title: Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal diversity and natural enemies promote coexistence of tropical tree species.
abstract: Negative population feedbacks mediated by natural enemies can promote species coexistence at the community scale through disproportionate mortality of numerically dominant (common) tree species. Simultaneously, associations with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can result in positive effects on tree populations. Coupling data on seedling foliar damage from herbivores and pathogens and DNA sequencing of soil AMF diversity, we assessed the effects of these factors on tree seedling mortality at local (1 m2) and community (16 ha plot) scales in a tropical rainforest in Puerto Rico. At the local scale, AMF diversity in soil counteracted negative effects from foliar damage on seedling mortality. At the community scale, mortality of seedlings of common tree species increased with foliar damage while rare tree species benefited from soil AMF diversity. Together, the effects of foliar damage and soil AMF diversity on seedling mortality might foster tree species coexistence in this forest.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Duke University, 130 Science Drive, Durham, North Carolina, 27701, USA.
authors.forename: Benedicte
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bachelot
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, 1200 Amsterdam Avenue, New York City, New York, 10027, USA.
authors.forename: María
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Uriarte
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, 1200 Amsterdam Avenue, New York City, New York, 10027, USA.|Department of Biology, Barnard College, Columbia University, New York City, New York, 10027, USA.
authors.forename: Krista L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: McGuire
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 00936, USA.|Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Bush Estate Penicuik, Midlothian, EH26 0QB, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jill
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 00936, USA.
authors.forename: Jess
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zimmerman
mesh_terms: D044822:Biodiversity; D065928:Forests; D038821:Mycorrhizae / Q000145:classification* / Q000502:physiology; D011647:Puerto Rico; D036226:Seedlings / Q000382:microbiology*; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D014197:Trees / Q000382:microbiology*
keywords: Janzen Connell hypothesis; arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi; coexistence; community compensatory trend; seedling mortality; tropical forest