Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 4 of 4

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

Floodplain Forest Regeneration Dynamics In The Lower Mississippi River Alluvial Valley, Whitney Anne Kroschel Jul 2020

Floodplain Forest Regeneration Dynamics In The Lower Mississippi River Alluvial Valley, Whitney Anne Kroschel

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Floodplain forest species diversity is driven, in part, by variation in disturbance regime. Flood patterns create heterogeneity in microsite quality from small differences in elevation across a floodplain which, in turn, influence flood timing and duration. Differences in species’ regeneration niches in relation to hydrologic patterns can account for long-term coexistence of various species. In the past century floodplain forests have exhibited a wide range of changes in stand development and species composition as a result of altered hydrology in rivers and floodplains. I evaluated the role of regeneration in floodplain forest systems of the Lower Mississippi River Alluvial Valley …


Is Context Dependency Imperative To Understanding The Impacts Of Invasive Plants?, Brendan B. Haile Jan 2020

Is Context Dependency Imperative To Understanding The Impacts Of Invasive Plants?, Brendan B. Haile

Masters Theses

Introduced exotic species have a tendency to become invasive and impact local biological communities. Invasions often impact community attributes such as cover and species richness, but these factors may also regulate patterns of invasion. In such cases, impacts may be dependent on the invasion context. We used data from the Buell-Small Succession Study, a long-term permanent plot study in the piedmont region of New Jersey, to document context dependency in invasion. To do this, we analyzed the factors that affected the colonization and growth of four invasive species, Alliaria petiolata, Lonicera japonica, Microstegium vimineum and Rosa multiflora, as well …


Effects Of Water Table Depth And Edaphic Characteristics On Plant Diversity In A Southern Mississippi Pitcher Plant Bog, Patrick Kirby Dec 2019

Effects Of Water Table Depth And Edaphic Characteristics On Plant Diversity In A Southern Mississippi Pitcher Plant Bog, Patrick Kirby

Master's Theses

This study examined the effects that water table depth and soil characteristics have on plant species richness and species composition within pitcher plant bogs across seasons. Eight piezometers were installed at random distances to monitor long-term water table depth and pressure fluctuations along a ~710-meter line transect traversing upland and bog habitats. Vegetation sampling quadrats (n=128) were set up near each piezometer. Cover data and water table depths were collected in spring and late summer. Soil samples collected from each treatment group were used to obtain soil texture and nutrient data. The summer collection period yielded a total gdiversity of …


Drivers Of Post-Fire Vascular Plant Regeneration In The Conifer-Dominated Boreal Forest Of Southern Northwest Territories, Alison White Jan 2018

Drivers Of Post-Fire Vascular Plant Regeneration In The Conifer-Dominated Boreal Forest Of Southern Northwest Territories, Alison White

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In recent years, climate warming has led to an increase in the severity and frequency of naturally occurring fires in boreal ecosystems globally. In 2014, an unprecedented 3.4 million hectares of boreal forest burned in the Northwest Territories (NWT). While much research has focused on post-fire succession of serotinous tree species such as Picea mariana (black spruce) and Pinus banksiana (jack pine), the understory community of vascular plants play an important role in ecosystem functioning but less is known about the response of this component of the system to changing fire regimes. Regeneration strategies such as the ability to resprout …