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Plant community composition and structural characteristics of an invaded forest in the Galápagos

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Abstract

Non-native species have invaded habitats worldwide, greatly impacting the structure and function of native communities and ecosystems. To better understand mechanisms of invasion impacts and how to restore highly impacted and transformed ecosystems, studies are needed that evaluate invader effects on both biotic communities and structural characteristics. On Santa Cruz Island in Galápagos we compared biotic (plant species richness, diversity, and community composition) and structural (canopy openness, forest height, and leaf litter) characteristics of a relic forest dominated by an endemic and highly threatened tree and a forest dominated by an invasive tree. The forests are located within the historical distribution of the endemic tree, which now occupies only 1% of its original extent. We found that the invaded forest had 42% lower native plant species richness and 17% less plant diversity than the endemic tree dominated forest. Additionally, with the invader there was 36% greater non-native plant species richness, 37% higher non-native plant diversity, and highly dissimilar plant composition when compared to the endemic-dominated forest. Additionally, the invaded forest had a more open and taller tree canopy and greater leaf litter cover than native forest. The presence of the invasive tree and the associated forest structural changes were the primary factors in models that best explained higher non-native diversity in the invaded forest. Our correlational results suggest that an invasive tree has significantly altered plant assemblage and forest structural characteristics in this unique ecosystem. Experiments that remove the invader and evaluate native plant community responses are needed to identify thresholds for practical restoration of this threatened and biologically unique native forest.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Wilson Villamar for valuable assistance with fieldwork, and GNP staff Danny Rueda, Christian Sevilla, Alonso Carrión, Galo Quezada and Wilson Cabrera for logistical support. We are also grateful to John Blake, Rob Fletcher, and Mauricio Nuñez-Regueiro for help with data analyses, and Patricia Jaramillo and Heinke Jaeger for their assistance with plant identification. The National Science Foundation funded Quantitative Spatial Ecology, Evolution and Environment QSE3-IGERT program, and Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation provided support for GR graduate studies at University of Florida and completion of this work. This work was also supported by the Ecuadorian Secretaría de Educación Superior, Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación, and the Tropical Conservation and Development Program (UF), which provided scholarships to GR for field work. This study was conducted under permit No. PC-21-12 in compliance with all regulations of the Galápagos National Park.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Colegio de Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales and Galápagos Academic Institute for the Arts and Sciences, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Diego de Robles S/N e Interoceánica, Quito, Ecuador

    Gonzalo Rivas-Torres

  2. Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, 110 Newins-Ziegler Hall, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    Gonzalo Rivas-Torres & Bette Loiselle

  3. Agronomy Department, University of Florida, 3127 McCarty Hall B, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    S. Luke Flory

  4. Center for Latin American Studies, University of Florida, 319 Grinter Hall, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    Bette Loiselle

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  1. Gonzalo Rivas-Torres
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  2. S. Luke Flory
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  3. Bette Loiselle
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Correspondence to Gonzalo Rivas-Torres.

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Communicated by Daniel Sanchez Mata.

This article belongs to the Topical Collection: Invasive species.

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Rivas-Torres, G., Luke Flory, S. & Loiselle, B. Plant community composition and structural characteristics of an invaded forest in the Galápagos. Biodivers Conserv 27, 329–344 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-017-1437-2

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