Exploring the canal environment in terms of water, bed sediments and vegetation in a reclaimed floodplain of Northern Italy.

The Po plain (Italy) is one of the largest floodplains in Europe that needs environmental restoration. To achieve this goal, the knowledge of the 'environment' (water, bed sediments and vegetation) of the canals crossing such floodplain is necessary. The water flow of the canals was kept low for hydraulic safety purposes from October to March (NIR), and high for irrigation purposes from April to September (IR).

Extensive hybridization in Ranunculus section Batrachium (Ranunculaceae) in rivers of two postglacial landscapes of East Europe.

We demonstrate a wide distribution and abundance of hybrids between the river species Ranunculus aquatilis, R. fluitans and R. kauffmannii with the still water species R.

Recovery from Salinity and Drought Stress in the Perennial vs. the Annual and .

Current agricultural problems, such as the decline of freshwater and fertile land, foster saline agriculture development. and species, with a long history of human consumption, are ideal models for developing halophyte crops. A greenhouse experiment was set up to compare the response of the perennial and the two annual and to 30 days of salt stress (watering with 700 mM NaCl) and water deficit (complete withholding of irrigation) separate treatments, followed by 15 days of recovery.

Physiological Adaptation to Water Salinity in Six Wild Halophytes Suitable for Mediterranean Agriculture.

Owing to the high interspecific biodiversity, halophytes have been regarded as a tool for understanding salt tolerance mechanisms in plants in view of their adaptation to climate change. The present study addressed the physiological response to salinity of six halophyte species common in the Mediterranean area: , and . A 161-day pot experiment was conducted, watering the plants with solutions at increasing NaCl concentration (control, 100, 200, 300 and 600 mM).

Phylogenetic diversity shapes salt tolerance in Phragmites australis estuarine populations in East China.

Estuaries are dynamic and selective environments that provide frequent opportunities for the turnover of Phragmites australis populations. We studied Phragmites genetic diversity patterns in three of the major deltas of China, viz. the Yellow River, the Yangtze and the Liaohe, in relation to Phragmites global phylogeography and soil salinity.

Nutrient removal potential and biomass production by Phragmites australis and Typha latifolia on European rewetted peat and mineral soils.

Paludiculture, sustainable and climate-smart land use of formerly drained, rewetted organic soils, can produce significant biomass in peatlands whilst potentially restoring several additional wetland services. However, the site conditions that allow maximum biomass production and nutrient removal by paludiculture crops have rarely been studied. We studied the relationship between soil characteristics, including plant-available nutrients, peak biomass, stand age, harvest period, and nutrient removal potential for two important paludiculture species, Typha latifolia and Phragmites australis, on rewetted peat and mineral soils in a large-scale European survey.

Salt Tolerance and Na Allocation in under Variable Soil and Water Salinity.

Salinity is a major constraint for plant growth in world areas exposed to salinization. (L.) Moench is a species that has received attention for biomass production in saline areas thanks to drought and salinity tolerance.

Assessing nutrient responses and biomass quality for selection of appropriate paludiculture crops.

Tall wetland graminoids with rapid growth, high productivity and wide tolerance of biotic and abiotic stresses are potentially valuable bioenergy crops, especially when grown in rewetted peat soils for biomass (paludiculture). Using wetland plants as renewable bioenergy crops instead of fossil fuels has the ecological benefits of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, improving water quality and conserving peat soils. As these potential crops will grow in peat that differs in nutrient availability, not only will their biomass productivity be affected, but also the biomass quality for bioenergy may be altered.

Expansive reed populations-alien invasion or disturbed wetlands?

The tall-statured grasses in the genus are dominant vegetation in wetlands worldwide and thus play a vital role in ecosystem functioning. As a result, spp. are some of the most widely studied plants; particularly in areas where changes to their abundances have occurred, most notably in Europe and North America.

Living in two worlds: Evolutionary mechanisms act differently in the native and introduced ranges of an invasive plant.

Identifying the factors that influence spatial genetic structure among populations can provide insights into the evolution of invasive plants. In this study, we used the common reed (), a grass native in Europe and invading North America, to examine the relative importance of geographic, environmental (represented by climate here), and human effects on population genetic structure and its changes during invasion. We collected samples of from both the invaded North American and native European ranges and used molecular markers to investigate the population genetic structure within and between ranges.

Small genome separates native and invasive populations in an ecologically important cosmopolitan grass.

The literature suggests that small genomes promote invasion in plants, but little is known about the interaction of genome size with other traits or about the role of genome size during different phases of the invasion process. By intercontinental comparison of native and invasive populations of the common reed Phragmites australis, we revealed a distinct relationship between genome size and invasiveness at the intraspecific level. Monoploid genome size was the only significant variable that clearly separated the North American native plants from those of European origin.

Cosmopolitan Species As Models for Ecophysiological Responses to Global Change: The Common Reed .

is a cosmopolitan grass and often the dominant species in the ecosystems it inhabits. Due to high intraspecific diversity and phenotypic plasticity, has an extensive ecological amplitude and a great capacity to acclimate to adverse environmental conditions; it can therefore offer valuable insights into plant responses to global change. Here we review the ecology and ecophysiology of prominent lineages and their responses to multiple forms of global change.

Phylogeography reveals a potential cryptic invasion in the Southern Hemisphere of Ceratophyllum demersum, New Zealand's worst invasive macrophyte.

Ceratophyllum demersum (common hornwort) is presently considered the worst invasive submerged aquatic macrophyte in New Zealand. We explored the global phylogeographic pattern of the species, based on chloroplast and nuclear DNA, in order to identify the origin of the invasive populations in New Zealand and to clarify if there were multiple introductions. The phylogeographic study identified geographically differentiated gene pools in North America, tropical Asia, Australia, and South Africa, likely native to these regions, and a recent dispersal event of a Eurasian-related haplotype to North America, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa.

Preadaptation and post-introduction evolution facilitate the invasion of Phragmites australis in North America.

Compared with non-invasive species, invasive plant species may benefit from certain advantageous traits, for example, higher photosynthesis capacity and resource/energy-use efficiency. These traits can be preadapted prior to introduction, but can also be acquired through evolution following introduction to the new range. Disentangling the origins of these advantageous traits is a fundamental and emerging question in invasion ecology.

Expression of major photosynthetic and salt-resistance genes in invasive reed lineages grown under elevated CO2 and temperature.

It is important to investigate the molecular causes of the variation in ecologically important traits to fully understand phenotypic responses to climate change. In the Mississippi River Delta, two distinct, sympatric invasive lineages of common reed (Phragmites australis) are known to differ in several ecophysiological characteristics and are expected to become more salt resistant due to increasing atmospheric CO2 and temperature. We investigated whether different patterns of gene expression can explain their ecophysiological differences and increased vigor under future climatic conditions.

Mowing regime has different effects on reed stands in relation to habitat.

Reed (Phragmites australis) is widespread in aquatic habitats in Europe where it plays an important ecological role, especially as stabilizer of lake and river shores and as filter against pollutants. Reed is also abundant in ecotones towards terrestrial habitats, especially fen meadows, where its expansion can out-compete rare slowly-growing fen species. Therefore, defining appropriate guidelines for managing reed in wetlands has to consider differences in the ecological roles that reed plays in different wetland habitats.

Increased invasive potential of non-native Phragmites australis: elevated CO2 and temperature alleviate salinity effects on photosynthesis and growth.

The prospective rise in atmospheric CO2 and temperature may change the distribution and invasive potential of a species; and intraspecific invasive lineages may respond differently to climate change. In this study, we simulated a future climate scenario with simultaneously elevated atmospheric CO2 and temperature, and investigated its interaction with soil salinity, to assess the effects of global change on the ecophysiology of two competing haplotypes of the wetland grass Phragmites australis, that are invasive in the coastal marshes of North America. The two haplotypes with the phenotypes ‘EU-type’ (Eurasian haplotype) and ‘Delta-type’ (Mediterranean haplotype), were grown at 0‰ and 20‰ soil salinity, and at ambient or elevated climatic conditions (700 ppm CO2, +5 °C) in a phytotron system.

Invasion of Old World Phragmites australis in the New World: precipitation and temperature patterns combined with human influences redesign the invasive niche.

After its introduction into North America, Euro-Asian Phragmites australis became an aggressive invasive wetland grass along the Atlantic coast of North America. Its distribution range has since expanded to the middle, south and southwest of North America, where invasive P. australis has replaced millions of hectares of native plants in inland and tidal wetlands.

Exploring the borders of European Phragmites within a cosmopolitan genus.

Background And Aims: Two Phragmites australis taxa are recognized in Europe: P. australis ssp. altissimus, also known as Phragmites isiaca, in the Mediterranean region and P.

Phenotypic traits of Phragmites australis clones are not related to ploidy level and distribution range.

Background And Aims: Phragmites australis is a wetland grass with high genetic variability, augmented by its cosmopolitan distribution, clonal growth form and large variation in chromosome numbers. Different ploidy levels and ecotypes differ in morphology and ecophysiological traits, and may possess different levels of phenotypic variation. The aim of this study was to quantify the natural variation in ecophysiological characteristics of P.

The value of repetitive sequences in chloroplast DNA for phylogeographic inference: a comment on Vachon & Freeland 2011.

In a recent Technical Advance article, Vachon and Freeland (2011, Molecular Ecology Resources, 11, 279-285.) evaluate the utility of repetitive and non-repetitive variation in the chloroplast genome for phylogeographic inference, using variation in Phragmites australis as an example. While we agree that repetitive and nonrepetitive regions evolve at different rates and homoplasy can impact results, we disagree with the conclusion that repetitive regions are inappropriate for large-scale phylogeographic studies.

Tracing the origin of Gulf Coast Phragmites (Poaceae): a story of long-distance dispersal and hybridization.

Premise Of The Study: Long-distance dispersal can affect speciation processes in two opposing ways. Dispersal can promote geographic isolation or it can bring together geographically distant and distantly related genotypes, thus counteracting local differentiation. We used the Gulf Coast of North America (GC), a "hot spot" of reed diversity and evolutionary dynamics, as a model system to study the diversification processes within the invasive, cosmopolitan, polyploid grass Phragmites.

Invasion strategies in clonal aquatic plants: are phenotypic differences caused by phenotypic plasticity or local adaptation?

Background And Aims: The successful spread of invasive plants in new environments is often linked to multiple introductions and a diverse gene pool that facilitates local adaptation to variable environmental conditions. For clonal plants, however, phenotypic plasticity may be equally important. Here the primary adaptive strategy in three non-native, clonally reproducing macrophytes (Egeria densa, Elodea canadensis and Lagarosiphon major) in New Zealand freshwaters were examined and an attempt was made to link observed differences in plant morphology to local variation in habitat conditions.

Genetic diversity in three invasive clonal aquatic species in New Zealand.

Background: Elodea canadensis, Egeria densa and Lagarosiphon major are dioecious clonal species which are invasive in New Zealand and other regions. Unlike many other invasive species, the genetic variation in New Zealand is very limited. Clonal reproduction is often considered an evolutionary dead end, even though a certain amount of genetic divergence may arise due to somatic mutations.