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Presence Of Mucilage On Aerial Roots In Monteverde, Costa Rica, November 2008, Chase Kincaid
Presence Of Mucilage On Aerial Roots In Monteverde, Costa Rica, November 2008, Chase Kincaid
Tropical Ecology and Conservation [Monteverde Institute]
Many hemiepiphytes produce aerial roots and some have mucilage on the growing tips of these roots. The purpose of this study was to determine if mucilage varies at different altitudes in the Monteverde Cloud Forest in Costa Rica. Mucilage may serve to protect the roots from the dry environments, or from altitudes more prone to fungal infections since it has both high water storing capacities and anti-fungal properties. Transects were run along different altitudes, and samples of plants’ mucilage were taken, measuring the weight and length of the mucilage. Monstera was the most common plant with mucilage found in the …
Structure Of Soil Arthropod And Plant Communities In Light Gaps And Continuous Forest In Monteverde, Costa Rica, November 2008, Lauren Breza
Structure Of Soil Arthropod And Plant Communities In Light Gaps And Continuous Forest In Monteverde, Costa Rica, November 2008, Lauren Breza
Tropical Ecology and Conservation [Monteverde Institute]
Several studies have confirmed that higher plant community richness facilitates greater arthropod community richness. The purpose of this study is to examine how plant community structure in continuous forest and light gaps impact soil arthropod community structure. In this study plant surveys were conducted for twenty plots, ten located in continuous forest and ten located within a forest gap. Along with plant surveys, a soil sample from each plot was collected in order to obtain soil dwelling arthropods. Arthropods were extracted from the soil first using a Burlese funnel, and then manually picked out of the soil. After all arthropods …
Uv-Blocking Chemicals In Forest Canopy And Understory Lichens, May 2008, Katherine Rose Heal
Uv-Blocking Chemicals In Forest Canopy And Understory Lichens, May 2008, Katherine Rose Heal
Tropical Ecology and Conservation [Monteverde Institute]
Lichens produce over eight hundred secondary metabolites, many of which are found nowhere else in nature. Many of these chemicals have UV-blocking properties, including usnic acid and many depsides. These chemicals could affect colonization success between understory and canopy lichens. In Monteverde, Costa Rica, a total of 244 lichens were extracted from six trees, half from canopy branch tips and half from the trunk in the understory. Canopy coverage was significantly higher in the understory (t-test, F = 88.78, p < 0.05). In the pooled population, usnic acid was present in the branch tips more often than on the trunks (after Yates correction factor X2 c = 26.23, df = 1, p = 3.03E-07). Conversely, depsides were present more often on the trunks (after Yates correction factor X2 c = 26.23, df = 1, p = 3.02E-07). The differences in the chemical constituents, which are associated with differences in lichen community composition, may reflect adaptations that allow niche partitioning along light gradients.
Anti-Herbivore Defense Trade-Offs: A Comparison Of Passiflora Capsularis, Passiflora Helleri, And Passiflora Sexflora (Passifloraceae), May 2008, Sara M.L. Sirivanchai
Anti-Herbivore Defense Trade-Offs: A Comparison Of Passiflora Capsularis, Passiflora Helleri, And Passiflora Sexflora (Passifloraceae), May 2008, Sara M.L. Sirivanchai
Tropical Ecology and Conservation [Monteverde Institute]
Plants in the Tropics must evolve strategies for combating high levels of herbivory with few available nutrients. This results in possible tradeoffs between chemical and structural defenses. Three species of tropical passion vines, Passiflora capsularis, Passiflora helleri, and Passiflora sexflora (Passifloraceae) were examined for possible tradeoffs in cyanide, leaf toughness, glands and pubescence as anti-herbivore defenses. One young and one old leaf were collected from ten individuals of each species and analyzed for cyanide concentration and leaf toughness. In addition, observations were made regarding habitat, pubescence and presence or absence of blade glands. From the results it is clear that …
Effect Of Sunlight Intensity And Canopy Coverage On Herbivory In Gunnera Insignis (Gunneraceae), May 2008, Carolyn Rivers
Effect Of Sunlight Intensity And Canopy Coverage On Herbivory In Gunnera Insignis (Gunneraceae), May 2008, Carolyn Rivers
Tropical Ecology and Conservation [Monteverde Institute]
Studies on the influence of sunlight on herbivory have generally revealed that increased amounts of leaf damage occur in cool, shaded habitats. This study investigates the effects of both sunlight and canopy coverage on herbivore damage in Gunnera insignis by the undescribed beetle Macrohaltica sp. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). This beetle is thought to feed on G. insignis because it can obtain secondary metabolites that make it undesirable to predators. In this investigation, all 90 plants studied revealed herbivore damage, with 71% of plants showing evidence of herbivory on the majority of leaves. The highest levels of leaf damage occurred on plants …