Abstract
Physical supporting or defense structures of plants, which decrease palatability, remain in plant tissue after a plant’s death and so decrease detritus decomposition rates. Consequently, palatability and detritus decomposition rate are expected to be positively correlated. Carbon is the main component of these restricting structures, whereas nitrogen is expected to increase plant attractiveness for herbivores. In this study, we tried to confirm the expected positive relationship between palatability and detritus decomposition rate and to find the species functional traits that are responsible for this concordant response. Some traits are shared by species as a consequence of their common phylogenetic history; consequently, we also studied the effect of phylogenetic correction on the expected relationships.
We assessed the palatability of meadow plant species to a generalist slug Arion lusitanicus in an aquarium grazing experiment and detritus decomposition rate in a field litter-bag test. The two characteristics are positively correlated and the relationship is strengthened by phylogenetic correction. The relationship was strongest for the decomposition rates during the first three months of exposition, but weakened when the exposition period was from six months to a year. Palatability was negatively affected by plant carbon content, but no relationship was found between plant palatability and nitrogen content. Similarly, only the relationship of litter decomposition with litter carbon content was significant. The regression tree method was used to detect the influence of species traits on species palatability and detritus decomposition rate. In general, leaf dry matter content, litter carbon content and seed weight were chosen as the best predictors of plant palatability response. Results for the detritus decomposition rate response mainly reflect supporting or defensive structure contents. Litter carbon content, seed weight and plant height are the most apparent common predictors of these variable responses.
In general, our study confirmed the positive relationship between plant palatability and detritus decomposition. Both plant tissue grazing and detritus decomposition are slowed down by plant tissue supportive structures, manifested as high dry matter content or high tissue carbon content.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
Abbreviations
- LDMC:
-
Leaf Dry Matter Content
- PIC:
-
Phylogenetically Independent Contrasts
References
Ackerly, D. D. 2000. Taxon sampling, correlated evolution, and independent contrasts. Evolution 54: 1480–1492.
Breiman, L., J. H. Friedman, R. Olshen, and C. J. Stone. 1984. Classification and Regression Trees. Chapman & Hall, New York.
Bremer, B., K. Bremer, N. Heidari, P. Erixon, R. G. Olmstead, A. A. Anderberg, M. Källersjö and E. Barkhordarian. 2002. Phylogenetics of asterids based on 3 coding and 3 non-coding chloroplast DNA markers and the utility of non-coding DNA at higher taxonomic levels. Mol. Phyl. Evol. 24: 274–301.
Bryant, J. P., F. D. Provenza, J. Pastor, P. B. Reichardt,T. P. Clausen and J. T. du Toit. 1991. Interactions between woody plants and browsing mammals mediated by secondary metabolites. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 22: 431–446.
Burt-Smith, G. S., J. P. Grime and D. Tilman. 2003. Seedling resistance to herbivory as a predictor of relative abundance in a synthesised prairie community. Oikos 101: 345–353.
Buschmann, H., M. Keller, N. Porret, H. Dietz and P.J. Edwards. 2005. The effect of slug grazing on vegetation development and plant species diversity in an experimental grassland. Funct. Ecol. 19: 291–298.
Chapman, S. K., S. C. Hart, N. S. Cobb, T. G. Whitham and G. W. Koch. 2003. Insect herbivory increases litter quality and decomposition: an extension of the acceleration hypotheses. Ecology 84: 2867–2876.
Chytrý M. ed. (2007). Vegetace České republiky 1. Travinná a keřičková vegetace [Vegetation of the Czech Republic 1. Grassland and heathland vegetation]. Academia, Praha.
Cingolani, A. M., G. Posse and M. B. Collantes. 2005. Plant functional traits, herbivore selectivity and response to sheep grazing in Patagonian steppe grasslands. J. Appl. Ecol. 42: 50–59.
Cornelissen, J. H. C. 1996. An experimental comparison of leaf decomposition rates in a wide range of temperate plant species and types. J. Ecol. 84: 573–582.
