Timing and intensity of herbivory: Its influence on the performance of clonal woodland herbs
Dennis Whigham,
Anita Chapa,
Dennis Whigham
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Box 28, Edgewater, MD 21037, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAnita Chapa
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Box 28, Edgewater, MD 21037, USA
Search for more papers by this authorDennis Whigham,
Anita Chapa,
Dennis Whigham
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Box 28, Edgewater, MD 21037, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAnita Chapa
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Box 28, Edgewater, MD 21037, USA
Search for more papers by this author
Dennis Whigham Email: <[email protected]>
Abstract
Herbaceous woodland species account for a significant amount of the biodiversity of temperate deciduous forests. A wide diversity of life-history strategies is known for woodland herbs, and several systems have been used to categorize the range of life-history characteristics. Clonal growth, one common feature of many woodland herbaceous species, provides several benefits including the ability to respond to disturbances by sharing resources among ramets. There is evidence that resource sharing is common among ramets of some species of woodland herbs but not others. Herbivory is a common form of disturbance among woodland herbs, but little is known about effects of the timing and intensity of herbivory. In this paper, we use an existing system of classification of life-history traits of clonal species to make predictions about how woodland herbs would respond to the timing and intensity of defoliation. Examples from a preliminary study in Maryland, USA, are used to demonstrate that the timing and intensity of herbivory can play an important role in determining patterns of future growth and resource allocation.
References
- 1 Anderson R. C. (1994) Height of white-flowered Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) as an index of deer browsing intensity. Ecological Applications 4: 104–109.
- 2 Ashmun J. W., Thomas R. J., Pitelka L. F. (1982) Translocation of photoassimilates between sister ramets in two rhizomatous forest herbs. Annals of Botany 49: 403–415.
- 3 Balgooyen C. P. & Waller D. M. (1995) The use of Clintonia borealis and other indicators to gauge impacts of white-tailed deer on plant communities in northern Wisconsin, USA. Natural Areas Journal 15: 308–318.
- 4 Bazzaz F. A. & Bliss L. C. (1971) Net primary production of herbs in a central Illinois deciduous forest. Bulletin of the Torrey Botany Club 98: 90–94.
- 5 Benner B. L. & Watson M. A. (1989) Developmental ecology of mayapple: seasonal patterns of resource distribution in sexual and vegetative rhizome systems. Functional Ecology 3: 539–547.
- 6 Braun J. & Brooks G. R. (1987) Box turtles (Terrapene carolina) as potential agents for seed dispersal. American Midland Naturalist 117: 312–318.
- 7 Brunet J. (1993) Environmental and historical factors limiting the distribution of rare forest grasses in south Sweden. Forest Ecology and Management 61: 263–275.
- 8 Crozier C. R. & Boerner R. E. J. (1984) Correlations of understory herb distribution patterns with microhabitats under different tree species in a mixed mesophytic forest. Oecologia 62: 337–343.
- 9 Curtis J. T. (1992) The Vegetation of Wisconsin: An Ordination of Plant Communities. The University of Wisconsin Press, Madison.
- 10 Davis M. (1981) The effect of pollinators, predators, and energy constraints on the floral ecology and evolution of Trillium erectum. Oecologia 48: 400–406.
- 11 Delph L. F., Lu Y., Jayne L. D. (1993) Patterns of resource allocation in a dioecious Carex (Cyperaceae). American Journal of Botany 80: 607–615.
- 12 Eickmeier W. G. & Schussler E. E. (1993) Responses of the spring ephemeral Claytonia virginica L. to light and nutrient manipulations and implications for the ‘vernal-dam’ hypothesis. Bulletin of the Torrey Botany Club 120: 157–165.
- 13 Ericson L. & Oksanen L. (1987) The impact of controlled grazing by Clethrionomys rufocanus on experimental guilds of boreal forest floor herbs. Oikos 50: 403–416.
- 14 Ericson L. & Wennström L. (1997) The effect of herbivory on the interaction between the clonal plant Trientalis europaea and its smut fungus Urocystis trientalis. Oikos 80: 107–111.
- 15 Flanagan L. B. & Moser W. (1985) Flowering phenology, floral display and reproductive success in dioecious, Aralia nudicaulis L. (Araliaceae). Oecologia 68: 23–28.
