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Small-Scale Fuel Variation Alters Fire Intensity And Shrub Abundance In A Pine Savanna, Jarrod M. Thaxton, William J. Platt
Small-Scale Fuel Variation Alters Fire Intensity And Shrub Abundance In A Pine Savanna, Jarrod M. Thaxton, William J. Platt
Faculty Publications
Small-scale variation in fire intensity and effects may be an important source of environmental heterogeneity in frequently burned plant communities. We hypothesized that variation in fire intensity resulting from local differences in fuel loads produces heterogeneity in pine savanna ground cover by altering shrub abundance. To test this hypothesis, we experimentally manipulated prefire fuel loads to mimic naturally occurring fuel-load heterogeneity associated with branch falls, needle fall near large pines, and animal disturbances in a frequently burned longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) savanna in Louisiana, USA. We applied one of four fuel treatments (unaltered control, fine-fuel removal, fine-fuel addition, wood addition) …
Natural Disturbances And The Physiognomy Of Pine Savannas: A Phenomenological Model, Frank S. Gilliam, William J. Platt, Robert K. Peet
Natural Disturbances And The Physiognomy Of Pine Savannas: A Phenomenological Model, Frank S. Gilliam, William J. Platt, Robert K. Peet
Faculty Publications
Question: The decline of the Pinus palustris ecosystems has resulted from anthropogenic influences, such as conversion to pine plantation forestry, agriculture and land development, all of which are closely related to increases in human populations. Other effects, however, have arisen from alterations in disturbance regimes that maintain the structure and function of these ecosystems. How have alterations of the disturbance regime altered the physiognomy of 'old-growth' stands, and what are the implications for ecosystem conservation and restoration? Methods: In contrast to models that emphasize close interactions among the vertically complex strata, we develop a conceptual phenomenological model for the physiognomic …
Pine Savanna Overstorey Influences On Ground-Cover Biodiversity, William J. Platt, Susan M. Carr, Matthew Reilly, Jean Fahr
Pine Savanna Overstorey Influences On Ground-Cover Biodiversity, William J. Platt, Susan M. Carr, Matthew Reilly, Jean Fahr
Faculty Publications
Question: Does the overstorey of pine savannas influence plant species biodiversity in the ground cover? Location: Camp Whispering Pines (30°41' N; 90°29' W), eastern Louisiana (USA). Methods: We used ecologically sensitive restoration logging to remove patches of Pinus palustris (longleaf pine) in a second-growth loess plain Pinus palustris savanna managed using frequent lightning season fires. Five years later, we measured numbers of vascular plant species and transmitted light in replicated 100-m2 plots. Treatments involved three different overstorey conditions: no overstorey for 5 years, no overstorey for several decades, and overstorey pines present for decades. Results: Both recent and long-term openings …
Conservation And Restoration Of The Pinus Palustris Ecosystem, Frank S. Gilliam, William J. Platt
Conservation And Restoration Of The Pinus Palustris Ecosystem, Frank S. Gilliam, William J. Platt
Faculty Publications
The well-documented decline of the Pinus palustris ecosystem has resulted from several anthropogenic influences, such as forest clearing (e.g. pine plantation forestry, agriculture) and urban development, both of which are closely related to increases in human populations. Other impacts have arisen from alterations in disturbance regimes responsible for maintaining the structure and function of these ecosystems. Restoration and management of degraded pine savanna ecosystems is critical. Identification of ecological processes that determine the structure and function of the intact system are important because successful restoration efforts should be based on sound scientific understanding. In this paper, we introduce this special …
Modelling Responses Of Pine Savannas To Climate Change And Large-Scale Disturbance, Brian Beckage, Louis J. Gross, William J. Platt
Modelling Responses Of Pine Savannas To Climate Change And Large-Scale Disturbance, Brian Beckage, Louis J. Gross, William J. Platt
Faculty Publications
Global warming can potentially influence ecological communities through altered disturbance regimes in addition to increased temperatures. We investigate the response of pine savannas in the southeastern United States to global warming using a simple Lotka-Volterra competition model together with predicted changes to fire and hurricane disturbance regimes with global climate change. In the southeastern United States, decreased frequency of both fires and hurricanes with global warming will shift pine savannas toward a forested state. A CO2 fertilization effect that increases the growth rate of tree populations will also push southeastern landscapes from open savannas towards closed forests. Transient dynamics associated …