Herbivore exclosure and competitor removal: Effects on juvenile survivorship and growth in the shrub Gutierrezia microcephala
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Authors: M. A. Parker, and A. G. Salzman
Date: 1985
Journal: Journal of Ecology
Volume: 73
Number: 3
Pages: 903-913
Summary of Methods: The effects of grasshopper herbivory and competition on threadleaf snakeweed plants were measured in the Bernalillo watershed in central New Mexico. Eight treatment combinations (protected vs. non-protected; control, elimination of threadleaf snakeweed plants only, elimination of grass plants only, elimination of both grass and threadleaf snakeweed plants) were applied to 480 two-year old threadleaf snakeweed plants. Over the two years of the study, stem counts and plant heights were conducted on two-year old snakeweed plants before and after grasshoppers were known to invade the site.
Article Summary / Main Points: Plants exposed to grasshopper herbivory with less competition (clipping of grasses and snakeweed surrounding the individual) had lower mortality rates and were able to generate more stems per plant than snakeweed plants with competition. Protection from grasshopper herbivory and not plant competition was the most influential factor for stem counts and plant height in this study.
Vegetation Types: Mountain Shrublands Pinyon-Juniper Woodlands (includes juniper woodlands)
MLRA Ecoregions: 36 Southwestern Plateaus, Mesas, and Foothills 39 Arizona and New Mexico Mountains
Agrovoc Control Words: Weeds Rangelands Grasshoppers
Article Review Type: Refereed
Article Type: Experimental Research
Keywords: grasshopper herbivory, plant mortality, plant height, stem count, hesperotettix viridis, snakeweeds, plant distribution, plant competition
Annotation: This study examined insect herbivory and not ungulate herbivory.
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