Native plant recovery following three years of common reed (Phragmites australis) control

Projects that aim to control invasive species often assume that a reduction of the target species will increase native species abundance. However, reports of the responses of native species following exotic species control are relatively rare. We assessed the recovery of the native community in five tidal wetland locations in which we attempted to eradicate the invasive common reed (Phragmites australis). We tested whether three years of treatment were able to eradicate Phragmites and promote recovery of the native plant community. After three years of treatment, Phragmites density declined sharply in all treated stands, though it was not eradicated in any of them. Native plant cover increased significantly in treated areas and community composition, particularly in smaller stands, converged toward that of uninvaded habitat. Thus, even within the relatively short time-scale of the treatments and monitoring, significant progress was made toward achieving the goals of controlling Phragmit...旨在防控外来入侵物种的项目通常假定，目标入侵物种种群数量的降低会提升本土物种丰度。然而，针对外来物种防治后本土物种响应的相关报道相对匮乏。本研究于5处潮汐湿地生境中开展了入侵物种普通芦苇（Phragmites australis）的根除尝试，并评估了本土植物群落的恢复情况。我们验证了为期三年的防治措施是否能够根除普通芦苇并推动本土植物群落的恢复。经三年防治处理后，所有处理样地内的普通芦苇种群密度均出现显著下降，但未在任何一处样地中被完全根除。经处理的区域内本土植物盖度显著提升，群落组成——尤其在小型样地中——逐渐趋近于未被入侵的原生生境。由此可见，即便在本次防治与监测的较短周期内，在达成控制普通芦苇的目标方面已取得显著进展。