Cornelissen, J. H. C. and K. Thompson. 1997. Functional leaf attributes predict litter decomposition rate in herbaceous plants. New Phytol. 135: 109–114.
Cornelissen, J. H. C., M. J. A. Werger, P. Castro-Diéz, J. W. A. van Rheenen and A. P. Rowland. 1997. Foliar nutrients in relation to growth, allocation and leaf traits in seedlings of a wide range of woody plant species and types. Oecologia 111: 460–469.
Cornelissen, J. H. C., N. Pérez-Harguindeguy, S. Díaz, J. P. Grime, B. Marzano, M. Cabido, F. Vendramini and B. Cerabolini. 1999. Leaf structure and defense control litter decomposition rate across species and life forms in regional floras on two continents. New Phytol. 143: 191–200.
Cornelissen, J. H. C., H. M. Quested, D. Gwynn-Jones, R. S. P. van Logtestijn, M. A. H. de Beus, A. Kondratchuk, T. V. Callaghan and R. Aerts. 2004. Leaf digestability and litter decomposability are related in a wide range of subarctic plant species and types. Funct. Ecol. 18: 779–786.
de Bello, F., J. Lepš and M.-T. Sebastia. 2005. Predictive value of plant traits to grazing along a climatic gradient in the Mediterranean. J. Appl. Ecol. 42: 824–833.
Díaz, S., I. Noy-meir and M. Cabido. 2001. Can grazing response of herbaceous plants be predicted from simple vegetative traits? J. Appl. Ecol. 38:497–508.
Dupré, C. and M. Diekmann. 2001. Differences in species richness and life-history traits between grazed and abandoned grasslands in southern Sweden. Ecography 24: 275–286.
Dvořák, L. and M. Horsák. 2003. Současné poznatky o plzáku Arion lusitanicus (Mollusca: Pulmonata) v České republice. Čas. Slez. Muz. Opava (A)52:67–71.
Edwards, G. R. and M. J. Crawley. 1999. Herbivores, seed banks and seedling recruitment in mesic grassland. J. Ecol. 87: 423–435.
Fenner, M., M. E. Hanley and R. Lawrence. 1999. Comparison of seedling and adult palatability in annual and perennial plants. Funct. Ecol. 13: 546–551.
Garnier, E., S. Lavorel, P. Ansquer, H. Castro, P. Cruz, J. Dole▯al, O. Eriksson, C. Fortunel, H. Freitas, C. Golodets, K. Grigulis, C. Jouany, E. Kazakou, J. Kigel, M. Kleyer, V. Lehsten, J. Lepš, T. Meier, R Pakeman, M. Papadimitriou, V. P. Papanastasis, H. Quested, F. Quétier, M. Robson, C. Roumet, G. Rusch, Ch. Skarpe, M. Sternberg, J.-P. Theau, A. Thébault, D. Vile and M. P. Zarovali. 2007. Assessing the effects of land-use change on plant traits, communities and ecosystem functioning in grasslands: A standardized methodology and lessons from an application to 11 European sites. Ann. Bot. 99: 967–985.
Grime, J. P., J. H. C. Cornelissen, K. Thompson and J. G. Hodgson. 1996. Evidence of a causal connection between anti-herbivore defense and the decomposition rate of leaves. Oikos 77:489–494.
Grime, J. P. 2001. Plant Strategies, Vegetation Processes and Ecosystem Properties. John Wiley & Sons, Chichester.
Hendriks, R. J. J., N. J. de Boer and J. M. van Groenendael. 1999. Comparing the preferences of three herbivore species with resistance traits of 15 perennial dicots: the effects of phylogenetic constraints. Plant Ecology 143: 141–152.
Herms, D. A. and W. J. Mattson. 1992. The dilemma of plants: to grow or defend. Quart. Rev. Biol. 67:283–335.
