Download or read book Plant Diversity and Distribution Patterns in Serpentine Grasslands written by Sarah Claire Elmendorf and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Serpentine written by Susan Harrison and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2011-02-02 with total page 461 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Serpentine soils have long fascinated biologists for the specialized floras they support and the challenges they pose to plant survival and growth. This volume focuses on what scientists have learned about major questions in earth history, evolution, ecology, conservation, and restoration from the study of serpentine areas, especially in California. Results from molecular studies offer insight into evolutionary patterns, while new ecological research examines both species and communities. Serpentine highlights research whose breadth provides context and fresh insights into the evolution and ecology of stressful environments.
Download or read book Herbaceous Plant Ecology written by Arnold van der Valk and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2009-08-03 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: recruitment of adult plants in entire communities, and all of them focus on changes in total densities of A central issue of plant ecology is the understanding individuals and do not refer to changes in community of the relative role of different life history stages in structure (Moles and Drake 1999; Rebollo et al. successful plant recruitment. The consecutive stages 2001; Goldberg et al. 2001). This ?eld of research of seed, seedling, and adult are related to each other has hardly been explored empirically, and we think it in a complex way that largely depends on species and may reveal interesting mechanisms for the regulation the in?uence of physical and biological factors of individual density and species diversity in plant (Goldberg et al. 2001), for example, irrigation and communities. At the functional group level (which grazing. As a result of relationships between these sorts species according to common features), we stages, the consequences of an ecological factor expect differences depending on growth form depend on the way that its effects propagate onto the (grasses versus forbs) and depending on seed mass following stage of the recruitment process. As far as (differences between small-seeded, medium-seeded, we know, there are no published studies that have and large-seeded species). Some authors (Goldberg addressed this subject. et al. 2001; Rebollo et al. 2001) studying annual In this article, we characterize the relationships plant communities have found greater seedling between the three plant developmental stages.
Download or read book Plant Species and Functional Diversity Across Gradients of Resource Availability and Grazing in a California Serpentine Grassland written by Leslie Marie Gonzalez and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Grassland Invasion Management and Multifunctionality written by Jae R. Pasari and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Grassland structure and function written by L.F. Huenneke and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The chapters in this volume are based on a opportumtles for studying the links between symposium, "California grasslands: structure abiotic and biotic components. and productivity", supported by the National The contributions in this volume illustrate Science Foundation. The primary objective of the links between population-level processes this symposium was to integrate the current and system-level phenomena in a well-studied understanding of controls on ecosystem struc community. Unfortunately, some areas of cur ture and function with the approaches of popu rent research (e.g., nutrient cycling) are under lation biology. The annual grasslands are represented in this volume. For other topics eminently suitable for experimental and manip (particularly the role of invertebrate con sumers), the lack of data from the annual grass ulative studies of ecosystem processes. The short lives and small stature of the component land brought a broader grassland perspective. plant species make experimental work far more Together, however, the contributions illustrate practical than in forests or even in perennial the importance of different ecological ap dominated prairies. The system's small-scale proaches in studying the controls on structure patchiness, and the obvious importance of and function of a complex system. the region's mediterranean climate in the life cycle of the annual vegetation, afford many L.F. Huenneke and H.A. Mooney Huenneke, L.F. and Mooney, H. (eds) Grassland Structure and Function: California Annual Grassland.
Download or read book Serpentine Geoecology of Western North America written by Earl B. Alexander and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2006-11-02 with total page 528 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Geoecology is a fruitful interdisciplinary field, relating rocks to soils to plant and animal communities and studying the interactions between them. Modern geoecology especially concentrates on showing how geology and soils affect the structure, composition, and distribution of plant communities in a certain research area. This book applies the principles of geoecology to Western North America, and to a specific kind of rock, the fascinating serpentine belts that run along the continental margins of the West Coast from Alaska to Baja. The authors come from different disciplines: Alexander is a soil scientist, Coleman a geologist, Harrison a biological researcher, and Keeler-Wolfe a vegetation ecologist. It begins with an overview of the geology of this rock and this region, covering mineralogy, petrology, and stratigraphy of West Coast serpentine. It will continue with serpentine soils and their development and distribution, and serpentine effects on plants and vegetation and animals. The serpentine geoecology of the different regions of Western North America, concentrating on California, will conclude the study. So, this academic book should appeal to plant ecologists, soil scientists, researchers in geoecology, and students in advanced courses in soil science.
Download or read book Serpentine and Its Vegetation written by R. R. Brooks and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page 526 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An exhaustive worldwide survey of serpentine soils and the characteristic vegetation that they support. It includes a continent-by-continent listing of known serpentine locations.
