Patch-scale effects of equine disturbance on arthropod assemblages and vegetation structure in subalpine wetlands.
Abstract: Assessments of vertebrate disturbance to plant and animal assemblages often contrast grazed versus ungrazed meadows or other larger areas of usage, and this approach can be powerful. Random sampling of such habitats carries the potential, however, for smaller, more intensely affected patches to be missed and for other responses that are only revealed at smaller scales to also escape detection. We instead sampled arthropod assemblages and vegetation structure at the patch scale (400-900 m(2) patches) within subalpine wet meadows of Yosemite National Park (USA), with the goal of determining if there were fine-scale differences in magnitude and directionality of response at three levels of grazing intensity. Effects were both stronger and more nuanced than effects evidenced by previous random sampling of paired grazed and ungrazed meadows: (a) greater negative effects on vegetation structure and fauna in heavily used patches, but (b) some positive effects on fauna in lightly grazed patches, suggested by trends for mean richness and total and population abundances. Although assessment of disturbance at either patch or landscape scales should be appropriate, depending on the management question at hand, our patch-scale work demonstrated that there can be strong local effects on the ecology of these wetlands that may not be detected by comparing larger scale habitats.
Publication Date: 2014-04-09 PubMed ID: 24715003DOI: 10.1007/s00267-014-0266-2Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- U.S. Gov't
- Non-P.H.S.
Summary
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The research study focuses on the impact of equine grazing on the structure of vegetation and arthropod communities in patches of subalpine wet meadows in Yosemite National Park, USA. It’s been found that there are strong local effects depending on the grazing intensity; negative in heavily grazed patches, and surprisingly, positive with light grazing.
Research Context and Approach
- The research aims to address a gap in vertebrate disturbance studies which usually compare grazed and ungrazed meadows but misses smaller patches with more intense effects. It also aims to reveal responses that are only detectable at smaller scales.
- The study focuses on a finer scale of examination, observing 400-900 m² patches within the larger subalpine wet meadows.
Levels of Grazing Intensity
- The researchers assessed how vegetation and arthropod communities responded to three distinct levels of grazing intensity.
- These levels can be understood as the differences between areas with heavy, light, and no horse grazing.
Findings and Interpretation
- The effects of grazing were found to be stronger and more nuanced at the patch level than what previous larger-scale studies indicate with two major outcomes: Negative effects in heavily grazed patches and positive effects in lightly grazed patches.
- Heavy grazing led to more negative impacts on vegetation structure as well as on insect and spider (arthropod) populations. This could be due to the physical damage and habitat alteration caused by the intense grazing.
- Interestingly, lightly grazed patches showed some positive effects on the arthropod communities, with trends for increased richness and total and population abundances. This suggests that light grazing could potentially improve habitat conditions for certain arthropods.
Implications and Future Work
- The findings suggest that assessment of disturbance effects can benefit from focusing on finer scales such as patch scales, in addition to larger landscape scales. This is because certain ecological effects may not be detected when comparing larger habitats.
- While either scale could be appropriate depending on the management question, this study highlights the complexities and nuances of equine disturbance on these ecosystems and the importance of further research at various scales.
Cite This Article
APA
Holmquist JG, Schmidt-Gengenbach J, Ballenger EA.
(2014).
Patch-scale effects of equine disturbance on arthropod assemblages and vegetation structure in subalpine wetlands.
Environ Manage, 53(6), 1109-1118.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-014-0266-2 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- White Mountain Research Center, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California Los Angeles, 3000 East Line Street, Bishop, CA, 93514, USA, jholmquist@ucla.edu.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Arthropods
- Ecosystem
- Feeding Behavior
- Horses
- Plants, Edible
- Population Dynamics
- Wetlands
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