Research
Laura FinkesIndirect Effects of Endophyte Infection on the Distribution and Abundance of Spiders in
Tall Fescue (Festuca arundinacea)
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The importance of fungal endophytes in pair-wise interactions between grasses, herbivores and other plants is well established, but ecologists are just beginning to understand the importance of endophytic fungi at the community level. In this research, I review literature regarding the importance of endophytic fungi in pair-wise interactions as well as recent literature on the community level impacts of grass-endophyte symbioses. Following the literature review, I present my own field research investigating the indirect effects of endophytes and structural complexity on the distribution and abundance of spiders in old fields. I experimentally manipulated endophytes and thatch in fields of tall fescue. I found that fungal endophytes strongly reduce the species richness of spiders as well as the abundance of some spider families. I also explore one potential mechanism underlying these results, endophyte mediated plant interactions, in a greenhouse experiment using tall fescue and Conyza canadensis.