0000000000948764
AUTHOR
Martin Schnittler
Invasion ecology of the alien tussock grassNardus stricta(Poaceae) at Lake Pukaki, Canterbury, New Zealand
Abstract The European matgrass Nardus stricta has naturalised in New Zealand, often on damp soils within wetlands and grasslands. In this paper, we present for the first time field data on the ecology of this alien invader in New Zealand, from eight kettle‐hole wetlands on lateral moraine along the western side of Lake Pukaki, South Canterbury. The invaded wetland sites were all acidic but varied in other soil characteristics. Nardus stricta was the most dominant species within these wetland communities with 40% of all plots showing more than 50% coverage, and 21% having more than 90% cover. Species richness (including vascular plants and mosses) at some sites was relatively high (c. 40 spe…
An empirical test of neighbourhood effect and safe-site effect in abandoned Mediterranean vineyards
The importance of both neighbourhood effect and safe-site effect for the colonization of Mediterranean old fields by woody plants was investigated. Using a transect approach, we recorded colonization of 21 species of woody plants on abandoned, terraced vineyards on Pantelleria Island (Sicily) in dependence from neighbouring terraces in older succession stages (Maquis) and available safe sites for seedling establishment (former crop plant, terrace wall). With a paired design of four treatments, including presence/absence of adjacent older successional stages, and North-/South-facing slopes, a neighbourhood effect could be shown for both expositions if the transect started from an adjacent fi…