Abstract
ABSTRACT Invasive species often evolve rapidly in response to the novel biotic and abiotic conditions in their introduced range. Such adaptive evolutionary changes might play an important role in the success of some invasive species. Here, we investigated whether introduced European populations of the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens (Asteraceae) have genetically diverged from native populations. We carried out a greenhouse experiment where 12 South African and 11 European populations were for several months grown at two levels of nutrient availability, as well as in the presence or absence of a generalist insect herbivore. We found that, in contrast to a current hypothesis, plants from introduced populations had a significantly lower reproductive output, but higher allocation to root biomass, and they were more tolerant to insect herbivory. Moreover, introduced populations were less genetically variable, but displayed greater plasticity in response to fertilization. Finally, introduced populations were phenotypically most similar to a subset of native populations from mountainous regions in southern Africa. Taking into account the species’ likely history of introduction, our data support the idea that the invasion success of Senecio inaequidens in Central Europe is based on selective introduction of specific preadapted and plastic genotypes rather than on adaptive evolution in the introduced range.
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Claims 7
Claim · model-written summary
Plants from introduced populations had a significantly lower reproductive output.
- Taxon
- Senecio inaequidens
Senecio inaequidense0 - Material
- introduced populationse1
- Outcome
- reproductive outpute1
- Direction
- lowere1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens”
e1“plants from introduced populations had a significantly lower reproductive output”
Claim · model-written summary
Plants from introduced populations allocated more biomass to roots.
- Taxon
- Senecio inaequidensSenecio inaequidense0
- Material
- introduced populationse1
- Outcome
- allocation to root biomasse2
- Direction
- highere2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens”
e1“plants from introduced populations”
e2“higher allocation to root biomass, and they were more tolerant to insect herbivory”
Claim · model-written summary
Plants from introduced populations were more tolerant to a generalist insect herbivore.
- Taxon
- Senecio inaequidensSenecio inaequidense0
- Material
- introduced populationse1
- Interactor
- generalist insect herbivoree3herbivore
- Outcome
- insect herbivorye2
- Direction
- more tolerante2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens”
e1“plants from introduced populations”
e2“they were more tolerant to insect herbivory”
e3“in the presence or absence of a generalist insect herbivore”
Claim · model-written summary
Introduced populations were less genetically variable than native populations.
- Taxon
- Senecio inaequidensSenecio inaequidense0
- Material
- introduced populationse4
- Outcome
- genetically variablee4
- Direction
- lesse4
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens”
e4“introduced populations were less genetically variable”
Claim · model-written summary
Introduced populations showed greater plasticity in response to fertilization.
- Taxon
- Senecio inaequidensSenecio inaequidense0
- Material
- introduced populationse1
- Treatment
- fertilizatione5
- Outcome
- plasticitye5
- Direction
- greatere5
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens”
e1“plants from introduced populations”
e5“displayed greater plasticity in response to fertilization”
Claim · model-written summary
Introduced populations were phenotypically most similar to a subset of native populations from mountainous regions in southern Africa.
- Taxon
- Senecio inaequidensSenecio inaequidense0
- Material
- introduced populationse6
- Outcome
- phenotypically most similare6
- Comparator
- a subset of native populations from mountainous regions in southern Africae6
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens”
e6“introduced populations were phenotypically most similar to a subset of native populations from mountainous regions in southern Africa”
Claim · model-written summary
The invasion success of Senecio inaequidens in Central Europe is suggested to rest on selective introduction of preadapted and plastic genotypes rather than on adaptive evolution in the introduced range.
- Taxon
- Senecio inaequidensSenecio inaequidense0
- Outcome
- invasion successe7
- Qualifier
- selective introduction of specific preadapted and plastic genotypese7
- Setting
- Central Europee7
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the South African ragwort Senecio inaequidens”
e7“the invasion success of Senecio inaequidens in Central Europe is based on selective introduction of specific preadapted and plastic genotypes rather than on adaptive evolution in the introduced range”