Facilitation of vascular plants by cushion mosses in high-Andean communities Alpine Botany

EZCURRA, CECILIA; GAVINI, SABRINA S.; AIZEN, MARCELO A.; SUÁREZ, GUILLERMO M.

Alpine Botany

Springer Nature

Lugar: Switzerland ; Año: 2019 vol. 129 p. 137 - 148

1664-2201

Mosses are a dominant ground cover in a wide array of ecosystems, especially in those unfolding under severe climatic conditions; consequently mosses may influence the distribution and performance of other plants. Here, we assessed the interaction between vascular plants and cushion-forming mosses in three alpine communities in the northern Patagonian Andes. We recorded species richness, plant abundance and cover of vascular plants within and outside moss cushions patches, measuring also patch-area and moss layer-depth. To determine the effect of mosses at community- and species-level we calculated the relative interaction index (RII). Moss cushion patches showed higher species richness, plant abundance and cover in comparison with bare ground areas. Overall, vascular plant diversity increased with both moss-cushion area and layer depth. The RII values at community-level revealed that the effects of moss-cushions on neighboring vascular plants were predominantly positive for all plant community measures, consistent with species-specific responses to moss-cushions. These results highlight the role of mosses as nurse plants in alpine ice-melting forelands, and thus, as reservoirs of vascular plant diversity with restricted recruitment in the surrounding open area. Our findings indicate that cushion-forming mosses structure the composition and distribution of vascular plants in high-Andean communities.