CRB: Granivores, Herbivores, and the Composition of Experimental Grass and Forb Communities

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9903873HoweTallgrass prairie on fertile, well-watered soils represents North America's most endangered major ecosystem with much of it converted to agriculture. This study proposes to continue an experiment testing for the effects of birds, mammals and planting density on the succession and community composition of synthetic tallgrass communities. In this expanded study, experiments are planned that will test for indirect effects of the small vertebrates through competition and facilitation among plant species. Since early results demonstrated that the voles had dramatic impacts on the legume species, it is predicted that some interactions among plants may be mediated through soil nitrogen. This will be tested using path analysis to test for ongoing effects of herbivory and granivory and to test apart causes and consequences of plant-plant interactions that is being driven by the vertebrates. It is hoped that managers, conservationists and restorationists in management of the surviving tallgrass prairie remnants will use information garnered from this experiment.