TY - JOUR
T1 - An exotic magnet plant alters pollinator abundance and behavior
T2 - a field test with a native mistletoe
AU - Cuadra-Valdés, Javier
AU - Vizentin-Bugoni, Jeferson
AU - Fontúrbel, Francisco E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
PY - 2021/8
Y1 - 2021/8
N2 - Exotic species can threaten biodiversity by disrupting ecological interactions among native species. Highly-attractive exotic species can exert a ‘magnet effect’ by attracting native pollinators, which may have either competitive or facilitative effects on co-flowering native plants. However, those effects may be context-dependent. We used a mistletoe-hummingbird pollination system in the Valdivian rainforest (southern Chile) to test whether the exotic tree Eucalyptus globulus (a highly attractive species to pollinators) acts as a magnet species, affecting the co-flowering native mistletoe. We compared hummingbird abundance, visitation rates, and activity patterns between native forest and abandoned E. globulus plantations. We found that hummingbirds were more abundant and visited more flowers at the plantation irrespective of E. globulus flowering. We observed a significant change of pollinator activity at the native habitat during E. globulus flowering, as hummingbirds visited mistletoe flowers more frequently early in the morning at the plantations and in the afternoon at the native forests. Our results showed that E. globulus acts as an exotic magnet species and can alter pollinator abundance and behavior. Our findings demonstrate the importance of considering local- and landscape-scale processes to understand the effects of magnet species on native plants and suggest that magnet species may influence even highly-attractive plants.
AB - Exotic species can threaten biodiversity by disrupting ecological interactions among native species. Highly-attractive exotic species can exert a ‘magnet effect’ by attracting native pollinators, which may have either competitive or facilitative effects on co-flowering native plants. However, those effects may be context-dependent. We used a mistletoe-hummingbird pollination system in the Valdivian rainforest (southern Chile) to test whether the exotic tree Eucalyptus globulus (a highly attractive species to pollinators) acts as a magnet species, affecting the co-flowering native mistletoe. We compared hummingbird abundance, visitation rates, and activity patterns between native forest and abandoned E. globulus plantations. We found that hummingbirds were more abundant and visited more flowers at the plantation irrespective of E. globulus flowering. We observed a significant change of pollinator activity at the native habitat during E. globulus flowering, as hummingbirds visited mistletoe flowers more frequently early in the morning at the plantations and in the afternoon at the native forests. Our results showed that E. globulus acts as an exotic magnet species and can alter pollinator abundance and behavior. Our findings demonstrate the importance of considering local- and landscape-scale processes to understand the effects of magnet species on native plants and suggest that magnet species may influence even highly-attractive plants.
KW - Activity kernel
KW - Eucalyptus globulus
KW - Sephanoides sephaniodes
KW - Temperate rainforest
KW - Tristerix corymbosus
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85103627090&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10530-021-02519-2
DO - 10.1007/s10530-021-02519-2
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85103627090
SN - 1387-3547
VL - 23
SP - 2515
EP - 2525
JO - Biological Invasions
JF - Biological Invasions
IS - 8
ER -