Effects of removing woody cover on long-term population dynamics of a rare annual plant (Agalinis auriculata): A study comparing remnant prairie and oldfield habitats.

ABSTRACT: Worldwide, grasslands are becoming shrublands/forests. In North America, eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) often colonizes prairies. Habitat management can focus on woody removal, but we often lack long-term data on whether removal leads to population recovery of herbaceous plants without seeding. We undertook a long-term study (17 years) of numbers of the rare annual plant Agalinis auriculata in a gridwork of 100 m² plots in adjacent prairie and oldfield sites in Kansas, USA. We collected data before and after removal of Juniperus virginiana at the prairie. Plant population sizes were highly variable at both sites and over time. High numbers of plants in a plot 1 year were often followed by low numbers the following year, suggesting negative density-

SUBMITTER: Alexander HM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6303752 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature