Multiple factors limit use of local sites by Elliot’s short-tailed shrews (Blarina hylophaga) in tallgrass prairie

2012 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 210-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.A. Kaufman ◽  
R.S. Matlack ◽  
D.W. Kaufman ◽  
J.J. Higgins
Keyword(s):  
Tallgrass Prairie ◽  
Logistic Model ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Deer Mice ◽  
Burned Area ◽  
Konza Prairie ◽  
Low Area ◽  
Multiple Factors ◽  
Local Site ◽  
Blarina Hylophaga

Spatial variation in abundance has been attributed to habitat heterogeneity and patchiness. Our goal in this research was to understand what factors were associated with spatial patterns of habitat use by Elliot’s short-tailed shrews ( Blarina hylophaga Elliot, 1899) in tallgrass prairie. Our modeling efforts were based on 20 years (1981–2000) of presence–absence data for shrews at each of 20 stations (local site) along 14 permanent traplines on Konza Prairie Biological Station, Kansas, USA. A logistic model accurately predicted the presence of short-tailed shrews at a local site. Probability of shrew occurrence decreased as amount of precipitation decreased, slope steepness increased, grazing increased, or burned area within 500 m of a local site increased. However, when amount of precipitation was low, area burned was high, or grazing occurred, shrews were uncommon and responded little to the other variables. Numbers of shrews were negatively related only to numbers of deer mice ( Peromyscus maniculatus (Wagner, 1845)), a mouse that selects burned and grazed habitats that shrews avoid. Our observations suggest that multiple environmental factors limit use of local sites, whereas competition with other species does not. Our results can inform decisions related to conservation of biodiversity given management practices in this endangered ecosystem.

Short-term responses of small mammals to experimental fire in tallgrass prairie

1990 ◽  
Vol 68 (11) ◽  
pp. 2450-2454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bryon K. Clark ◽  
Donald W. Kaufman
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Tallgrass Prairie ◽  
Positive Response ◽  
Control Site ◽  
Microtus Ochrogaster ◽  
Burned Area ◽  
Konza Prairie ◽  
Natural Area ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Blarina Hylophaga

Short-term responses of small mammals to experimental fire were examined in a 13-ha site on the Konza Prairie Research Natural Area, Kansas. A 6.1-ha portion was burned in spring 1987, whereas the 6.9-ha control site was left unburned in 1987, as was the entire 13 ha in spring 1986. In the absence of fire, < 1% of all small mammals (n = 130) caught in both March and April 1986 completely shifted from one area to the opposite area. No differences occurred in appearance of new individuals between the two areas in April 1986. In April 1987, all Reithrodontomys megalotis (n = 14) and Microtus ochrogaster (n = 6) caught in the burned area before fire and recaught after fire moved to the unburned area, but no individual from either species moved the opposite way. Most Synaptomys cooperi (75%, n = 4) moved away from the burned area, but no animals were available to test for movements into the burned area. Most new individuals for fire-negative species were captured in the unburned area after fire: 93% of R. megalotis (n = 46), 96% of Blarina hylophaga (n = 27), 100% of M. ochrogaster (n = 4), and 100% of S. cooperi (n = 1). In contrast, Peromyscus maniculatus exhibited a fire-positive response, with one of four moving from unburned to burned and none of five moving the opposite way, and most new individuals recorded after fire were in the burned area (88%, n = 24).

scholarly journals Tallgrass Prairie Responses to Management Practices and Disturbances: A Review

Agronomy ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pradeep Wagle ◽  
Prasanna Gowda
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Tallgrass Prairie ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
The United States ◽  
N Fertilization ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
The Impact

Adoption of better management practices is crucial to lessen the impact of anthropogenic disturbances on tallgrass prairie systems that contribute heavily for livestock production in several states of the United States. This article reviews the impacts of different common management practices and disturbances (e.g., fertilization, grazing, burning) and tallgrass prairie restoration on plant growth and development, plant species composition, water and nutrient cycles, and microbial activities in tallgrass prairie. Although nitrogen (N) fertilization increases aboveground productivity of prairie systems, several factors greatly influence the range of stimulation across sites. For example, response to N fertilization was more evident on frequently or annually burnt sites (N limiting) than infrequently burnt and unburnt sites (light limiting). Frequent burning increased density of C4 grasses and decreased plant species richness and diversity, while plant diversity was maximized under infrequent burning and grazing. Grazing increased diversity and richness of native plant species by reducing aboveground biomass of dominant grasses and increasing light availability for other species. Restored prairies showed lower levels of species richness and soil quality compared to native remnants. Infrequent burning, regular grazing, and additional inputs can promote species richness and soil quality in restored prairies. However, this literature review indicated that all prairie systems might not show similar responses to treatments as the response might be influenced by another treatment, timing of treatments, and duration of treatments (i.e., short-term vs. long-term). Thus, it is necessary to examine the long-term responses of tallgrass prairie systems to main and interacting effects of combination of management practices under diverse plant community and climatic conditions for a holistic assessment.

