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193 results for “browsing”
Effects of different moose browsing pressures on the succession of plant communities within the herbaceous and saplings layers of a boreal forest
<p>The present data is constituted of four different excel files: browsing data, herbs layer data, saplings layer data and latin names data.</p> <p>1) Browsing data contains the number of browsed and unbrowsed twigs from all ligneous plants in the samplings plots along time.</p> <p>2) Herbs layer data contains the cumulated cover of all plants species along 14 three meters long and one meter high transcects within each experimental units.</p> <p>3) Saplings layer data contains the number of saplings from each species within each experimental units (280 m2).</p> <p>4) Latin names data contains the latin names corresponding to the different species codes found within the herbs and saplings data.</p> <p>All data sets contain his metadata sheet.</p>
Red oak seedlings as indicators of deer browse pressure: gauging the outcome of different white-tailed deer management approaches
<p>After decades of high deer populations, North America forests have lost much of their previous biodiversity. Any landscape-level recovery requires substantial reductions in deer herds, but modern societies and wildlife management agencies appear unable to devise appropriate solutions to this chronic ecological and human health crisis. We evaluated the effectiveness of fertility control hunting in reducing deer impacts at Cornell University. We estimated spring deer populations and planted <i>Quercus rubra</i> seedlings to assess deer browse pressure, rodent attack, and other factors compromising seedling performance. Oak seedlings protected in cages grew well, but deer annually browsed ≥ 60% of unprotected seedlings. Despite female sterilization rates of > 90%, the deer population remained stable. Neither sterilization nor recreational hunting reduced deer browse rates and neither appears able to achieve reductions in deer populations or their impacts. We eliminated deer sterilization and recreational hunting in a core management area in favor of allowing volunteer archers to shoot deer over bait, including at night. This resulted in a substantial reduction in the deer population and a linear decline in browse rates as a function of the spring deer abundance. Public trust stewardship of North American landscapes will require a fundamental overhaul in deer management to may provide for a brighter future, and oak sentinels may be a promising metric to assess changes. These changes will require intense public debate and may require new approaches such as regulated commercial hunting and the natural dispersal or intentional release of important deer predators (e.g., wolves and mountain lions). Such drastic changes in deer management will be highly controversial, and at present, likely difficult to implement in North America. However, the future of our forest ecosystems and associated biodiversity will depend on evidence and guided change in landscape management and stewardship.</p>
Dynamic effects of insect herbivory and climate on tundra shrub growth: roles of browsing and ramet age
1. To predict shrub responses under climate change in tundra, we need to understand how thermal conditions and herbivory contribute to growth. We hypothesise that shrub growth increases with thermal conditions and precipitation, but that this increase is counteracted by insect herbivory, and that these climate-insect herbivory relationships are modified by both browsing and plant age. 2. We use empirical dynamic modelling (EDM) to analyse a 20-year time series on willow (Salix phylicifolia) shoot growth, growing degree days, summer precipitation and herbivory from an experiment at forest-tundra ecotone. The experiment includes manipulations of avian and mammal browsing (fences) and ramet age (pruning to rejuvenate willows). 3. Negative effects of insect herbivory on willow shoot growth were intensified during warmer years, whereas increasing precipitation led to reduced effects. Moreover, the effect of insect herbivores on shoot growth varied with ramet age and vertebrate browsing: Younger ramets generally experienced less negative insect herbivore effects, whereas Ptarmigan browsing was associated with more positive temperature effect on shoot growth, and reindeer browsing with more negative effects of insect herbivory and precipitation. 4. Synthesis. Our findings show that the negative effects of insect herbivory on shoot growth likely intensify under warmer thermal conditions, but that increasing precipitation can counteract these effects. Moreover, changing thermal conditions, precipitation and vertebrate browsers all have predictable, albeit complex and nonlinear, effects on shrub growth, highlighting the importance of long-term experimental data and flexible analytical methods such as EDM for characterizing climate and community interactions in artic systems.