- 16
Foerste A. F. (1891) On the formation of the flower buds of spring-blooming plants during the preceding summer.
Bulletin of the Torrey Botany Club
18: 101–106.
10.2307/2476568 Google Scholar
- 17 Gerber M. A., Watson M. A., De Kroon H. (1997) Organ preformation, development, and resource allocation in perennials. In: Plant Resource Allocation (eds F. A. Bazzaz & J. Grace) pp. 113–41. Academic Press, New York.
- 18 Givnish T. J. (1983) Biomechanical constraints on crown geometry in forest herbs. In: On the Economy of Plant Form and Function (ed. T. J. Givnish) pp. 525–583. Cambridge University Press, New York.
- 19 Givnish T. J. (1987) Comparative studies of leaf form: assessing the relative roles of selective pressures and phylogenetic constraints. New Phytologist 106: 131–160.
- 20 Handel S. N. (1978) The competitive relationship of three woodland sedges and its bearing on the evolution of ant-dispersal of Carex pedunculata. Evolution 32: 151–163.
- 21 Hutchings M. J. & Bradbury I. K. (1986) Ecological perspectives on clonal perennial herbs. Bioscience 36: 178–182.
- 22 Hutchings M. J. & Mogie M. (1990) The spatial structure of clonal plants: Control and consequences. In: Clonal Growth in Plants: Regulation and Function (eds J. van Groenendael & H. de Kroon) pp. 57–76. SPB Academic Publishing, The Hague.
- 23 Jónsdóttir I. S. & Watson M. A. (1997) Extensive physiological integration: an adaptive trait in resource-poor environments? In: The Ecology and Evolution of Clonal Plants (eds H. de Kroon & J. van Groenendael) pp. 109–36. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden.
- 24 John E. & Turkington R. (1997) A 5-year study of the effects of nutrient availability and herbivory on two boreal forest herbs. Journal of Ecology 85: 419–430.
- 25 Kawano S. (1975) The productive and reproductive biology of flowering plants. II. The concept of life history strategy in plants. Journal of the College of Liberal Arts, Toyama University 8: 51–86.
- 26 Klimes L. K., Klimesová J., Hendriks R., Van Groenendael J. (1997) Clonal plant architecture: a comparative analysis of form and function. In: The Ecology and Evolution of Clonal Plants (eds H. de Kroon & J. van Groenendael) pp. 1–29. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden.
- 27 Knight G. H. (1964) Some factors affecting the distribution of Endymion nonscriptus (L.) Garcke in Warwickshire Woods. Journal of Ecology 52: 405–456.
- 28 De Kroon H., Whigham D. F., Watson M. A. (1991) Developmental ecology of mayapple: effects of rhizome severing, fertilization and timing of shoot senescence. Functional Ecology 5: 360–368.
- 29 Kudoh H., Shibaike H., Takasu H., Whigham D. F.,, Kawano S. (1999) Genet structure and determinants of clonal structure in a temperate deciduous woodland herb, Uvularia perfoliata. Journal of Ecology.
- 30 Landa K., Benner B., Watson M., Gartner J. (1992) Physiological integration for carbon in mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum), a clonal perennial herb. Oikos 63: 348–356.
- 31 Lubbers A. E. & Lechowicz M. J. (1989) Effects of leaf removal on reproduction vs. belowground storage in Trillium grandiflorum. Ecology 70: 85–96.
- 32 Marshall C. (1990) Source-sink relations of interconnected ramets. In: Clonal Growth in Plants (eds J. van Groenendael & H. de Kroon) pp. 23–42. SPB Academic Publishing, The Hague.
- 33 Matlack G. R. (1987) Comparative demographies of four adjacent populations of the perennial herb Silene dioica (Caryophyllaceae). Journal of Ecology 75: 113–134.
- 34 Peterson D. L. & Rolf G. L. (1982) Nutrient dynamics of herbaceous vegetation in upland floodplain forest communities. American Midland Naturalist 107: 325–339.
- 35 Policansky D. (1983) Patches, clones and self-fertility of mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum L.) Rhodora 85: 253–256.
