Attraction or distraction: Proximity effects of invasive shortpod mustard (Hirschfeldia incana) on the pollination of California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum) and wooly sunflower (Eriophyllum staechadifolium)

2022/09/12 by Harris, Rachel J., Xinyi Qiu, Battaglia, Katherine
#Eriogonum fasciculatum #Eriophyllum staechadifolium #Hirschfeldia incana #invasive species #plant pollinator networks

paper · doi:10.21973/n3mm37

Abstract

Invasive flora species can positively and negatively impact the pollination rates of native flora. Previous studies established that the plant pollinator networks within invaded systems are highly complex and variable, and can be influenced by the proximity and abundance of invasive species. In this study, we aimed to understand if the proximity, abundance, and removal of invasive Hirschfeldia incana positively or negatively affected the pollination rate of two native coastal scrub species, Eriogonum fasciculatum and Eriophyllum staechadifolium. We found that the removal of invasive Hirschfeldia incana can have a short-term positive effect on the pollinator visitation rates of native flora, while the effects of proximity and abundance remain variable. Knowing more about these variable changes and the positive effect of invasive species removal on pollination has implications for the restoration and management of invaded ecosystems.

Related

• Assessment of pollination ecology of two understudied native mustards and the potential for interference from invasive garlic mustard
• Rare plant’s need for native pollinators threatened by invasive plant-pollinator relationship
• Assessing competitive and facilitative interactions of Calochortus kennedyi var. kennedyi (desert mariposa lily) and Sphaeralcea ambigua (apricot mallow) in regard to floral visitation
• Fitness consequences of trait‐mediated plant–pollinator interactions
• Rapid disruption of pollination function by the invasive plant Impatiens glandulifera