Climate influences the value of a plant structural defence against browsing
<ol> <li>The circumstances that select for plant anti-herbivore defences are not well understood. In New Zealand, the "divaricate" cage-like architecture of many woody plants may have arisen as a defence against avian browsing; it also has some ability to deter browsing by introduced deer. Its prominence on alluvial soils in frosty and droughty areas led us to hypothesize that structural defences are of most value where fertile soils coincide with climatic constraints that prevent plants from quickly growing out of the browse zone.</li> <li>We tested this hypothesis by growing seedlings of three divaricate species and their broadleaved congeners on fenced and unfenced plots beneath treefall gaps at three humid frost-free sites in the North Island of New Zealand, and at three colder and drier sites in the South Island. Soil total phosphorus levels were moderate to high at all sites (344 to 961 ppm), and pellet counts indicated similar average deer densities at North and South Island sites, <a name="_Hlk50404021">enabling us to attribute variation in seedling growth and survival primarily to climatic differences between our sites.</a> </li> <li>The circumstances that select for plant anti-herbivore defences are not well understood. In New Zealand, the "divaricate" cage-like architecture of many woody plants may have arisen as a defence against avian browsing; it also has some ability to deter browsing by introduced deer. Its prominence on alluvial soils in frosty and droughty areas led us to hypothesize that structural defences are of most value where fertile soils coincide with climatic constraints that prevent plants from quickly growing out of the browse zone.</li> <li>We tested this hypothesis by growing seedlings of three divaricate species and their broadleaved congeners on fenced and unfenced plots beneath treefall gaps at three humid frost-free sites in the North Island of New Zealand, and at three colder and drier sites in the South Island. Soil total phosphorus levels were moderate to high at all sites (344 to 961 ppm), and pellet counts indicated similar average deer densities at North and South Island sites, <a name="_Hlk50404021">enabling us to attribute variation in seedling growth and survival primarily to climatic differences between our sites.</a> </li> <li>On fenced plots, average relative height growth rates in the North Island exceeded those on the southern sites by 64 %, and growth of broadleaved species averaged 132 % and 99 % greater than that of divaricate congeners at North and South Island sites, respectively. On the northern sites, broadleaved species also held a large (137 %) net height growth advantage over divaricates even on unfenced plots. In contrast, exposure to browsing on the coldest sites resulted in complete loss of the broadleaved net height growth advantage.</li> <li> <a name="_heading=h.30j0zll"></a> <i>Synthesis</i>. Even in the presence of deer, divaricate plants were overgrown on humid frost-free sites, but not on colder and drier sites, where browsing neutralized the superior growth potential of broadleaved species. The cost of structural defences therefore paid off only on sites where climatic adversity reduces the ability of plants lacking such defences to grow quickly out of the browse zone, in agreement with our hypothesis.</li> </ol>
Data from: Moose browsing alters tree diversity effects on birch growth and insect herbivory
Producer diversity is known to affect a wide range of ecosystem processes including plant growth and insect pest resistance. Consumers such as mammalian herbivores too have been shown to modify plant growth and insect herbivory by triggering changes in host plants. However, few studies have investigated whether consumer effects interact with plant species diversity effects on a focal plant. To unravel consumer-diversity interactions, we recorded both the presence and intensity of winter browsing by moose (Alces alces) on silver birch (Betula pendula) in a long-term forest diversity experiment in Finland and measured birch tree growth as well as insect chewing damage during the following growing season. Although browsing on birch by moose was not affected by tree species richness, the intensity of moose damage altered tree diversity effects on birch tree growth. At minor browsing intensity, tree height, trunk diameter and canopy projections showed positively-humped relationships with tree diversity, peaking at 3-species mixtures. Growth of moderately browsed trees increased with tree species richness, but growth of severely browsed birch trees was unaffected. Moose browsing also altered the direction of tree diversity effects on insect herbivory on birch. Unbrowsed trees experienced lower insect chewing damage in mixed stands (associational resistance) whilst browsed trees suffered more insect chewing damage in diverse stands (associational susceptibility). Increasing browsing intensity also reversed the relationship between tree species richness and insect chewing damage from negative to positive. The observed interactions between moose browsing and tree species richness effects could be explained by lower canopy cover of more diverse stands compared to birch monocultures, leading to increased re-growth capacity and more high-quality foliage of browsed birch trees in more open diverse stands. Our findings demonstrate that both the presence and intensity of mammalian browsing may modify the magnitude and even the direction of tree diversity effects on tree growth and susceptibility to insect herbivory. Differences in consumer impact among studies may thus potentially explain much of the observed variability in plant diversity effects on ecosystem functioning and must therefore be taken into account in future studies.
