title: Increased nitrogen input enhances Kandelia obovata seedling growth in the presence of invasive Spartina alterniflora in subtropical regions of China.
abstract: Mangroves in China are severely affected by the rapid invasion of the non-native species Spartina alterniflora Although many studies have addressed the possible impacts of S. alterniflora on the performance of mangrove seedlings, how excessive nitrogen (N) input due to eutrophication affects the interactions between mangrove species and S. alterniflora remains unknown. Here, we report the results from a mesocosm experiment using seedlings of the native mangrove species Kandelia obovata and the exotic S. alterniflora grown in monoculture and mixed culture under no nitrogen addition and nitrogen (N) addition treatments for 18 months. Without N addition, the presence of S. alterniflora inhibited the growth of K. obovata seedlings. Excessive N addition significantly increased the growth rate of K. obovata in both cultures. However, the positive and significantly increasing relative interaction intensity index under excessive N input suggested that the invasion of S. alterniflora could favour the growth of K. obovata under eutrophication conditions. Our results imply that excessive N input in southeastern China can increase the competitive ability of mangrove seedlings against invasive S. alterniflora.
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modelling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100000, People's Republic of China.|Division of Ocean Sciences and Technology, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xiaowei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modelling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100000, People's Republic of China wmsongo@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Weimin
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-2272-3176
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Division of Ocean Sciences and Technology, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jianxiang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modelling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Dai
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.affiliation: Division of Ocean Sciences and Technology, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jiemin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Division of Ocean Sciences and Technology, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zhonglei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Division of Ocean Sciences and Technology, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Division of Ocean Sciences and Technology, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modelling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modelling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100000, People's Republic of China lingh@tsinghua.edu.cn.|Division of Ocean Sciences and Technology, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518000, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Guanghui
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D002681:China; D058865:Introduced Species; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000494:pharmacology; D006109:Poaceae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development*; D043982:Rhizophoraceae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development*; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry; D036226:Seedlings / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D053833:Wetlands
chemical_list: D009584:Nitrogen
keywords: biological invasion; coastal wetland; mangrove ecosystem; nitrogen loading; smooth cordgrass