Download or read book Serpentine written by Susan Patricia Harrison and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2011-02-02 with total page 460 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This outstanding volume brings together leading experts across a broad range of disciplines to bring serpentine into focus, as never before, as a window to understanding major natural processes and patterns in nature. By doing so, the authors illuminate exciting questions and challenges that will serve to inspire and direct much future study of these fascinating systems."—Bruce G. Baldwin, University of California, Berkeley
Download or read book Diversity and Stability of Serpentine Plant Communities written by Barbara Marie Going and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Climatic variation, perhaps the most important force structuring the world's ecological communities, now receives growing attention from ecologists because of the incontrovertible evidence for directional climate change, including increases in variability. One of the less understood aspects of climatic impacts is how they may be mediated by intrinsic differences among natural communities, in factors such as soil fertility, functional composition, functional diversity, invasion history, and human land use. My dissertation examines how soil mediates the response of species and communities to climate at local and regional spatial scales using experimental and observational approaches. In addition, I use species functional traits as a tool to better understand the mechanisms driving community response to both natural and experimental variation in climate.First, I compared grasslands on infertile serpentine and `normal' sedimentary soils with respect to temporal variability in species richness and composition using a 10 year data set. I found that variability in species richness and composition tracked precipitation on both soils, but variability was lower in grasslands on serpentine. Communities on serpentine had species with more "stress-tolerant" traits than non-serpentine communities. Within and between soils, variability in richness and temporal turnover were lower in communities scoring lower on a multivariate index of these stress-tolerant traits. In addition, I found that within 41 species found commonly on both soils, variability was lower on serpentine and was positively correlated with community biomass. Thus, I concluded that infertile soils reduce variability indirectly by selecting for stress-tolerant traits and directly by limiting productivity, suggesting that communities on infertile soils may respond more conservatively to predicted long-term directional changes in climate than communities on soils of normal fertility. Second, in a study across a 1200-km rainfall/productivity gradient in California, I asked if dissimilarity between 96 pairs of plant communities on serpentine and adjacent non-serpentine soils is higher in wetter and more productive regions. I found that communities on serpentine soil had more "stress-tolerant" traits than non-serpentine communities regardless of the climate. Local diversity, species composition, and functional composition were all less strongly related to climate on serpentine than non-serpentine soils. As predicted, the dissimilarity between serpentine and non-serpentine communities was highest in wet and productive climates. Soil organic matter and Ca:Mg increased with increasing climatic productivity, but only on non-serpentine soils generating a difference between soils that was positively correlated with dissimilarity. These results lend support to hypothesis that increasing niche specialization along productivity gradients may contribute to the positive productivity-beta diversity relationship.Finally, in a three year study, I experimentally tested the response of serpentine and non-serpentine communities to increases (via irrigation tanks) or decreases (via rainout shelters) in spring rain. I also compared the responses of endemics and generalists to changes in spring rain in the absence or presence of competition. Peak season biomass was significantly greater in the rain addition plots in the non-serpentine grassland compared to control plots, but depended on the year. There was no effect of either rain treatment on biomass production in the serpentine grassland. The survival, biomass production, growth rates, and seed production of soil endemics and generalists were all significantly reduced by competition, but were unaffected by changes in spring rain. Overall, endemics tended to perform better in serpentine soil and generalists tended to perform better in non-serpentine soil, suggesting that soil is an important factor for the establishment and survival of endemics and generalists. The effect of competition was similar on both soil types, suggesting that species interactions may be important even in low resource habitats. In conclusion, these results suggest that special soil or low fertility plant communities may be slow to respond to changes in climate compared to communities on more fertile soil and that community response may depend on the dominant species.
Download or read book California Grasslands written by Mark R. Stromberg and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2007-12-03 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This highly synthetic and scholarly work brings together new and important scientific contributions by leading experts on a rich diversity of topics concerning the history, ecology, and conservation of California's endangered grasslands. The editors and authors have succeeded admirably in drawing from a great wealth of recent research to produce a widely accessible and compelling, state-of-the-art treatment of this fascinating subject. Anyone interested in Californian biodiversity or grassland ecosystems in general will find this book to be an invaluable resource and a major inspiration for further research, management, and restoration efforts."—Bruce G. Baldwin, W. L. Jepson Professor and Curator, UC Berkeley "Grasses and grasslands are among the most important elements of the California landscape. This is their book, embodying the kind of integrated view needed for all ecological communities in California. Approaches ranging across an incredibly broad spectrum -- paleontology and human history; basic science and practical management techniques; systematics, community ecology, physiology, and genetics; physical factors such as water, soil nutrients, atmospherics, and fire; biological factors such as competition, symbiosis, and grazing -- are nicely tied together due to careful editorial work. This is an indispensable reference for everyone interested in the California environment."—Brent Mishler, Director of the University & Jepson Herbaria and Professor of Integrative Biology, UC Berkeley "The structure and function of California grasslands have intrigued ecologists for decades. The editors of this volume have assembled a comprehensive set of reviews by a group of outstanding authors on the natural history, structure, management, and restoration of this economically and ecologically important ecosystem."—Scott L. Collins, Professor of Biology, University of New Mexico
Download or read book Terrestrial Vegetation of California 3rd Edition written by Michael Barbour and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2007-07-17 with total page 734 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This thoroughly revised, entirely rewritten edition of what is the essential reference on California’s diverse and ever-changing vegetation now brings readers the most authoritative, state-of-the-art view of California’s plant ecosystems available. Integrating decades of research, leading community ecologists and field botanists describe and classify California’s vegetation types, identify environmental factors that determine the distribution of vegetation types, analyze the role of disturbance regimes in vegetation dynamics, chronicle change due to human activities, identify conservation issues, describe restoration strategies, and prioritize directions for new research. Several new chapters address statewide issues such as the historic appearance and impact of introduced and invasive plants, the soils of California, and more.
Download or read book Effects of Resource Distribution on Animal Plant Interactions written by Mark D. Hunter and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2012-12-02 with total page 518 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Aimed primarily at advanced graduate students and professional biologists, this book explores the degree to which animal*b1plant interactions are determined by plant and animal variability. Many of the patterns seen in natural communities appear to result from cascading effects up as well as down the trophic system. Variability among primary producers can influence animal and plant population quality and dynamics, community structure, and the evolution of animal*b1plant interations.
Download or read book Dissertation Abstracts International written by and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 800 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Trajectories of Functional and Species Change During Plant Community Assembly in a California Serpentine Grassland written by Melissa N. Habenicht and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Theoretical Approaches to Community Ecology written by Luís Borda-de-Água and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2022-02-18 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Landscape Patterns and Grassland Plant Species Diversity in the 20th Century written by Siv Bengtsson-Lindsjö and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 9 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
