scholarly journals Diversity Is Not Everything

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1091
Author(s):  
Drew A. Scott ◽  
Kathryn D. Eckhoff ◽  
Nicola Lorenz ◽  
Richard Dick ◽  
Rebecca M. Swab
Keyword(s):  
Soil Health ◽  
Plant Conservation ◽  
Base Cations ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Wildlife Habitat ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Cool Season ◽  
Native Prairie ◽  
Subsequent Decrease ◽  
Over Time

Since the passage of legislation in 1977, Appalachian mineland reclamation is typically completed using non-native C3 grasses and forbs. Alternatively, reclamation with native prairie (C4) grasses and forbs offers a more ecologically friendly alternative that can contribute to native plant conservation and potentially improve soil properties more quickly than shallower rooted C3 cool-season grasses. We assessed the establishment of native prairie after reclamation, evaluating three treatments for six years after planting—traditional cool season planting, native prairie planted at light density, and native prairie planted at heavy density. All treatments reached the objectives of reclamation—percentage of ground covered by vegetation—within 2 years after planting. All treatments at all sites, except for one site by treatment combination near a forest, showed an increase in plant species richness and Shannon–Wiener diversity in the first four years of reclamation, a peak around 5 years, and subsequent decrease. Little difference in plant richness and Shannon–Wiener diversity among treatments was observed. However, the two native seed mixes quickly diverged from the traditional mix in terms of community structure and diverged further over time, with both native treatments heading towards a more desirable native prairie grassland state, while the traditional mix remained dominated by non-native cool season grasses. The native treatments also exhibited greater increase in microbial biomass and fungi:bacteria ratio over time compared to the traditional mix. Soil organic carbon increased over time regardless of seed mix treatment. Exchangeable base cations and phosphorus generally decreased over time, as expected, regardless of seed mix treatment, likely due to uptake from established plants. Native grassland species were able to establish despite inclusion of some traditional species in the native mix. Native plant establishment likely resulted in benefits including pollinator resources, bird and wildlife habitat, and increased soil health, and we recommend that native prairie mixes be used directly in reclamation moving forward, as they are able to meet reclamation goals while establishing a successful native prairie plant community.

Soil and Stream Water Chemistry During Spring Snowmelt

1992 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. Hendershot ◽  
L. Mendes ◽  
H. Lalande ◽  
F. Courchesne ◽  
S. Savoie
Keyword(s):  
Stream Water ◽  
Base Cations ◽  
Stream Chemistry ◽  
Stream Water Chemistry ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
Adsorption Desorption ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Best Fit ◽  
Spring Snowmelt ◽  
Over Time

In order to determine how water flowpath controls stream chemistry, we studied both soil and stream water during spring snowmelt, 1985. Soil solution concentrations of base cations were relatively constant over time indicating that cation exchange was controlling cation concentrations. Similarly SO4 adsorption-desorption or precipitation-dissolution reactions with the matrix were controlling its concentrations. On the other hand, NO3 appeared to be controlled by uptake by plants or microorganisms or by denitrification since their concentrations in the soil fell abruptly as snowmelt proceeded. Dissolved Al and pH varied vertically in the soil profile and their pattern in the stream indicated clearly the importance of water flowpath on stream chemistry. Although Al increased as pH decreased, the relationship does not appear to be controlled by gibbsite. The best fit of calculated dissolved inorganic Al was obtained using AlOHSO4 with a solubility less than that of pure crystalline jurbanite.

Urban conservation gardening in the decade of restoration

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingmar Staude ◽  
Josiane Segar ◽  
Corey Thomas Callaghan ◽  
Emma Ladouceur ◽  
Jasper Meya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Species Conservation ◽  
Plant Conservation ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Nature Protection ◽  
Urban Conservation ◽  
Native Plant Species ◽  
Native Seed ◽  
Conservation Gardening

Global commitments to species conservation have failed to halt systematic widespread declines in plant species. Current policy interventions, such as protected areas and legal species legislation, remain insufficient, and there is an urgent need to engage novel approaches and actors in conservation. Here, we propose that urban conservation gardening, namely the cultivation of declining native plant species in public and private green spaces, can be one such approach. Conservation gardening can address key (a)biotic drivers of species decline, act as a critical dispersal pathway and increase the occupancy of declining native species. We identify policy mechanisms to upscale conservation gardening to a mainstream activity by reforming the existing horticultural market into an innovative nature protection instrument. This involves incentivizing the integration of the native seed sector, leveraging existing certification and labelling schemes, promoting consumer access, as well as building citizen-science projects to foster public engagement. Mainstreamed conservation gardening can be an economically viable, sustainable, and participatory measure that complements traditional approaches to plant conservation.

