A natural area inventory of Ames, Iowa

Norris, William R.

doi:10.31274/rtd-180813-12870

Cited by 3 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 18 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Compilation of the Vascular Plant Checklist. We compiled a checklist of all vascular plant taxa encountered during the current inventory of AHP, as well as taxa reported by Freckmann (1966) and Norris (1995) during prior plant inventories of the preserve. Scientific nomenclature for plant taxa follows Flora of North America Committee (1993þ) from volumes available at the time of this study, the United States Department of Agriculture Plants Database (PLANTS 2011-2015), and Widrlechner (1998) for the genus Rubus.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similar comparisons with the early 1990s flora of AHP (Norris 1995) are not possible, because that study focused solely on prairie taxa while ignoring non-native taxa as well as native taxa characteristic of other habitats. 1966, Norris (1995), and the current study includes 147 native Iowa prairie taxa, and in this regard ranks 8 th among 27 Iowa state preserves that protect prairie vegetation (Fig. 8a).…”

Section: Flora Analysismentioning

confidence: 93%

“…4 b-f (prepared from Iowa Geographic Map Server) show how the extent of prairie vegetation at AHP has changed from the 1930s to the present. Joens (1978) and Norris (1995) presented vegetation maps of AHP, based on their separate vegetation surveys, that identified floodplain forest vegetation as occupying regions of the preserve that were formerly prairie. Later in this paper, we discuss probable circumstances behind this wide variation in the extent of prairie vegetation at AHP, coupled with encroachment by woody vegetation, over the past 80 years.…”

Section: Study Site Natural Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Checklist of Vascular Plants. The checklist of vascular plants compiled for AHP from this and the two previous floristic studies (Freckmann 1966;Norris 1995) includes 465 taxa (329 native, 70.8%) (Appendix). The occurrences of all but 9 of the above taxa at AHP are documented by at least 1 voucher specimen housed in the Ada Hayden Herbarium (ISC).…”

Section: Flora Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

The Role of an Urban Tallgrass Prairie Remnant in Conservation: A Case Study in Central Iowa (USA)

Thompson

Lewis

Norris

2014

The Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Although more than 85% of Iowa (USA) was covered by tallgrass prairie at the time of settlement by Europeans in the early 19 th century, less than 0.1% remains. The Richard W. Pohl State Preserve at Ames (IA) High School, surrounded on three sides by structures, roads, and other development, protects 4 ha of tallgrass prairie. The preserve, commonly referred to as Ames High Prairie (AHP), was grazed but never plowed under private ownership until its acquisition by the Ames School District in 1959. Although considered for development as a parking lot or football field in the 1960s, the residents of Ames voted in 1970 to award The Nature Conservancy (TNC) a 49-year lease to the property (until 2019). This preserve, almost completely open in the 1930s, has been subject to numerous threats, including encroachment by woody plants, entry of non-native and invasive plant species associated with human activity, and erosion associated with storm water runoff, sewer line repair, foot and bike traffic, and major flood events. Recent management activities at AHP, conducted by volunteer land stewards, high school and college students, TNC summer interns, and private contractors, has consisted of controlled burns, cutting and herbicide treatment of encroaching woody plants, manual removal and herbicide treatment of invasive herbaceous plants, and sowing of seeds (collected on site) into reopened areas. Three vascular plant inventories of the 8.9 ha preserve (1966, 1995, current study) have documented the occurrence of 465 taxa (329 native) at AHP, including 5 Iowa special concern species. This flora includes 147 native prairie plant taxa, which ranks 8 th in comparison with the 26 other (and mostly larger) prairies protected as state preserves in Iowa. As a vegetation remnant, AHP protects tallgrass prairie taxa and their gene pools, maintains an example of historically abundant (but now scarce) tallgrass prairie vegetation, and provides citizens an opportunity to experience prairie. INDEX DESCRIPTORS: Iowa, prairie flora, prairie management, tallgrass prairie, urban prairie, volunteer land stewards.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Flora Analysismentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Study Site Natural Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Flora Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The Role of an Urban Tallgrass Prairie Remnant in Conservation: A Case Study in Central Iowa (USA)

Thompson

Lewis

Norris

2014

The Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A naturally occurring population of D. obovata growing on the northwest corner of Iowa State University's (ISU) campus (N 42° 1' 55.4084" W 93° 39' 9.8233") in the ~14-hectare mixed deciduous forest known as Pammel Woods (Norris 1995) was used for this study. Wind moves through this space primarily from east to west and was measured with anemometers in the field.…”

