University of Wollongong Research Online Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health 2017 Facilitation, competition and parasitic facilitation amongst invasive and native liana seedlings and a native tree seedling Kris French University of Wollongong,
[email protected] Sharon A. Robinson University of Wollongong,
[email protected] Liza B. Smith University of Wollongong,
[email protected] Eva M. Watts University of Wollongong,
[email protected] Publication Details French, K., Robinson, S. A., Smith, L. & Watts, E. (2017). Facilitation, competition and parasitic facilitation amongst invasive and native liana seedlings and a native tree seedling. NeoBiota, 36 17-38. Research Online is the open access institutional repository for the University of Wollongong. For further information contact the UOW Library:
[email protected] Facilitation, competition and parasitic facilitation amongst invasive and native liana seedlings and a native tree seedling Abstract Lianas are prevalent in gaps and edges of forests where they compete intensely with trees, reducing growth and recruitment. Invasive lianas have the potential to be particularly harmful as the competitive advantage of the liana life history may be coupled with the more competitive qualities of invasiveness. However, in early stages of growth of lianas and native tree seedlings, facilitatory interactions or competitive interactions associated with soil nutrients may be more prevalent. We investigated interactions at the early stages of growth between native and invasive lianas with a common rainforest tree of temperate Australian rainforests under different light conditions. Invasive lianas, as a group, were not more competitive than native lianas in reducing growth of a native rainforest seedling.