Impacts of erosion control treatments on native vegetation recovery after severe wildfire in the Eastern Cascades, USA

2010 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 490 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erich K. Dodson ◽  
David W. Peterson ◽  
Richy J. Harrod
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Tree Regeneration ◽  
Vegetation Recovery ◽  
Native Vegetation ◽  
Individual Plant ◽  
Native Plant

Slope stabilisation treatments like mulching and seeding are used to increase soil cover and reduce runoff and erosion following severe wildfires, but may also retard native vegetation recovery. We evaluated the effects of seeding and fertilisation on the cover and richness of native and exotic plants and on individual plant species following the 2004 Pot Peak wildfire in Washington State, USA. We applied four seeding and three fertilisation treatments to experimental plots at eight burned sites in spring 2005 and surveyed vegetation during the first two growing seasons after fire. Seeding significantly reduced native non-seeded species richness and cover by the second year. Fertilisation increased native plant cover in both years, but did not affect plant species richness. Seeding and fertilisation significantly increased exotic cover, especially when applied in combination. However, exotic cover and richness were low and treatment effects were greatest in the first year. Seeding suppressed several native plant species, especially disturbance-adapted forbs. Fertilisation, in contrast, favoured several native understorey plant species but reduced tree regeneration. Seeding, even with native species, appears to interfere with the natural recovery of native vegetation whereas fertilisation increases total plant cover, primarily by facilitating native vegetation recovery.

Restoring Native Plant Communities in Smooth Brome (Bromus inermis)–Dominated Grasslands

2011 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matt A. Bahm ◽  
Thomas G. Barnes ◽  
Kent C. Jensen
Keyword(s):  
Warm Season ◽  
Bromus Inermis ◽  
First Year ◽  
Untreated Plot ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Cool Season ◽  
Smooth Brome ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Native Seed ◽  
Herbicide Treatments

AbstractSmooth brome (Bromus inermis) is an introduced, cool-season perennial, sod-forming grass that has been shown to invade both native cool-and warm-season grasslands throughout North America. During the fall of 2005 through spring 2007, we implemented a smooth brome removal study at five sites in eastern South Dakota. Sites were selected to represent a range of soil and environmental conditions. Seven fall herbicide treatments, five spring herbicide treatments, an untreated plot that was planted with a native seed mix, and an untreated control that received no herbicide or seed addition were applied at each location in fall 2005/spring 2006 and fall 2006/spring 2007. Based upon first-year results, three fall herbicide treatments and two spring herbicide treatments were added in fall 2006/spring 2007. Sites were seeded with a native plant mix within 2 wk following spring herbicide treatment. Smooth brome cover in untreated plots ranged from 73 to 99% at the conclusion of the study. Smooth brome cover on herbicide-treated plots ranged from 0 to 84% on 2005/2006 plots and 0 to 98% on 2006/2007 plots after three growing seasons. Native plant response varied by site and treatment, possibly due to competition from exotic weeds. Although several herbicides show promise for control of smooth brome, future response of native plants will be important in determining the proper timing and herbicide combination.

Disease in Invasive Plant Populations

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-117
Author(s):  
Erica M. Goss ◽  
Amy E. Kendig ◽  
Ashish Adhikari ◽  
Brett Lane ◽  
Nicholas Kortessis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Plants ◽  
Invasive Plant ◽  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Plant Diseases ◽  
Cultivated Plants ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Plant Populations ◽  
Native Invasive ◽  
Disease Free ◽  
Over Time

Non-native invasive plants can establish in natural areas, where they can be ecologically damaging and costly to manage. Like cultivated plants, invasive plants can experience a relatively disease-free period upon introduction and accumulate pathogens over time. Diseases of invasive plant populations are infrequently studied compared to diseases of agriculture, forestry, and even native plant populations. We evaluated similarities and differences in the processes that are likely to affect pathogen accumulation and disease in invasive plants compared to cultivated plants, which are the dominant focus of the field of plant pathology. Invasive plants experience more genetic, biotic, and abiotic variation across space and over time than cultivated plants, which is expected to stabilize the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of interactions with pathogens and possibly weaken the efficacy of infectious disease in their control. Although disease is expected to be context dependent, the widespread distribution of invasive plants makes them important pathogen reservoirs. Research on invasive plant diseases can both protect crops and help manage invasive plant populations.

