Invasive Spartina alterniflora habitat forms high energy fluxes but low food web stability compared to adjacent native vegetated habitats

Xiaoxiao Li; Wei Yang; Xu Ma; Zhenchang Zhu; Tao Sun; Baoshan Cui; Zhifeng Yang

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117487

Invasive Spartina alterniflora habitat forms high energy fluxes but low food web stability compared to adjacent native vegetated habitats

J Environ Manage. 2023 May 15:334:117487. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117487. Epub 2023 Feb 16.

Authors

Xiaoxiao Li¹, Wei Yang², Xu Ma³, Zhenchang Zhu⁴, Tao Sun⁵, Baoshan Cui⁵, Zhifeng Yang⁶

Affiliations

¹ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Quality Improvement and Ecological Restoration for Watersheds, School of Ecology, Environment and Resources, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510006, China; State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, 511458, China.
² State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China; Yellow River Estuary Wetland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Education, Shandong, 257500, China. Electronic address: yangwei@bnu.edu.cn.
³ State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing, 100038, China.
⁴ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Quality Improvement and Ecological Restoration for Watersheds, School of Ecology, Environment and Resources, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510006, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, 511458, China.
⁵ State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China; Yellow River Estuary Wetland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Education, Shandong, 257500, China.
⁶ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Quality Improvement and Ecological Restoration for Watersheds, School of Ecology, Environment and Resources, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510006, China; State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, 511458, China. Electronic address: zfyang@gdut.edu.cn.

PMID: 36801685
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117487

Abstract

Invasive Spartina spp. mostly colonizes a bare tidal flat and then establishes a new vegetated habitat, where it promotes the productivity of local ecosystems. However, it was unclear whether the invasive habitat could well exhibit ecosystem functioning, e.g. how its high productivity propagates throughout the food web and whether it thereby develops a high food web stability relative to native vegetated habitats. By developing quantitative food webs for a long-established invasive Spartina alterniflora habitat and adjacent native salt marsh (Suaeda salsa) and seagrass (Zostera japonica) habitats in China's Yellow River Delta, we investigated the distributions of energy fluxes, assessed the stability of food webs, and investigated the net trophic effects between trophic groups by combining all direct and indirect trophic interactions. Results showed that the total energy flux in the invasive S. alterniflora habitat was comparable to that in the Z. japonica habitat, whereas 4.5 times higher than that in the S. salsa habitat. While, the invasive habitat had the lowest trophic transfer efficiencies. Food web stability in the invasive habitat was about 3 and 40 times lower than that in the S. salsa and Z. japonica habitats, respectively. Additionally, there were strong net effects caused by intermediate invertebrate species in the invasive habitat rather than by fish species in both native habitats. This study revealed the contradiction between the promotion of energy fluxes and the decrease of food web stability resulting from the invasion of S. alterniflora, which provides new insights into the community-based management of plant invasions.

Keywords: Coastal wetland; Ecosystem function; Energy flux; Food web stability; Multi-trophic interactions; Plant invasion.

MeSH terms

Animals
China
Ecosystem*
Food Chain*
Introduced Species
Poaceae
Wetlands