Comparison of Biomass Recovery after Fire of a Seeder (Ceratiola ericoides) and a Sprouter (Quercus inopina) Species from South-Central Florida

Johnson, Ann F.; Abrahamson, Warren G.; McCrea, Kenneth D.

doi:10.2307/2425751

Cited by 20 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…These results suggest that there may be little sharing of reserves among ramets and that there is limited integration of ramets within the same genotype in the absence of fire, as individual oak clones typically contain a mix of small and large ramets (Johnson, Abrahamson, and McCrea, 1986; A. F. Johnson and W. G. Abrahamson, unpublished data). Longterm data for oak size-class distribution within these vegetation associations and for individual ramets of Q. inopina show that ramets of a single genotype do not senesce at the same size or age and that there is appreciable turnover of ramets even in the absence of fire (Givens et al, 1984;Menges et al, 1993;A.…”

Section: Influence Of Ramet Size and Vegetation Association Onmentioning

confidence: 95%

Relation of ramet size to acorn production in five oak species of xeric upland habitats in south‐central Florida

Abrahamson

Layne

2002

American J of Botany

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This study examined variation in two components of acorn production. Percentage of bearing ramets (stems) and number of acorns per bearing ramet were examined in five clonal oaks in three xeric habitats of south-central peninsular Florida in relation to ramet size within and between species and vegetative associations. Counts of acorns on two white oaks (Quercus chapmanii and Q. geminata) and three red oaks (Q. inopina, Q. laevis, and Q. myrtifolia) were conducted annually from 1969 to 1996 (except in 1991) on permanent grids in southern ridge sandhill, sand pine scrub, and scrubby flatwoods associations at the Archbold Biological Station, Florida, USA. Percentage of bearing individuals and mean number of acorns per bearing individual increased with increasing ramet size for all species across all vegetation associations. However, in Q. geminata and Q. myrtifolia, acorn production declined in the largest size class (>3.2 m), implying that larger individuals of these clonal species may become senescent. All oak species in sand pine scrub, which had a nearly closed overstory, had lower frequencies of bearing oaks and mean numbers of acorns compared with similar-sized individuals of the same species in the more open-canopied southern ridge sandhill and scrubby flatwoods associations, suggesting light limitation. The annual production of acorns by a given oak species was correlated across vegetative associations and annual acorn production of oak species was correlated for species within the same section. Intermediate-size class oaks contributed the most acorns per unit area, suggesting that stands managed with short fire-return times will provide fewer acorns to wildlife than stands managed to produce more variable distributions of oak size classes. However, our study suggests that long-unburned stands, such as those studied here, will maintain relatively constant levels of acorn production as a consequence of ramet replacement within the clones of these shrubby oaks to create a variable distribution of size classes. Of the oak species studied, Q. myrtifolia had the highest acorn production and the smallest acorns, while Q. laevis had the lowest acorn production and the largest acorns, suggesting an allocation trade-off between acorn numbers and size.

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Section: Influence Of Ramet Size and Vegetation Association Onmentioning

confidence: 95%

Relation of ramet size to acorn production in five oak species of xeric upland habitats in south‐central Florida

Abrahamson

Layne

2002

American J of Botany

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“…The lifetime fitness of plants growing in resource-limited environments, such as these oaks, would likely increase if reproduction during less favorable times is postponed in order to survive unfavorable conditions, gain vegetative mass to facilitate greater future reproductive output, or accumulate the resources necessary to produce a more sizeable fruit crop in a subsequent year (Abrahamson and Gadgil 1973, Abrahamson 1979, Waller 1979, Silvertown 1980, Sork 1993b, Sork et al 1993. Indeed, an examination of biomass allocation in Q. inopina, the most clonal of the five oaks studied, found that on average only ϳ25% of each ramet's mass is allocated to aboveground organs (Johnson et al 1986). This allocation pattern is one that implies the importance of mass accumulation and longevity.…”

Section: Endogenous Cycles and External Influencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-Term Patterns of Acorn Production for Five Oak Species in Xeric Florida Uplands