Long-Term Variation in Abundance of Elliot's Short-Tailed Shrew (Blarina hylophaga) in Tallgrass Prairie

2002 ◽  
Vol 83 (1) ◽  
pp. 280-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. S. Matlack ◽  
D. W. Kaufman ◽  
G. A. Kaufman ◽  
B. R. Mcmillan
Keyword(s):  
Tallgrass Prairie ◽  
Term Variation ◽  
Blarina Hylophaga

Climate Variability in Tallgrass Prairie at Multiple Timescales: Konza Prairie Biological Station

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas G. Goodin ◽  
Philip A. Fay
Keyword(s):  
Climate Variability ◽  
Tallgrass Prairie ◽  
Primary Productivity ◽  
Net Primary Productivity ◽  
Konza Prairie ◽  
Central Plains ◽  
Atmospheric Processes ◽  
Biological Station ◽  
The North ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation

Climate is a fundamental driver of ecosystem structure and function (Prentice et al. 1992). Historically, North American grassland and forest biomes have fluctuated across the landscape in step with century- to millennialscale climate variability (Axelrod 1985; Ritchie 1986). Climate variability of at decadal scale, such as the severe drought of the 1930s in the Central Plains of North America, caused major shifts in grassland plant community composition (Weaver 1954, 1968). However, on a year-to-year basis, climate variability is more likely to affect net primary productivity (NPP; Briggs and Knapp 1995; Knapp et al. 1998; Briggs and Knapp 2001). This is especially true for grasslands, which have recently been shown to display greater variability in net primary production in response to climate variability than forest, desert, or arctic/alpine systems (Knapp and Smith 2001). Although the basic relationships among interannual variability in rainfall, temperature, and grassland NPP have been well studied (Sala et al. 1988; Knapp et al. 1998; Alward et al. 1999), the linkages to major causes of climate variability at quasi-quintennial (~5 years) or interdecadal (~10 year) timescales in the North American continental interior, such as solar activity cycles, the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), and the North Pacific Index (NP), are less well understood. In this chapter, we will examine how interannual, quasi-quintennial, and interdecadal variation in annual precipitation and mean annual temperature at a tallgrass prairie site (Konza Prairie Biological Station) may be related to indexes of solar activity, ENSO, NAO, and NP, and in turn how these indexes may be related to aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP). Specifically, we present (1) period-spectrum analyses to characterize the predominant timescales of temperature and precipitation variability at Konza Prairie, (2) correlation analyses of quantitative indexes of the major atmospheric processes with Konza temperature and precipitation records, and (3) the implications of variation in major atmospheric processes for seasonal and interannual patterns of ANPP. The Konza Prairie Biological Station (KNZ), which lies in the Flint Hills (39º05' N, 96º35' W), is a 1.6-million-ha region spanning eastern Kansas from the Nebraska border to northeastern Oklahoma (figure 20.1). This region is the largest remaining tract of unbroken tallgrass prairie in North America (Samson and Knopf 1994) and falls in the more mesic eastern portion of the Central Plains grasslands.

Competition and coexistence in grassland codominants: responses to neighbour removal and resource availability

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (4) ◽  
pp. 450-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea M Silletti ◽  
Alan K Knapp ◽  
John M Blair
Keyword(s):  
Tallgrass Prairie ◽  
Competitive Exclusion ◽  
Net Photosynthesis ◽  
Andropogon Gerardii ◽  
Sorghastrum Nutans ◽  
Konza Prairie ◽  
Plant Removal ◽  
Anthropogenic Alterations ◽  
Prairie Plant

We examined the role of interspecific competition in the regulation of abundance and coexistence of the dominant grasses in tallgrass prairie using a removal experiment with Andropogon gerardii Vitman and Sorghastrum nutans L. Nash, two of the most abundant grasses in tallgrass prairie. Plant removal treatments (using foliar herbicide), applied to 0.3-m2 plots at the Konza Prairie Biological Station (northeast Kansas, USA), included removal of all A. gerardii, removal of all S. nutans, and no removal. To determine whether soil fertility altered the outcome, we included a fertilizer addition treatment (10 g N·m–2) fully crossed with the removal treatments. Andropogon gerardii removal resulted in significantly increased net photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and tiller mass in S. nutans. Sorghastrum nutans removal had little effect on A. gerardii, suggesting asymmetric competition. Fertilizer significantly increased tiller mass and flowering stalk production in S. nutans, but had little effect on A. gerardii. The ability of A. gerardii to suppress the performance of S. nutans is consistent with the greater abundance of A. gerardii over much of the tallgrass prairie, while the ability of S. nutans to take advantage of increased resources may be one mechanism by which it avoids competitive exclusion. Because of the greater variability in the performance of S. nutans than in that of A. gerardii, any natural or anthropogenic alterations to this grassland that lead to shifts in dominance between these species may affect ecosystem productivity and stability.Key words: Andropogon gerardii, competition, grassland, neighbour removal, photosynthesis, Sorghastrum nutans, tallgrass prairie.

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