Clash of the Invaders: competition dynamics of Bromus tectorum and
Ventenata dubia in an addition series study
Abstract
Competitive interactions between co-occurring invasive species can have
detrimental impacts on native community composition and cause
counter-effective responses to management. Targeted removal of one
invader may allow for the release of a subdominant invader, causing a
secondary invasion. The goal of this research was to elucidate
competitive dynamics between Bromus tectorum and Ventenata dubia, two
invasive winter annual grasses found in the western United States. We
quantified the impacts of 1) intraspecific competition on B. tectorum
and V. dubia as density of conspecifics increased and 2) interspecific
competition between the two at varying proportions. The two species were
grown at increasing densities and proportions (addition series), over 10
weeks in a greenhouse. At the end of the growth period, aboveground
biomass was harvested and weighed. We derived the intraspecific and
interspecific competitive effects on each species with a non-linear
analysis and used these coefficients to determine Relative Competitive
Ability. Bromus tectorum was negatively impacted by intraspecific and
interspecific competition. Similarly, V. dubia biomass was negatively
impacted by intraspecific competition, as well as increasing density of
B. tectorum. This suggests that replacement of B. tectorum by V. dubia
is unlikely to be caused by aboveground competition alone, but if B.
tectorum were reduced V. dubia could be released. Understanding the
competitive interactions between these species provides insight into
invasive species impacts and management. This approach will become
increasingly valuable to apply as climate and other global change
factors alter vegetation communities and species interactions.