Abrahamson

Layne

2003

Ecology

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The number of seeds produced by a population of woody plants can vary markedly from year to year. Unfortunately, knowledge of the patterns and causes of crop‐size variation is limited, and most studies have examined only single species in a single mesic environment. We examined long‐term patterns of acorn crop sizes for five species of shrubby oaks in three xeric upland vegetative associations of south‐central peninsular Florida for evidence of regular fruiting cycles and in relation to winter temperature and precipitation. Counts of acorns on two white oak species (Quercus chapmanii and Q. geminata) and three red oak species (Q. inopina, Q. laevis, and Q. myrtifolia) were conducted annually from 1969 to 1996 (except in 1991) on grids in southern ridge sandhill, sand pine scrub, and scrubby flatwoods associations. As the result of the dissimilar timing of reproductive events in species of red and white oaks and individual species responses to climatic variables, annual acorn production of red and white oak species in a given vegetation association were not synchronized, which dampened the variability of combined annual acorn production. Consequently, acorns were produced with reasonable abundance every year by at least one species. Oaks of nearly closed‐canopy scrub produced fewer acorns than similar‐sized oaks of the same species in the more open‐canopied sandhill and scrubby flatwoods, suggesting light limitation. We identified regular cycles of acorn production that ranged from 2 to 2.4 yr for white oak species and from 3.6 to 5.5 yr for red oak species and found evidence that annual acorn production is affected by the interactions of precipitation, which is highly variable seasonally and annually in peninsular Florida, with endogenous reproductive patterns. Multiple regression models using precipitation variables accounted for as much as 74% of crop‐size variation in Q. inopina, 65% in Q. laevis, 60% in Q. chapmanii, and 44% in Q. geminata, but only 29% for Q. myrtifolia. In contrast, acorn production showed no significant association with minimum winter temperatures. Of the various hypotheses offered to explain supra‐annual variation in seed crops, our data are most compatible with the nonadaptive resource‐matching hypothesis.

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“…Occasional high-intensity ®res kill standing Florida rosemary individuals, enlarge open sand areas and decrease lichen cover (Johnson 1982;Abrahamson et al 1984;Abrahamson 1984a, b;Myers 1985Myers , 1990Menges and Kohfeldt 1995;Hawkes and Menges 1996). The slow recovery growth rate of Florida rosemary and lichens, and limited colonization of available space by other woody species, allow large openings to persist in the rosemary scrub for decades after a ®re (Johnson et al 1986;Hawkes and Menges 1996). These sandy open areas in the rosemary scrub provide microhabitats for a large group of endangered and endemic herb species (Abrahamson et al 1984a;Christman and Judd 1990;Menges 1995, 1996;Menges and Kimmich 1996), many of which are killed by ®re and regenerate from seeds (Abrahamson 1984a;Johnson and Abrahamson 1990;Hawkes and Menges 1995;Menges and Kohfeldt 1995;Menges and Kimmich 1996).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fire-mediated effects of shrubs, lichens and herbs on the demography of Hypericum cumulicola in patchy Florida scrub

Quintana‐Ascencio

Morales-Hernández

1997

Oecologia

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Understanding the effect of disturbance and interspecific interactions on population dynamics and availability of suitable habitats for colonization and growth is critical for conservation and management of endangered species. Hypericum cumulicola is a narrowly endemic, small perennial herb virtually restricted to open areas of well-drained white sand in Florida rosemary scrub, a naturally patchy community that burns about every 20-80 years. Over 1 year (September 1994 to September 1995) we evaluated variation in survival, growth and fecundity among 1214 individuals in 14 rosemary scrub patches of different sizes (0.09-1.85 ha) and fire histories (2, 8-10, and >20 years since the last fire). Fire kills aboveground individuals of H. cumulicola, but new individuals were present a year after fire. Recruitment decreased in patches more than a decade post-fire. Survival, annual height growth rate, and fecundity (number of flowers and fruits) were higher in recently burned patches. Scrub patch size did not affect these demographic variables. Survival was positively associated with the presence of conspecifics and negatively related to proximity to the dominant shrub Florida rosemary (Ceratiola ericoides), prior reproductive output, and ground lichen cover. Since H. cumulicola and other herbaceous species in the rosemary scrub depend on sporadic fires to decrease interference of shrubs and ground lichens, its persistence may be threatened by fire suppression.

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Comparison of Biomass Recovery after Fire of a Seeder (Ceratiola ericoides) and a Sprouter (Quercus inopina) Species from South-Central Florida

Cited by 20 publications

References 8 publications

Relation of ramet size to acorn production in five oak species of xeric upland habitats in south‐central Florida

Relation of ramet size to acorn production in five oak species of xeric upland habitats in south‐central Florida

Long-Term Patterns of Acorn Production for Five Oak Species in Xeric Florida Uplands

Fire-mediated effects of shrubs, lichens and herbs on the demography of Hypericum cumulicola in patchy Florida scrub

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