Author : Benjamin Lawrence Dows
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 47 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (88 download)
Book Synopsis Roles of Seed Dispersal and Environmental Filters in Establishment of the Dominant Shrubs by : Benjamin Lawrence Dows
Download or read book Roles of Seed Dispersal and Environmental Filters in Establishment of the Dominant Shrubs written by Benjamin Lawrence Dows and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 47 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Patterns of the expansion of woody cover into grasslands on barrier islands of the Virginia coast were investigated. Seed dispersal of the dominant shrub Morella spp., was sampled deploying seed traps (n = 82) throughout a landscape under shrub encroachment pressure on Hog Island, VA. Traps were placed underneath: fruiting Morella, non-fruiting Morella, co-occurring species (Iva frutescens and Baccharis halimifolia) and in grass land, (no shrub cover). Environmental filters that act upon dispersed seeds and subsequently determine establishment patterns were also investigated. Dispersal distribution throughout the encroachment zone was leptokurtic and dispersal among cover types suggest co-occurring shrub species facilitate dispersal by functioning as bird perches. Interaction of biotic and abiotic factors mediate a complex process of establishment by influencing dispersal, germination and seedling survival to ultimately determine distribution patterns of woody plants in coastal environments.