Hulme, P. E. 1996. Herbivory, plant regeneration, and species coexistence. J. Ecol. 84: 609–615.
Janssen, T. and K. Bremer. 2004. The age of major monocot groups inferred from 800+ rbcL sequences. Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 146: 385–398.
Karban, R. and A. A. Agrawal. 2002. Herbivore offense. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 33: 641–664.
Kellog, E. A. 2001. Evolutionary history of the grasses. Plant Phys. 125: 1198–1205.
Klotz, F., I. Kühn and W. Durka. 2002. BIOLFLOR - Eine Daten-bank mit biologisch-ökologischen Merkmalen zur Flora von Deutschland. Bundesamt für Naturschutz, Bonn, Bad Godes-berg.
Kotorová, I. and J. Lepš. 1999. Comparative ecology of seedling recruitment in an oligotrophic wet meadow. J. Veg. Sci. 10: 175–186.
Kubát, K., L. Hrouda, J. Chrtek jun., Z. Kaplan, J. Kirschner and J. Štìpánek (eds). 2002. Klič ke květeně České republiky. Academia, Praha.
Lepš, J. 1999. Nutrient status, disturbance and competition: an experimental test of relationships inawet meadow. J. Veg. Sci. 10: 219–230.
Palmer, M. V. 1994. Variation in species richness – towards a unification of hypothesis. Folia Geobot. Phytotax. 29: 511–530.
Pérez-Harguindeguy, N., S. Díaz, F. Vendramini, J. H. C. Cornelissen, D. E. Gurvich and M. Cabido. 2003. Leaf traits and herbivore selection in the field and in cafeteria experiments. Austral Ecology 28: 642–650.
R Development Core Team. 2007. R- a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. http://www.R-project.org
Rhoades, D. F. 1983. Herbivore population dynamics and plant chemistry. In: R. F. Denno and M. S. McClure (eds), Variable Plants and Herbivores in Natural and Managed Systems. Academic Press, London. pp. 155–204.
Schädler, M., G. Jung, H. Auge and R. Brandl. 2003. Palatability, decomposition and insect herbivory: patterns in a successional old-field plant community. Oikos 103: 121–132.
Scheidel, U. and H. Bruelheide, 2005. Effects of slug herbivory on the seedling establishment of two montane Asteraceae species. Flora 200: 309–320.
Stevens, P. F. 2001 onwards. Angiosperm Phylogeny Website, version 7.0, May 2006. http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/.
Strauss, S. Y. and A. A. Agrawal, 1999. The ecology and evolution of plant tolerance to herbivory. Trends Ecol. Evol. 14: 179–185.
Szentesi, Á. 2006. Pre-dispersal seed predation by Bruchidius villo-sus (Coleoptera, Bruchidae) in Laburnum anagyroides (Fabaceae, Genisteae). Comm. Ecol. 7: 13–22.
Wardle, D. A., K. I. Bonner and G. M. Barker. 2002. Linkages between plant litter decomposition, litter quality, and vegetation responses to herbivores. Funct. Ecol. 16: 585–595.
Webb, C. O., D. D. Ackerly, M. A. McPeek and M. J. Donoghue. 2002. Phylogenies and community ecology. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 33:475–505.
Westoby, M. 1999. Generalization in functional plant ecology: the species-sampling problem, plant ecology strategy schemes, and phylogeny. In: F. I. Pugnaire and F. Vallandares (eds), Handbook of Functional Plant Ecology. M. Dekker, New York. pp. 847–872.
Wilf, P., C. C. Labandeira, K. R. Johnson, P. D. Coley and A. D. Cutter. 2001. Insect herbivory, plant defense, and early Cenozoic climate change. PNAS 98: 6221–6226.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.
About this article
Cite this article
Pálková, K., Lepš, J. Positive relationship between plant palatability and litter decomposition in meadow plants. COMMUNITY ECOLOGY 9, 17–27 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1556/ComEc.9.2008.1.3
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1556/ComEc.9.2008.1.3