Biotic Interactions Influencing Shrub Establishment
نویسنده
چکیده
BIOTIC INTERACTIONS INFLUENCING SHRUB ESTABLISHMENT ON AN ATLANTIC COAST BARRIER ISLAND. Elucidating mechanisms influencing the establishment of woody species is essential for understanding community dynamics and successional processes on barrier islands. The relative intensity of facilitation and inhibition of grasses on seedling establishment of two woody species common to Atlantic Coast barrier islands, Myrica cerifera and Baccharis halimifolia, were examined in a grassy swale on Hog Island in 1995 and 1996. Biomass, mortality, and physiological responses were quantified in a factorial experiment that included above-ground clipping and root exclosure treatments. In addition, effects of grass density on biomass and mortality were examined in 1996 for three density levels: low, medium and high. Insect herbivore damage was categorized by degree of above-ground
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