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Floristics and successional patterns of microbiotic crusts in ponderosa pine forests of Southern Inland British Columbia Williston, Patrick
Abstract
Microbiotic crusts are an important component of the ecology and species diversity of terrestrial ecosystems in semiarid regions. This study documents 72 lichen species and 48 bryophyte species occurring in the ponderosa pine forests Of southern inland British Columbia and contains a key to common species. Successional patterns are described for vascular plants, lichens, and bryophytes along a disturbance gradient reflecting past grazing activity by livestock. While species richness among vascular plants varied little with disturbance, microbiotic species richness was found to differ significantly. Maximum richness occurred in moderately disturbed sites. Indicator species for early versus late successional sites were discerned using Principal Components Analysis. Early successional sites were often dominated by xerophytic crustose and squamulose lichens, while late successional sites also supported foliose lichens, fruticose lichens, and bryophytes. It is hypothesized that this trend from smaller to larger species relates to increased moisture retention, and denotes a positive feedback mechanism. This study describes the floristics and successional patterns of microbiotic crusts; this is important for managing species diversity in one of British Columbia's most restricted ecosystems.
Item Metadata
Title |
Floristics and successional patterns of microbiotic crusts in ponderosa pine forests of Southern Inland British Columbia
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Creator | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
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Date Issued |
1999
|
Description |
Microbiotic crusts are an important component of the ecology and species
diversity of terrestrial ecosystems in semiarid regions. This study documents 72 lichen
species and 48 bryophyte species occurring in the ponderosa pine forests Of southern
inland British Columbia and contains a key to common species. Successional patterns are
described for vascular plants, lichens, and bryophytes along a disturbance gradient
reflecting past grazing activity by livestock. While species richness among vascular plants
varied little with disturbance, microbiotic species richness was found to differ
significantly. Maximum richness occurred in moderately disturbed sites. Indicator species
for early versus late successional sites were discerned using Principal Components
Analysis. Early successional sites were often dominated by xerophytic crustose and
squamulose lichens, while late successional sites also supported foliose lichens, fruticose
lichens, and bryophytes. It is hypothesized that this trend from smaller to larger species
relates to increased moisture retention, and denotes a positive feedback mechanism. This
study describes the floristics and successional patterns of microbiotic crusts; this is
important for managing species diversity in one of British Columbia's most restricted
ecosystems.
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Extent |
13792545 bytes
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Genre | |
Type | |
File Format |
application/pdf
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Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2009-07-09
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0089515
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URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
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Graduation Date |
2000-05
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Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
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Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.