Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi and Alien Plant Species

The invasion success of alien plant species depends, amongst other things, on their functional traits [4] and the susceptibility of ecosystems. There is now increasing interest in including biotic interactions particularly mutualistic associations [5], into frameworks assessing alien plant invasions, as they help bridge the invisibility and invasiveness features. The great majority of terrestrial plant species are associated with AM fungi [6], and these appear to be important in determined the ecology of plant species and communities [7,8]. The function of the AM fungal symbiosis during the alien plant invasion process has subsequently gained increasing consideration. AM fungi can increase growth and competitiveness of spotted knapweed (Centaurea stoebe) which is one of the most invasive weeds in the intermountain west of the USA [9]. Euphorbia esula increases AM fungi abundance and diversity compared to remnant native communities [10]. According to [11] insignificant difference between invasive and native plants in their growth responses to AM fungi, signifying that invasions do not select for directional shifts in AM fungi associations.