We examined effects of the invasive species Lespedeza cuneata on native plants and foliar arthropod communities in a tallgrass prairie. Through observational and manipulative experiments, we examined plant and arthropod responses to L. cuneata over one growing season. The observational study found little impact of the invasive plant on arthropods. By the end of the manipulative experiment, the combined biomass of native grasses and forbs was reduced by approximately 50% in Lespedeza-present plots, while total arthropod numbers were only about 15% lower. Seasonal differences were evident; L. cuneata-absent plots showed lower arthropod numbers in May, but higher abundances in June. Some feeding groups, notably carnivorous arthropods, appeared unaffected by L. cuneata. We tested three hypotheses (one bottom-up and two top-down processes) to explain the relatively weak response of the arthropod community to the invasive plant. Nitrogen content of native plants adjacent to L. cuneata areas was significantly higher compared to plants more distant. Ground arthropod predators were higher during mid-summer in L. cuneata areas, which may partially explain seasonal variation in foliar arthropods. Insectivorous birds were unaffected by L. cuneata abundance, suggesting that arthropod predation rates by birds are unchanged. We suggest that while L. cuneata has strong effects on native plants, its ability to increase neighboring plant quality compensates for the lower biomass of native plants in L. cuneata areas, moderating the arthropod response. While management of this invasive species remains a priority, tallgrass prairie food webs may be partly resistant to L. cuneata invasion.

我们在高草草原上检查了入侵物种Lespedeza cuneata对本地植物和节肢动物节肢动物群落的影响。通过观察和操纵实验，我们检查了植物和节肢动物对L的反应。在一个生长季节的cuneata。观察性研究发现，入侵植物对节肢动物的影响很小。到操作实验结束时，Lespedeza- present地块中天然草和草的结合生物量减少了约50％，而节肢动物总数仅降低了约15％。季节差异明显；大号。库尼塔-缺少地块显示5月份节肢动物数量较低，但6月丰度较高。某些食肉动物，尤其是食肉节肢动物，似乎并未受到L的影响。库尼阿塔。我们测试了三个假设（一个自下而上和两个自上而下的过程）来解释节肢动物群落对入侵植物的相对较弱的反应。邻近L的本地植物的氮含量。与远处的植物相比，库埃纳塔的面积明显更高。L的仲夏节肢动物天敌比较高。库纳塔地区，可能部分解释了节肢动物节肢动物的季节性变化。食虫鸟类不受L的影响。库尼塔数量丰富，表明鸟类对节肢动物的捕食率没有变化。我们认为，虽然大号。库纳塔对本地植物有很强的影响，它提高邻近植物质量的能力弥补了L.本地植物较低的生物量。库纳塔地区，节肢动物反应。虽然这种入侵物种的管理仍然是一个优先，高草草原食物链可能对部分抗大号。库纳塔入侵。