Invasive species as drivers of novel ecosystem functioning: Ligustrum lucidum affects plant productivity and water dynamics in subtropical mountain forest of NW Argentina

ARAGÓN ROXANA; MONTTI LÍA; AYUP MARTA; FERNANDEZ ROMINA; MALIZIA AGUSTINA; ZAMORA NASCA LUCIA

Workshop; International Workshop Evolutionary dynamics of tree invasions: drivers, dimensions, and implications for management; 2015

Carbon and water cycles embody the most important stocks and flows of energy and materials, and invasive species changes on these cycles can certainly have an overall impact in ecosystem functioning. In this work we evaluated the role of Ligustrum lucidum as a modifier of Carbon and water cycle in subtropical mountain forest of NW Argentina. We synthesize our previous published and unpublished data, and incorporate permanent plot data and remote sensing information. L. lucidum is the most abundant exotic tree species in this area, it forms mono-dominant stands in secondary forest, colonizing also primary forest, mainly in tree-fall gaps. Notably, its distribution is expected to expand in the near future. Here, we specifically evaluated changes in primary productivity, plant phenology, biomass (all involved in C cycle), evapotranspiration and soil humidity (both components of the water cycle) in invaded and native stands using a paired design.We found that annual NDVI (spectral index used as a proxy of primary productivity) was consistently higher in invaded forests than in native ones (from 2000 to 2014, F=28.63, p