Disturbance Response of Old Growth Bryophytes: A Dual Approach

0101616 Kimmerer该项目支持公休活动，以启动一个新的研究方向，并加强未来的研究能力博士。这个关于太平洋西北部苔藓植物的项目补充并扩展了她在东部苔藓方面的专业知识。这些研究将1）提供信息，以促进对沿海森林中常见和罕见的britectes生殖生态学的理解，2）为进一步研究附生苔藓群落的种群生物学提供框架，3）直接应用于古老森林的保护。西方科学知识在太平洋西北部的britectes主要是分类学性质，关于种群生态学或苔藓对人为干扰的反应的数据很少。直到20年前开始收获用于花卉栽培的苞叶菊，苞叶菊才被认为是一种可开发的资源，也很少受到科学的关注。该地区传统的土著民族的情况正好相反，对他们来说，布雷蒂特人长期以来一直是土著生计经济的一部分。土著人大量使用的历史，以及鼓励密切关注生物群落的文化传统，都表明可能存在大量关于生物群落的传统土著知识。因此，在科学调查的同时，我计划评估传统生态知识（TEK）对特定类型的栖息地改变/干扰的反应，即，在学术界，TEK和科学工具的双重方法的使用在很大程度上是未知的，从国家科学基金会-MCAA的支持，以探索可行性是至关重要的发展这种二元方法。我将利用一整年的公休假，与俄勒冈州州立大学（OSU）植物学和植物病理学系的布鲁斯McCune博士及其同事合作进行实地、实验室和人种学研究。俄勒冈州立大学也是西北传统生态知识研究所的所在地，由Judith Vergun博士领导，他在该地区的美洲原住民部落中广泛从事生态恢复工作。该研究涉及三种互补的科学和TEK方法，以解决苔藓保护生物学和可持续用途：1）定量描述被指定为“调查和管理”物种的藓类植物的生殖生活史，与来自类似生境的普遍存在物种的对照组的属性。2）对受开发的“调查和管理”物种的扩散和建立成功的实地和实验评估，3）探索当地土著居民持有的TEK水平，这可能是特定的栖息地要求和古老森林苔藓的收获后干扰反应，并可能提供对物种生物学和保护的见解。

0101616KimmererThis project supports sabbatical activities to initiate a new research direction and strengthen future research capability for Dr. Kimmerer. This project on the bryophytes of the Pacific Northwest complements and extends her expertise on Eastern mosses. These studies will 1) provide information to advance understanding of the reproductive ecology of common and rare bryophytes in coastal forests, 2) provide a framework for further studies of the population biology of epiphytic moss communities, and 3) have direct application to conservation in old growth forests.Western scientific knowledge of bryophytes in the Pacific Northwest is largely taxonomic in nature, with little data on population ecology or on moss response to anthropogenic disturbance. Until the harvest of bryophytes for floriculture began 20 years ago, bryophytes were not considered an exploitable resource and received little scientific attention. The reverse is true among the traditional native peoples of the region, for whom bryophytes have long been part of the indigenous subsistence economy. Both the history of intensive indigenous use, as well as cultural traditions that encourage close attention to biotic communities, suggest that there may be a significant body of traditional indigenous knowledge concerning bryophytes. Therefore, in parallel to the scientific investigations, I plan to evaluate the extent of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) concerning bryophyte response to a specific type of habitat alteration/disturbance, i.e., moss harvesting.The use of dual approaches of TEK and scientific tools is largely unknown in the academic community and support from the NSF-MCAA to explore feasibility is critical to development of this dualistic approach. I will use a full-year sabbatical leave to undertake field, laboratory and ethnographic research in collabroation with Dr. Bruce McCune and colleagues in Oregon State University (OSU)'s Department of Botany and Plant Pathology. OSU is also home to the Northwest Traditional Ecological Knowledge Institute, directed by Dr. Judith Vergun, who works extensively in ecological restoration with Native American tribes in the region.The research involves three complementary scientific and TEK approaches to questions of moss conservation biology and the potential for sustainable use:1) Quantitative description of reproductive life histories of mosses designated as "survey and manage" species, versus attributes of a control group of ubiquitous species from similar habitats.2) Field and experimental assessments of dispersal and establishment success of "survey and manage" species subject to exploitation, versus success of the ubiquitous epiphytic species.3) Exploration of TEK levels held by local indigenous people that might be specific to the habitat requirements and post-harvest disturbance response of old-growth forest mosses and might offer insights into species biology and conservation.