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Extent of Kentucky Bluegrass and Its Effect on Native Plant Species Diversity and Ecosystem Services in the Northern Great Plains of the United States

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

David Toledo ,
Matt Sanderson ,
Kenneth Spaeth ,
John Hendrickson  and
Jeff Printz
David Toledo*
Affiliation:
Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 459 Mandan, ND 58554
Matt Sanderson
Affiliation:
Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 459 Mandan, ND 58554
Kenneth Spaeth
Affiliation:
Central National Technology Support Center, Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 501 W. Felix St. FWFC, Building 23, Fort Worth, TX 76115
John Hendrickson
Affiliation:
Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 459 Mandan, ND 58554
Jeff Printz
Affiliation:
North Dakota State Office, Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 1458 Bismarck, ND 58502
*
Corresponding author's E-mail: david.toledo@ars.usda.gov
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Abstract

Kentucky bluegrass, a nonnative species, has invaded rangelands in the United States and is currently present in most rangelands across the Northern Great Plains. Despite its accelerated expansion, the consequences of Kentucky bluegrass on the diversity of native plant species and on ecosystem services remain largely unknown. We synthesized the available data related to Kentucky bluegrass and how it affects native plant diversity and ecosystem services. We found that invasion may bring negative consequences to ecosystem services, such as pollination, habitat for wildlife species, and alteration of nutrient and hydrologic cycles, among others. To maintain the flow of ecosystem goods and services from these rangeland ecosystems, range science must adapt to the challenge of introduced, cool-season grass dominance in mixed-grass prairie. Based on our findings, we identify research needs that address ecosystem changes brought on by Kentucky bluegrass invasion and the corresponding effects these changes have on ecosystem services. We are dealing with novel ecosystems, and until we have better answers, adaptive management strategies that use the best available information need to be developed to adapt to the invasion of this pervasive invasive species.

Keywords

Kentucky bluegrass, Poa pratensis L.Ecosystem servicesNational Resources Inventoryrestoration effortscale of invasionspatial extent
Type
Research Article
Information
Invasive Plant Science and Management , Volume 7 , Issue 4 , December 2014 , pp. 543 - 552
Copyright
Copyright © Weed Science Society of America 

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