An official website of the United States government
Plant phenology or life-history patterns change seasonally as plants grow, mature, flower, and produce fruit and seed. Plant phenology follows seasonal patterns, yet variation may occur due to annual differences in the timing of rainfall and ambient temperature shifts. Foliage growth, flower, fruit, and seed production are important aspects of plant population dynamics and food resource availability for animals. The purpose of this study is to assess phenological patterns of plants across a series of biotic communities that represent an environmental moisture gradient. These communities all in the Chihuahuan Desert include: creosote bush shrubland, black grama grassland, and blue grama grassland. Plant phenology is recorded for all plant species across 4 replicate 200 m transects at each of the 3 habitat sites. Plant phenology measurements are taken once every month from February through October. The first ten individuals (or ten representative individuals) of each plant species encountered along each transect are assessed for life-history status. Data from the site P and J were only collected in 2000 and 2001 and are included in this data set.
more »
« less
Grassland Vegetation Line-Intercept Transects at the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico
In 1989, line-intercept transects were installed to evaluate temporal and spatial dynamics across vegetation transition zones. Currently, a 400m transect is sampled at a grassland site (Deep Well) which is dominated by Bouteloua eriopoda (black grama) and, near the southern end of the transect, B. gracilis (blue grama). A second grassland site (Five Points), dominated by B. eriopoda and, to the south, Larrea tridentata (creosote), is also sampled. Both sites are sampled twice a year, in May/June and September/October, and measurements are taken at a one-centimeter resolution. The biannual sampling protocol detects potential responses in both cool and warm season plants as well as pre- and post-monsoon dynamics. Several transects have been discontinued and data archived within SEV200.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1655499
- PAR ID:
- 10424137
- Publisher / Repository:
- Environmental Data Initiative
- Date Published:
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
Plant phenology or life-history patterns change seasonally as plants grow, mature, flower, and produce fruit and seed. Plant phenology follows seasonal patterns, yet variation may occur due to annual differences in the timing of rainfall and ambient temperature shifts. Foliage growth, flower, fruit, and seed production are important aspects of plant population dynamics and food resource availability for animals. The purpose of this study is to assess phenological patterns of plants across a series of biotic communities that represent an environmental moisture gradient. These communities all in the Chihuahuan Desert include: creosote bush shrubland, black grama grassland, and blue grama grassland. Plant phenology is recorded for all plant species across 4 replicate 200 m transects at each of the 3 habitat sites. Plant phenology measurements are taken once every month from February through October. The first ten individuals (or ten representative individuals) of each plant species encountered along each transect are assessed for life-history status. Data from the site P and J were only collected in 2000 and 2001 and are included in this data set.more » « less
-
{"Abstract":["This study investigated the question, "Does climate change\n affect vegetation and seed bank composition in desert\n grasslands?" The work was done in the Sevilleta National\n Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico, USA, in in the Extreme Drought in\n Grassland Experiment (EDGE). Vegetation and seed bank species\n composition were recorded in black grama (Bouteloua eriopoda) and\n blue grama (B. gracilis) grasslands at Sevilleta. At each site, two\n rainfall manipulations and ambient controls were established in 2013\n (n=10). Treatments included extreme drought (-66% rainfall\n reduction) and delayed monsoon (precipitation captured during\n July-August and reapplied during September-October). Aboveground\n species composition was assessed and composite soil samples were\n collected in 2017, five years after the experiment started. Seed\n bank composition was evaluated using the seedling emergence method.\n Rainfall treatments increased aboveground species richness at both\n sites, and seed bank richness only in the blue grama community.\n Vegetation cover was reduced by both rainfall manipulations, but\n seed bank density increased or remained the same compared with\n controls. In aboveground vegetation, cover of annual and perennial\n forbs increased, and dominant perennial grasses decreased. In the\n soil seed bank, species composition was similar among all treatments\n and was dominated by annual and perennial forbs. The seed bank was\n more resistant to drought than aboveground vegetation. Because seed\n banks enhance long-term community stability, their drought\n resistance plays an important role in maintaining ecosystem\n processes during and following drought in these grassland\n communities."]}more » « less
-
Disturbance from fire can affect the abundance and distribution of shrubs and grasses in arid ecosystems. In particular, fire may increase grass and forb production while hindering shrub encroachment. Therefore, prescribed fires are a common management tool for maintaining grassland habitats in the southwest. However, Bouteloua eriopoda (black grama), a dominant species in Chihuahuan Desert grassland, is highly susceptible to fire resulting in death followed by slow recovery rates. A prescribed fire on the Sevilleta National Wildlife refuge in central New Mexico in 2003 provided the opportunity to study the effects of infrequent fires on vegetation in this region. This study was conducted along a transition zone where creosote bushes (Larrea tridentata) are encroaching on a black grama grassland. Before and after the fire, above ground plant productivity and composition were monitored from 2003 to present. Following the prescribed fire, there were fewer individual grass clumps and less above ground grass cover in burned areas compared to unburned areas. This decrease in productivity was primarily from a loss of B. eriopoda. Specifically, B. eriopoda density and cover were significantly lower following the fire with a slow recovery rate in the five years following the fire. Other grasses showed no such adverse response to burning. Data were collected from 2004-2013 and 2018. Data were not collected for 2014-2017.more » « less
