Clonal Growth Strategies and Their Impact on Plant Invasiveness in the Aquatic Ecosystems of the Kashmir Himalaya

Ayaz Shah, Zafar Reshi and Manzoor Shah

Background and Objective: Despite its significance in invasion biology, the study of functional traits driving plant invasiveness has been somewhat underexplored. Clonal growth, however, is recognized as a key trait that enhances spatial expansion and regeneration in invasive plants. It is aimed to document the clonal growth organ spectra in alien aquatic plant species and to understand clonal growth organs role in aquatic plant invasiveness. Materials and Methods: Macrophytic species were broadly categorized based on clonal architecture, space occupancy strategies, life form and nativity. To capture plant diversity across littoral to limnetic zones, multiple transects were set, with 30 quadrats of varying sizes (0.25-5 m²) along each transect to assess diversity and abundance. Invasion stages were determined using the spatial spread model (CM model). Spearman’s rank correlation and K-mean cluster analysis were carried out to assess the statistical significance. Results: The results demonstrated significant differences in the distribution pattern of clonal and non-clonal alien plant species. Out of 88 target alien species, 83 species were found to be clonal and all the clonal species were found to be highly invasive and predominantly use guerrilla strategy of space occupancy. The data showed a significant positive correlation (p<0.05) between clonality and invasiveness. Eutrophication seemed to favor species with a guerrilla strategy mainly. Conclusion: The study concluded that clonality in aquatic ecosystems has a significant influence on species invasiveness. In an evolutionary context, differences in clonal architecture might represent differences in the foraging strategies of clonal plants, which in turn has useful management implications for invasive species.

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