Dissertation Research: The Herbivore-mediated Indirect Effects of an Invasive Plant on a Co-occurring Native Plant

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Dissertation Research: The Herbivore-medicated Indirect Effects of an Invasive Plant on a Co-occurring Native PlantDr. Richard K. Grosberg & Jennifer LauInvasive plant species have become a prominent feature in many California natural areas. Invasive species can have strong effects on native plant population growth and persistence. Several studies have addressed how competition with invasive plants affects native plant populations; however, little research has addressed the indirect effects of invasive species on co-occurring natives. Indirect effects are those effects that are mediated by additional organisms. The proposed research investigates the herbivore-mediated indirect effects of the invasive plant Medicago polymorpha on the native plant Lotus wrangelianus to discern how the presence of invasive plant species affects the ecological and evolutionary responses of native plants to their herbivores. Such studies that link community ecology and evolutionary biology can yield valuable insights into how novel community interactions influence both ecological and evolutionary processes.