LTREB: Population and community ecology of desert winter annuals

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This project will continue recording population and community dynamics of desert winter annual plants that was begun 25 years ago on permanent plots at the Desert Laboratory near Tucson, AZ, USA. It will provide an understanding of demographic variation and its role in population and community ecology. Soil seed reserves will be monitored to determine the fraction of seeds that germinate and the fraction that persist in dormancy. Experiments will determine the role of granivores in lowering the populations of desert annuals and determine when seeds die during the year. Models will be constructed to determine the role of soil seed banks in buffering populations and how species differences promote coexistence and species diversity. Calibrating the 25 year data set with weather data will permit predictions of biotic responses to climate change.Desert annual plants have played an important role as model organisms in understanding how organisms adapt to variable and unpredictable environments. They have also been used to exemplify ideas about non-equilibrium community dynamics. This project will provide the best available long-term data to test these ideas. This research will combine research and education by involving students in mentoring and research, emphasizing underrepresented groups.