- 36 Price E. A. C. & Hutchings M. J. (1992) Studies of growth in the clonal herb Glechoma hederacea. II. The effects of selective defoliation. Journal of Ecology 80: 39–47.
- 37 Price E. A. C., Marshall C., Hutchings M. J. (1992) Studies of growth in the clonal herb Glechoma hederacea. I. Patterns of physiological integration. Journal of Ecology 80: 25–38.
- 38 Primack R. B., Miao S. L., Becker K. R. (1994) Costs of reproduction in the Pink Lady’s Slipper orchid (Cypripedium acaule): defoliation, increased fruit production, and fire. American Journal of Botany 81: 1083–1090.
- 39 Ramsey G. W., Leys C. H., Wright R. A. S., Coleman D. A., Neas A. O., Stevens C. E. (1993) Vascular flora of the James River gorge watersheds in the central Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia. Castanea 58: 260–300.
- 40 Rockwood L. L. & Lobstein M. B. (1994) The effects of experimental defoliation on reproduction in four species of herbaceous perennials from northern Virginia. Castanea 59: 41–50.
- 41 Rooney T. P. (1997) Species loss over sixty years in the ground-layer vegetation of Heart’s Content, an old-growth forest in Pennsylvania, USA. Natural Areas Journal 17,: 297–305.
- 42 Rooney T. P. & Dress W. J. (1997) Patterns of plant diversity in overbrowsed primary and mature secondary hemlock-northern hardwood forest stands. Journal of Torrey Botanical Club 124: 43–51.
- 43 Schemske D. W. (1977) Flowering phenology and seed set in Claytonia virginica (Portulacaceae). Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 104: 254–263.
- 44 Schreiner E. G., Krueger K. A., Happe P. J., Houston D. B. (1996) Understory patch dynamics and ungulate herbivory in old-growth forests of Olympic National Park Washington. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 26: 255–265.
- 45 Siccama T. G., Bormann F. H., Likens G. E. (1970) The Hubbard Brook ecosystem study: productivity, nutrients, and phytosociology of the herbaceous layer. Ecological Monographs 40: 389–402.
- 46 Slade A. J. & Hutchings M. J. (1987) The effects of nutrient availability on foraging in the clonal herb Glechoma hederacea. Journal of Ecology 75: 95–112.
- 47 Sohn J. L. & Policansky D. (1977) The costs of reproduction in the mayapple Podophyllum peltatum (Berberidaceae). Ecology 58: 1366–1374.
- 48 Sparling J. H. (1967) Assimilation rates of some woodland herbs in Ontario. Botany Gazette 128: 160–168.
- 49 Tilghman N. G. (1989) Impacts of white-tailed deer on forest regeneration in northwestern Pennsylvania. Journal of Wildlife Management 53: 524–532.
- 50 Waller D. M. & Alverson W. S. (1997) The white-tailed deer: a keystone herbivore. Wildlife Society Bulletin 25: 217–226.
- 51 Watson M. A. (1995) Sexual differences in plant developmental phenology affect plant–herbivore interactions. Trees 10: 180–182.
- 52 Whigham D. F. (1974) An ecological life history study of Uvularia perfoliata L. American Midland Naturalist 91: 343–359.
- 53 Whigham D. F. (1990) The effect of experimental defoliation on the growth and reproduction of a woodland orchid, Tipularia discolor. Canadian Journal of Botany 68: 1812–1816.
- 54 Whigham D. F. & O’Neill J. (1991) The dynamics of flowering and fruit production in two eastern North American terrestrial orchids, Tipularia discolor and Liparis lilifolia. In: Population Ecology of Terrestrial Orchids (eds T. C. E. Wells & J. H. Willems) pp. 89–101. SPB Academic Publishing, The Hague.
- 55 Wijesinghe D. K. & Whigham D. F. (1997) Costs of producing clonal offspring and the effects of plant size on populations dynamics of the woodland herb Uvularia perfoliata (Liliaceae). Journal of Ecology 85: 907–919.
- 56 Wilbur R. L. (1963) A revision of the North American genus Uvularia (Liliaceae). Rhodora 8: 158–188.
- 57 Zimmerman J. K. & Whigham D. F. (1992) Ecological functions of carbohydrates stored in corms of Tipularia discolor (Orchidaceae). Functional Ecology 6: 575–581.
