Ecotones are responsive to environmental change and pave a path for succession as they move across the landscape. We investigated the biotic and abiotic filters to species establishment on opposite ends of a tidal marsh‐forest ecotone that is moving inland in response to sea level rise. We transplanted four plant species common to the ecotone to the leading or trailing edge of the migrating ecotone, with and without caging to protect them from ungulate herbivores. We found that species exhibited an individualistic response to abiotic and biotic pressures in this ecotone; three species performed better at the leading edge of the ecotone in the coastal forest, whereas one performed better at the trailing edge in the marsh. Specifically, grass species Phragmites australis and Panicum virgatum grew more in the low light and low salinity conditions of the leading edge of the ecotone (forest), whereas the shrub Iva frutescens grew better in the high light, high salinity conditions of the trailing edge of the ecotone (marsh). Furthermore, of the four species, only P. australis was affected by the biotic pressure of herbivory by an introduced ungulate, Cervus nippon, which greatly reduced its biomass and survival at the leading edge (forest). P. australis is an aggressive invasive species and has been observed to dominate in the wake of migrating marsh‐forest ecotones. Our findings detail the role of lower salinity stress to promote and herbivory pressure to inhibit the establishment of P. australis during shifts of this ecotone, and also highlight an interaction between two nonnative species, P. australis and C. nippon. Understanding migration of the marsh‐forest ecotone and the factors controlling P. australis establishment are critical for marsh conservation in the face of sea level rise. More generally, our findings support the conclusion that the abiotic and biotic filters of a migrating ecotone shape the resulting community.

中文翻译：

---

沼泽森林过渡带植物群落对气候变化的物种特定反应

过渡生态区响应环境变化，并在其遍及整个景观时铺平了道路。我们调查了生物和非生物过滤器，以适应潮汐沼泽-森林过渡带的两端建立物种，该过渡带响应海平面上升而向内陆移动。我们将过渡带共有的四种植物种移植到正在迁移的过渡带的前缘或后缘，有或没有笼罩以保护它们免受有蹄类草食动物的侵害。我们发现，在该过渡带中，物种表现出对非生物和生物压力的个体化反应。在沿海森林过渡带的前缘，三个物种的表现更好，而在沼泽地的后缘，一个物种的表现更好。具体而言，草种芦苇和沙棘在过渡带（森林）前缘的低光照和低盐度条件下生长更多，而在过渡带（沼泽地）后缘的高光，高盐度条件下灌木伊娃果生长更好。此外，四种，只有芦苇是受通过引入的有蹄类动物，虫食的生物压力梅花鹿，在前缘（森林），其大大降低了它的生物量和存活。澳洲假单胞菌是一种侵略性入侵物种，在沼泽-森林过渡带迁移之后，据观察到它占主导地位。我们的发现详细说明了较低盐度胁迫对促进和抑制草食性粉虱建立的作用以及草食性压力对抑制澳大利亚白僵菌的建立的作用在该过渡带的转移过程中，也突出了两个非本地物种P. australis和C. nippon之间的相互作用。了解沼泽森林过渡带的迁徙和控制澳大利亚假单胞菌建立的因素对于面对海平面上升面临的沼泽保护至关重要。更广泛地说，我们的发现支持这样的结论，即迁移的过渡带的非生物和生物过滤器会形成最终的群落。