Native plant species richness on Eastern Polynesia’s remote atolls

2015 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 112-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sébastien Larrue ◽  
Jean-François Butaud ◽  
Pascal Dumas ◽  
Stéphane Ballet
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Abiotic Factors ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Volcanic Island ◽  
Native Plant Species ◽  
Native Species Richness

Which abiotic factors influence the number of native plant species on remote atolls is an important question to understand better the spatial pattern of the species observed on these low and vulnerable coral islands. However, this issue is still very poorly documented, often due to human degradation, partial botanical surveys or the difficult geographic access of remote atolls for researchers. The remote atolls of Eastern Polynesia, which are among the most isolated in the world, are of great interest for studies of native species’ distribution due to their isolation, low human density and urbanisation. In this study, we selected 49 remote atolls of Eastern Polynesia with complete botanical surveys to test the relative influence of eight abiotic factors on native plant species richness (i.e. indigenous and endemic species). Abiotic factors used as potential predictors included atoll area (km2), shoreline length (km), atoll elevation (m) and index of isolation (UNEP), but also the coastal index of the atoll ( Ic), the distance to the nearest similar atoll (km), the distance to the nearest large volcanic island ≥ 1000 km2 (here, Tahiti as a potential stepping-stone island) and the distance to the nearest raised atoll ≥ 15 m a.s.l. (here, Makatea or Henderson as a potential refugium during sea-level highstands). Spearman’s rank correlation, linear regression analysis and frequency diagrams were used to assess the relative influence of these factors on native species richness. No relationship was found between the species richness and the index of isolation or the distance to the nearest similar atoll. Atoll area and distance to the nearest raised atoll of Makatea explained 47.1% and 40%, respectively, of the native species richness variation observed on the remote atolls. The distance to the volcanic island of Tahiti and the coastal index explained 36.9% and 27.3% of the variation, while elevation and shoreline length explained 23.3% and 18.4% of the variation, respectively. Native species richness on the atolls surveyed increased with the increasing atoll area, elevation and shoreline length, but decreased with the increasing distance to the nearest raised atoll of Makatea and the large volcanic island of Tahiti. This supports the view that the spatial pattern of native species richness observed on the remote atolls was strongly influenced by (i) atoll area but also by (ii) the distance to the raised atoll of Makatea, and (iii) the distance to the volcanic island of Tahiti. This finding suggests that the raised atoll may be viewed as a refugium during sea-level highstands while the large volcanic island played the role of stepping-stone island, both islands influencing the dispersal of native species on remote atolls and attenuating the isolation effect in the study area.

The impacts of invasive plant species on the biodiversity of Australian rangelands

2006 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. C. Grice
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Invasive Plant ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Weed Species ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Native Plant Species

Most parts of the Australian rangelands are at risk of invasion by one or more species of non-native plants. The severity of current problems varies greatly across the rangelands with more non-native plant species in more intensively settled regions, in climatic zones that have higher and more reliable rainfall, and in wetter and more fertile parts of rangeland landscapes. Although there is quantitative evidence of impacts on either particular taxonomic groups or specific ecological processes in Australian rangelands, a comprehensive picture of responses of rangeland ecosystems to plant invasions is not available. Research has been focused on invasive species that are perceived to have important effects. This is likely to down play the significance of species that have visually less dramatic influences and ignore the possibility that some species could invade and yet have negligible consequences. It is conceivable that most of the overall impact will come from a relatively small proportion of invasive species. Impacts have most commonly been assessed in terms of plant species richness or the abundance of certain groups of vertebrates to the almost complete exclusion of other faunal groups. All scientific studies of the impacts of invasive species in Australian rangelands have focused on the effects of individual invasive species although in many situations native communities are under threat from a complex of interacting weed species. Invasion by non-native species is generally associated with declines in native plant species richness, but faunal responses are more complex and individual invasions may be associated with increase, decrease and no-change scenarios for different faunal groups. Some invasive species may remain minor components of the vegetation that they invade while others completely dominate one stratum or the vegetation overall.

scholarly journals Species diversity, composition and the regeneration potential of native plants at the Wainiveiota Mahogany Plantation, Viti Levu, Fiji Islands

2012 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Senilolia H. Tuiwawa ◽  
Gunnar Keppel
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Native Plants ◽  
Line Transect ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Regeneration Potential ◽  
Native Plant Species ◽  
Fiji Islands ◽  
Lowland Rainforest ◽  
Over Time

Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla King) plantations cover a considerable area on the south-eastern parts of Viti Levu, Fiji. The understorey of these plantations often comprise a diverse, but undocumented, assemblage of native plant species. This study investigates the diversity, composition and regeneration potential of native plant species in the Wainiveiota mahogany plantation 40?50 years after establishment. Ten 10 m x 10 m plots were alternately placed at 10 m intervals perpendicular to a 200 m line transect. A total of 491 individual plants with dbh ≥ 1 cm, comprising 69 species, 51 genera and 34 families, were sampled. In addition to the exotic mahogany, there were 68 native (39 endemic, 24 indigenous and 5 identified to genus only) species recorded. Girronniera celtidifolia Gaud., Dillenia biflora (A.Gray) Martelli ex Dur. & Jacks and Barringtonia edulis Seem. had the highest recruitment and Endospermum macrophyllum (Muell.Arg.) Pax & Hoffm. was the dominant native species. Syzygium Gaertn. (Myrtaceae) was the most diverse genus and Myrtaceae the most diverse family. With 98% of the sapling recruitment consisting of native species, there is potential for re-establishment of a lowland rainforest dominated by native species over time.

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