt Lands Inst Rev 43:5–78
Partridge TR, Allen RB, Johnson PN, Lee WG (1991) Vegetation/environment relationships in lowland and montane vegetation of the Kawarau Gorge, Central Otago, New Zealand. N Z J Bot 29:295–310
Pauchard A, Alaback PB (2004) Influence of elevation, land use, and landscape context on patterns of alien plant invasions along roadsides in protected areas of South-Central Chile. Conserv Biol 18:238–248
Powell KI, Chase JM, Knight TM (2011) A synthesis of plant invasion effects on biodiversity across spatial scales. Am J Bot 98:539–548
Pyšek P, Jarošík V, Hulme PE, Pergl J, Hejda M, Schaffner U, Vilà M (2012) A global assessment of invasive plant impacts on resident species, communities and ecosystems: the interaction of impact measures, invading species’ traits and environment. Glob Change Biol 18:1725–1737
Radosevich SR, Stubbs MM, Ghersa CM (2003) Plant invasions, process and patterns. Weed Sci 51:254–259
Scharfy D, Eggenschwiler H, Olde Venterink H, Edwards PJ, Güsewell S (2009) The invasive alien plant species Solidago gigantea alters ecosystem properties across habitats with differing fertility. J Veg Sci 20:1072–1085
Scott D (1984) Hawkweeds in run country. J N Z Mt Lands Instit Rev 42:33–48
Shannon CE (1948) A mathematical theory of communication. Bell Syst Tech J 27:623–656
Simpson EH (1949) Measurement of diversity. Nature 163:688
Sternberg M, Shoshany M (2001) Influence of slope aspect on Mediterranean woody formations: comparison of a semiarid and an arid site in Israel. Ecol Res 16:335–345
Tarayre M, Thompson JD, Escarre J, Linhart YB (1995) Intra-specific variation in the inhibitory effects of Thymus vulgaris (Labiatae) monoterpenes on seed germination. Oecologia 101:110–118
Thompson JD, Gauthier P, Amiot J, Ehlers BK, Collin C, Fossat J, Barrios V, Arnaud-Miramont F, Keefover-Ring KEN, Linhart YB (2007) Ongoing adaptation to Mediterranean climate extremes in a chemically polymorphic plant. Ecol Monogr 77:421–439
Vanderhoeven S, Dassonvill N, Chapuis-Lardy L, Hayez M, Meerts P (2006) Impact of the invasive alien plant Solidago gigantea on primary productivity, plant nutrient content and soil mineral nutrient concentrations. Plant Soil 286:259–268
Vilà M, Gimeno I (2007) Does invasion by an alien plant species affect the soil seed bank? J Veg Sci 18:423–430
Vilà M, Espinar JL, Hejda M, Hulme PE, Jarošík V, Maron JL, Pergl J, Schaffner U, Sun Y, Pyšek P (2011) Ecological impacts of invasive alien plants: a meta-analysis of their effects on species, communities and ecosystems. Ecol Lett 14:702–708
Walker LR, Smith SD (1997) Impacts of invasive plants on community and ecosystem properties assessment and management of plant invasions. In: Luken JO, Thieret JW (eds) Assessment and mangement of plant invasions, section II. Springer, New York, pp 69–86
Walker S, Wilson JB (2002) Tests for nonequilibrium, instability, and stabilizing processes in semiarid plant communities. Ecology 83(3):809–822
Walker S, Mark A, Wilson J (1995) The vegetation of Flat Top Hill: An area of semi-arid grassland/shrubland in Central Otago, New Zealand. N Z J Ecol 175–194
Webb CJ, Sykes WR, Garnock-Jones PJ (1988) Flora of New Zealand, vol 4. Botany Division, DSIR Christchurch, New Zealand
Weidenhamer JD, Callaway RM (2010) Direct and indirect effects of invasive plants on soil chemistry and ecosystem function. J Chem Ecol 36:59–69
Wilkinson EL, Dann GM, Smith GJS (1979) Thyme in Central Otago. In: Tussock Grasslands and Mountain Lands Institute Special Publication No. 14, Lincoln College, Christchurch
Williams PA (1980) Vittadinia triloba and Rumex acetosella communities in the semi-arid regions of the South Island. N Z J Ecol 3:13–22
Wilson JB, Williams PA, Lee WG (1989) Vegetation composition and segregation in relation to the environment at low altitudes in the Upper Clutha Basin, New Zealand. N Z J Ecol 12:103–116
Wolf JJ, Beatty SW, Carey G (2003) Invasion by Sweet Clover (Melilotus) in Montane Grasslands, Rocky Mountain National Park. Ann Assoc Am Geogr 93:531–543
Acknowledgments
This research was funded by the Miss E.L. Hellaby Indigenous Grasslands Research Trust. We thank the Snow family for their assistance in the field and Ella Hayman for her help with plant species identification. We also thank the Central Otago landowners and businesses who gave permission to carry out research on their land: Sam Leask, Chard Farm Winery, AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Nielsen, J.A., Whigham, P.A., Frew, R.D. et al. Thyme and space invasion: Thymus vulgaris decreases exotic plant species diversity in Central Otago, New Zealand. Biol Invasions 17, 2261–2274 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-015-0872-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-015-0872-9