Direct and indirect effects of native range expansion on soil microbial community structure and function

Analogous to the spread of non-native species, shifts in native species’ ranges resulting from climate and land use change are also creating new combinations of species in many ecosystems. These native range shifts may be facilitated by similar mechanisms that provide advantages for non-native species and may also have comparable impacts on the ecosystems they invade.
Soil biota, in particular bacteria and fungi, are important regulators of plant community composition and below-ground ecosystem function. Compared to non-native plant invasions, there have been relatively few studies examining how soil biota influence – or are influenced by – native species range shifts.
Here, we examined how a native range-expanding sagebrush species (Artemisia rothrockii) affects below-ground abiotic conditions and microbial community structure and function using next-generation sequencing coupled with other biotic and abiotic soil analyses. We utilized a range-expansion gradient, together with a shru...