Seedling Interference and Niche Differentiation Between Crested Wheatgrass and Contrasting Native Great Basin Species |
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| Authors: | Kevin L. Gunnell Thomas A. Monaco Christopher A. Call Corey V. Ransom |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Former Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322, USA;2. Ecologist, US Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Research Service Forage and Range Research Laboratories, Logan, UT 84322, USA;3. Associate Professor, Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322, USA;4. Assistant Professor, Plants, Soils, and Climate Department, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322, USA;1. Research Scientist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)–Agricultural Research Service, Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center (EOARC), Burns, OR 97720, USA;2. Research Technician at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)–Agricultural Research Service, Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center (EOARC), Burns, OR 97720, USA;1. Research Associate, Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717 USA.;2. Associate Professor, Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717 USA.;3. Research Botanist, USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, Boise, ID 83706, USA.;1. Botanist, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Reno, NV 89502, USA;2. Assistant Professor of Plant Ecology, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV 89557, USA;3. Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV 89557, USA;4. Research Ecologist, USDA-ARS NPARL, Pest Management Research Unit, Sidney, MT 59270, USA;1. Rangeland Scientists, USDA-ARS, Burns, OR 97720 USA; and;2. Research Associate, Oregon State University, Burns, OR 97720 USA;2. Department of Agriculture, Nutrition, and Veterinary Sciences, University of Nevada–Reno 89557;3. Department of Animal Science and Wildlife Management, Tarleton State University, Stephenville, TX 76402;4. University of Nevada Cooperative Extension |
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| Abstract: | Interference from crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum [L.] Gaertn.) seedlings is considered a major obstacle to native species establishment in rangeland ecosystems; however, estimates of interference at variable seedling densities have not been defined fully. We conducted greenhouse experiments using an addition-series design to characterize interference between crested wheatgrass and four key native species. Crested wheatgrass strongly interfered with the aboveground growth of Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt. subsp. wyomingensis Beetle & Young), rubber rabbitbrush (Ericameria nauseosa [Pall. ex Pursh] G. L. Nesom & Baird subsp. consimilis [Greene] G. L. Nesom & Baird), and to a lesser extent with bluebunch wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria spicata [Pursh] A. Löve). Alternatively, bottlebrush squirreltail (Elymus elymoides [Raf.] Swezey subsp. californicus [J. G. Sm.] Barkworth) and crested wheatgrass had similar effects on each other’s growth, and interference ratios were near 1.0. Results indicate that the native grasses more readily establish in synchrony with crested wheatgrass than these native shrubs, but that once established, the native shrubs are more likely to coexist and persist with crested wheatgrass because of high niche differentiation (e.g., not limited by the same resource). Results also suggest that developing strategies to minimize interference from crested wheatgrass seedlings emerging from seed banks will enhance the establishment of native species seeded into crested wheatgrass–dominated communities. |
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