Abstract: this study investigated the possibility of a facilitative relationship between Chinese privet (Ligustrum sinense) and exotic earthworms, in the southeastern region of the USA. Earthworms and selected soil properties were sampled five years after experimental removal of privet from flood plain forests of the Georgia Piedmont region. The earthworm communities and soil properties were compared between sites with privet, privet removal sites, and reference sites where privet had never established. Results showed that introduced European earthworms (Aporrectodea caliginosa, Lumbricus rubellus, and Octolasion tyrtaeum) were more prevalent under privet cover, and privet removal reduced their relative abundance (from >90% to ∼70%) in the community. Conversely, the relative abundance of native species (Diplocardia michaelsenii) increased fourfold with privet removal and was highest in reference sites. Soils under privet were characterized by significantly higher pH relative to reference plots and privet removal facilitated a significant reduction in pH. These results suggest that privet-mediated effects on soil pH may confer a competitive advantage to European lumbricid earthworms. Furthermore, removal of the invasive shrub appears to reverse the changes in soil pH, and may allow for recovery of native earthworm fauna.
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| Lumbricus terrestris photo by Joseph Berger, Bugwood.org |