Functional Richness and Identity Do Not Strongly Affect Invasibility of Constructed Dune Communities.

ABSTRACT: Biotic effects are often used to explain community structure and invasion resistance. We evaluated the contribution of functional richness and identity to invasion resistance and abiotic resource availability using a mesocosm experiment. We predicted that higher functional richness would confer greater invasion resistance through greater resource sequestration. We also predicted that niche pre-emption and invasion resistance would be higher in communities which included functional groups similar to the invader than communities where all functional groups were distinct from the invader. We constructed communities of different functional richness and identity but maintained constant species richness and numbers of individuals in the resident community. The constructed communities represented

SUBMITTER: Mason TJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5224978 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature