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Testing the Enemy Release Hypothesis on tall-statured grasses in South Africa, using Arundo donax, Phragmites australis, and Phragmites mauritianus as models

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 August 2018

K. Canavan ,
I.D. Paterson ,
M.P. Hill  and
T.L. Dudley
K. Canavan*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology and Entomology, Centre for Biological Control, Rhodes University, PO Box 94 Grahamstown, South Africa
I.D. Paterson
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology and Entomology, Centre for Biological Control, Rhodes University, PO Box 94 Grahamstown, South Africa
M.P. Hill
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology and Entomology, Centre for Biological Control, Rhodes University, PO Box 94 Grahamstown, South Africa
T.L. Dudley
Affiliation:
Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-6150, USA
*
*Author for correspondence Phone: +27 46 603 8763 Fax: +2746 622 8959 E-mail: K.Canavan@ru.ac.za
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Abstract

The Enemy Release Hypothesis (ERH) predicts that introduced plant species can escape herbivory and therefore have a competitive advantage over native plants, which are exposed to both generalist and specialist natural enemies. In this study, the ERH was explored using the invasive alien species, Arundo donax and two native tall-statured grasses, the cosmopolitan Phragmites australis and African endemic Phragmites mauritianus in South Africa. It was predicted that A. donax would have reduced species richness of herbivores compared with the native Phragmites spp., that it would be devoid of specialist herbivores and would thus be experiencing enemy escape in the adventive range. The herbivore assemblages were determined from both field surveys and a literature review. The assumptions of the ERH were for the most part not met; 13 herbivores were found on A. donax compared with 17 on P. australis and 20 on P. mauritianus. Arundo donax had two specialist herbivores from its native range, and shared native herbivores with Phragmites spp. Although A. donax had reduced species richness and diversity compared with that found in the native distribution, it has partially re-acquired a herbivore assemblage which is similar to that found on analogous native species. This suggests that enemy release may not fully explain the invasive success of A. donax in South Africa.

Keywords

Enemy Release Hypothesistall-statured grassespre-introductory surveybiological controlTetramesa romana
Type
Research Papers
Information
Bulletin of Entomological Research , Volume 109 , Issue 3 , June 2019 , pp. 287 - 299
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Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

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