Section: Field Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Settling velocity and pollination dynamics in Diarrhena obovata, a grass of temperate forest edges and understories

Klahs

2022

J Poll Ecol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Pollen from a naturally occurring population of the forest grass species Diarrhena obovata was successfully captured in a series of pollen traps to understand the timing of anthesis and the dispersal mechanics of wind pollination in an example of the flowering plant family Poaceae. Scanning electron microscopy was used to identify the pollen surface ornamentation as microechinate-areolate. The spherical grains have a diameter of 38.74 μm. The settling velocity calculated by Stoke’s Law was 4.48 cm s-1, but physical measurement by drop tower experiments resulted in 3.77 ± 0.15 cm s-1 (sd). The surface ornamentation observed in D. obovata pollen is not expected to alter drag forces considerably but the reduction of settling velocity may be a result of species-specific pollen grain density. In forest grasses an improvement in settling velocity may be adaptive in overcoming dispersal constraints in an environment where trees obstruct wind speeds and create more turbulence.

show abstract

A review of the alvars of the Great Lakes Region: Distribution, floristic composition, biogeography, and protection

Catling,

Brownell

1995

The Canadian Field-Naturalist

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Alvars are naturally open areas of thin soil over essentially flat limestone or marble rock with a more or less sparse vegetation cover of shrubs and herbs with trees absent or at least not forming a continuous canopy. Drought and extremes of soil moisture are major factors limiting tree cover. Alvars are important as sites for (1) the protection of biodiversity including threatened plant communities, rare and threatened species of flora and fauna, and germplasm of crop relatives; (2) biological research and environmental monitoring; and (3) ecotourism. Approximately 85% of alvar sites and more than 90% of alvar landscape area in the Great Lakes region is in southern Ontario. With the exception of small isolated areas, most notably western Lake Erie and Lake Champlain area, the alvars of the Great Lakes region occur near the contact line of the granitic Canadian Shield upland with the Ordovician and Silurian limestones and dolomites. The main area of occurrence extends from the north shore of Lake Michigan east to the islands of northern Lake Huron, such as Drummond Island, east across Manitoulin Island, southeast to the south end of Georgian Bay, east to the Lake Simcoe area and the Carden limestone plain, discontinuously east to the Napanee limestone plain between Trenton and Kingston, then, following a gap due to the Frontenac axis of granitic rocks, and/or Lake Ontario, appearing again in New York State at the east end of Lake Ontario and on the Smiths Falls limestone plain in the Ottawa Valley. A list of 347 vascular plant taxa found on alvars in seven alvar regions is included based on examination of 59 sites in Ontario, one in Ohio and three in New York State, as well as on the literature and on personal communications. On the basis of floristic composition and environmental factors, alyars may be divided into two types: shoreline alvars along rivers and lakes and plateau alvars. Four major plant communities related to soil depth and moisture availability are identified on plateau alvars: alvar grassland, alvar pavement, alvar savanna and pavement ridge. Biodiversity is highest on the alvars of western Lake Erie, Manitoulin Island and the Napanee Plain. The alvar floras of seven regions are apparent as three major groups in both a phenogram and in the principal coordinate plot derived from a matrix of Jaccard's coefficients: (1) the western Lake Erie alvars with a proportionally high component of plant species occurring to the south, but a relatively small proportion occuring to the north; (2) the alvars of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island with a high proportion of northern and endemic plant species at the expense of southern species; and (3) the alvars of central Ontario, eastern Ontario and northern New York with a moderate representation of plant species occurring also to the north, but the major proportion being southern species. The endemics and boreal elements of the northern Lake Huron alvars are probable relicts of the Picea Parkland and tundra-like environments that existed in front of th...

show abstract

A natural area inventory of Ames, Iowa

Cited by 3 publications

References 18 publications

The Role of an Urban Tallgrass Prairie Remnant in Conservation: A Case Study in Central Iowa (USA)

The Role of an Urban Tallgrass Prairie Remnant in Conservation: A Case Study in Central Iowa (USA)

Settling velocity and pollination dynamics in Diarrhena obovata, a grass of temperate forest edges and understories

A review of the alvars of the Great Lakes Region: Distribution, floristic composition, biogeography, and protection

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About