Collaborative Research: Diversity, Dominance & Disturbance in Species-Rich Pine Savanna Groundcover

该项目将测试两种维持自然栖息地生物多样性的可能机制，即通过优势植物物种在环境中造成细微变化和通过火灾的自然干扰。北美一些最多样化的植物群落分布在美国东南部容易起火的长叶松林中。虽然森林树冠上一般只有几种植物，而树冠下的植物往往是一两种大的、长寿的束草，但在草丛中可以发现大量较小的植物物种。研究人员将通过实验改变束草之间的相互作用，束草与较小植物之间的相互作用，以及火灾强度等环境条件，以展示优势植物如何影响易受干扰环境中高多样性植物群落的多样性和动态。长叶松生态系统历史上覆盖了大西洋和墨西哥湾沿岸平原的大部分地区，但灭火等人类活动使森林面积减少了98%以上。该项目将为管理和恢复这些生态系统的努力提供信息。特别是，一个研讨会将汇集土地管理人员、保护专业人员和生态学家，综合关于这些生态系统的相关信息，找出我们对这些植物宝藏了解中的重要差距，并将结果转化为保护、管理和恢复的建议。此外，该项目将对本科生和研究生进行科学方面的培训，并为K-12学生和教育工作者提供教育推广活动。

This project will test two likely mechanisms for the maintenance of biological diversity in natural habitats, the creation of fine-scale variation in the environment by dominant plant species and by natural disturbance by fire. Some of the most diverse plant communities in North America are found in the fire-prone longleaf pine forest of the southeastern United States. Although the forest canopy generally has only a few species of plants, and the plants beneath are often dominated by one or two species of large, long-lived bunchgrasses, a high number of smaller plant species can be found scattered between the grasses. Researchers will experimentally alter interactions between bunchgrasses, interactions between bunchgrasses and smaller plants, and environmental conditions such as fire intensity to show how dominant plant species influence the diversity and dynamics of high-diversity plant communities in environments prone to disturbance. Longleaf pine ecosystems historically covered most of the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plains, but human activities such as fire suppression have reduced the area of the forests by more than 98%. This project will inform efforts to manage and restore these ecosystems. In particular, a workshop will bring together land managers, conservation professionals, and ecologists to synthesize relevant information about these ecosystems, identify important gaps in our understanding of these floristic treasures, and translate the results into recommendations for conservation, management, and restoration. In addition, the project will train undergraduate and graduate students in science and provide educational outreach activities for K-12 students and educators.