Vegetation variation across Cape Cod, Massachusetts: environmental and historical determinants

Abstract

Aim We evaluate environmental and historical determinants of modern species composition for upland vegetation types across Cape Cod, Massachusetts, a region that supports numerous uncommon species assemblages that are conservation priorities.Location The study area encompasses the entire peninsula of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA.Methods Historical changes in land-use and land-cover across the study region were determined from historical maps and documentary sources. Modern vegetation and soils were sampled and land-use and fire history determined for 352 stratified-random study plots. Ordination and classification were used to assess vegetation variation, and G-tests of independence and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to evaluate relationships among individual species distributions, past land-use, surficial landforms and edaphic conditions.Results At the scale of this investigation, modern species distributions result from individualistic response to a range of environmental and historical factors, including geography, substrate and disturbance history, especially the pattern of past agricultural activity. The structure or composition of all vegetation types in the region have been shaped by past land-use, fire, or other disturbances, and vegetation patterns will continue to change through time. Conservation efforts aimed at maintaining early successional vegetation types may require intensive management comparable in intensity to the historical disturbances that allowed for their widespread development.

Shrubland Lepidoptera of southern New England and southeastern New York: ecology, conservation, and management

“…In southern New England and southeastern New York, pitch pine-scrub oak barrens occur on glacial outwash deposits characterized by acidic, sandy soils (Motzkin et al, , 2002bFoster et al, 2002;Parshall and Foster, 2002), or on rocky summits and ridges of acidic bedrock (Motzkin et al, 2002c). Such soils hold little water and periods of drought are common, especially during late summer and early autumn.…”

“…Historically, fire has been a common natural disturbance in sandplain pitch pine-scrub oak barrens throughout this region Motzkin et al, 1999Motzkin et al, , 2002bFoster et al, 2002;Parshall and Foster, 2002;Lorimer and White, 2003). The historic frequency and large extent of fires in sandplain barrens can be explained in large part by the dry environment and highly flammable vegetation characteristic of such communities .…”

“…During the second half of the 20th century, modern fire detection and suppression practices have greatly limited the frequency and extent of fires in sandplain pitch pine-scrub oak barrens of southern New England and southeastern New York Motzkin et al, 1999Motzkin et al, , 2002bFoster et al, 2002;Lorimer and White, 2003). If fire exclusion continues in these areas, the varied age structure and species composition of the plant community will likely change (Lorimer and White, 2003).…”

“…If fire exclusion continues in these areas, the varied age structure and species composition of the plant community will likely change (Lorimer and White, 2003). Eventually, white pine (Pinus strobus) and shade-tolerant hardwoods will replace barrens vegetation (Motzkin et al, , 2002b, and important habitat will be lost. Many of the 56 rare species of Lepidoptera listed in Table 1 appear to reach greatest population densities within (or indeed, are entirely restricted to) open-canopy shrubland barrens.…”

Ecological patterns and sustainability of freshwater swamp forest ecosystems: assessing climate and disturbance interactions

“…While these patterns operate over varied spatial scales (Eiserhardt et al, 2011), their role in determining the floristic composition have mainly been attributed to climatic factors (Pyke et al, 2001;Parmentier et al, 2007); soil and topography (Phillips et al, 2003;Chain-Guadarrama et al, 2012;Bueno et al, 2013;Mwakalukwa et al, 2014); and more recently, natural and anthropogenic disturbances (Lugo & Scatena, 1996;Motzkin et al, 2002). Even though the role of climatic and edaphic factors has been established in defining the species distribution within tropical forests, their patterns have however varied across the tropics.…”