大草食动物提供了对外来植物占主导地位的生物抵抗力
Ninad Avinash Mungi1,2, Yadvendradev V Jhala3, Qamar Qureshi3
1Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO) & Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark. shastri.ninad@gmail.com.
Nature ecology & evolution
|August 31, 2023
概括
大型草食动物可以通过消耗大量生物质来控制入侵的外来植物,从而促进本地植物的多样性. 这种以自然为基础的解决方案在具有高大草食动物密度的生产生态系统中最有效.
科学领域:
- 生态生态学 生态生态学
- 保护生物学 保护生物学
- 侵袭性物种管理 侵袭性物种管理
背景情况:
- 外来植物的生物入侵是全球日益关注的问题.
- 对入侵性植物缺乏有效和可扩展的控制方法.
- 大草食动物 (体重≥1,000公斤) 具有可能使他们能够管理入侵植物的特征.
研究的目的:
- 评估大草食动物作为控制外来入侵植物的自然解决方案的潜力.
- 研究巨型草食动物的丰富性,本地植物的丰富性/丰富性和外来植物的丰富性之间的关系.
- 确定影响大草食动物在管理植物入侵方面的有效性因素.
主要方法:
- 利用来自印度各地26,838个摄像机站和158,979个植被地块的大规模数据集.
- 分析了巨型草食动物丰富度与本地/外来植物指标之间的相关性.
- 将生态系统的生产力,植物特征和大草食动物密度纳入分析.
主要成果:
- 发现大草食动物的丰富和本土植物的丰富和丰富之间存在积极的关联.
- 观察到外来植物丰度与大草食动物丰度增加的同时减少.
- 在具有高大草食动物密度的中期生产生态系统中,效率最高,但当外来植物覆盖率超过40%时,效率降低.
结论:
- 大草食动物在控制外来植物的繁殖和在被入侵生态系统中促进本地植物的多样性方面发挥着重要作用.
- 基于巨型动物群的热带再野生化提供了一个有希望的基于自然的策略来打击植物入侵.
- 了解生态系统的生产力和大草食动物密度对于优化这种保护方法至关重要.
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