Data from: Browsed twig environmental DNA: diagnostic PCR to identify ungulate species
Ungulate browsing can have a strong effect on ecological processes by affecting plant community structure and composition, with cascading effects on nutrient cycling and animal communities. However, in the absence of direct observations of foraging, species-specific foraging behaviors are difficult to quantify. We therefore know relatively little about foraging competition and species specific browsing patterns in systems with several browsers. However, during browsing, a small amount of saliva containing buccal cells is deposited at the bite site, providing a source of environmental DNA (eDNA) that can be used for species identification. Here we describe extraction and PCR protocols for a browser species diagnostic kit. Species specific primers for mitochondrial DNA were optimized and validated using twigs browsed by captive animals. A time series showed that about 50% of the samples will amplify up to 12 weeks after the browsing event, and that some samples amplify up to 24 weeks after browsing (12.5%). Applied to samples of natural browsing from an area where moose (Alces alces), roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), fallow deer (Cervus dama), and red deer (Cervus elaphus) are sympatric, amplification success reached 75%. This method promises to greatly improve our understanding of multispecies browsing systems without the need for direct observations.
Data from: Simulated caribou browsing limits the effect of nutrient addition on the growth of Betula glandulosa, an expanding shrub species in Eastern Canada
1.Warmer summer temperatures and enhanced soil fertility increase shrub growth in tundra ecosystems, and these factors have likely contributed to shrub expansion at the circumpolar scale over the last decades. Conversely, large herbivores have the potential to counteract the positive impacts of climate change on shrub growth. Indeed, by stripping the leaves, herbivores have the potential to control the growth of shrub species and, consequently, limit their expansion. 2.To disentangle the impacts of climate change and herbivory on Betula glandulosa Michx., we conducted a 5-yr factorial experiment near Deception Bay, Nunavik, Canada, in which we simulated warmer temperatures, increased nitrogen availability and three caribou browsing intensities during the growing season. At the end of the experiment, we harvested the aboveground biomass of B. glandulosa and conducted dendrochronological analyses on stems. 3.Fertilized plots under ambient temperature had 34% greater shrub biomass than plots assigned to the combined treatment of nitrogen addition and warmer temperatures. Browsing intensity had no effect on final biomass. Nitrogen addition increased radial growth (18-33%; 3 years out of 5). Overall, browsing had a cumulative negative impact on B. glandulosa radial growth during the 5-yr experiment. While browsing had no effect in the first year of the experiment, moderate browsing (leaves stripped on 25% of available shoots) decreased radial growth by 27% at year 2, 32% at year 4 and 27% at year 5. Heavy browsing (leaves stripped on 75% of available shoots annually) decreased radial growth by approximately 27% at year 2, 37% at year 3, 50% at year 4 and 48% at year 5. We did not observe significant interactions between browsing, temperature and nitrogen availability. 4.Synthesis. Our results clearly showed that caribou browsing may limit the growth of B. glandulosa, and thus can potentially limit its expansion. Herbivory should thus be considered when predicting tundra vegetation changes in the Arctic, at least in areas with high herbivore densities.
Data from: Historically browsed jewelweed populations exhibit greater tolerance to deer herbivory than historically protected populations
Browsing by overabundant white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) has altered ecological relationships in forest communities across eastern North America. Recent but limited work suggests that deer browsing also selects for particular plant defensive traits. We hypothesized that browsing by deer has imposed selection on defensive traits in an annual native wildflower, orange jewelweed (Impatiens capensis). To test this hypothesis, we collected individuals from 26 natural populations across a 5000 km2 area in New York State, USA. Half of these populations were historically protected from deer and half were exposed to heavy browsing. We planted individuals in common gardens subjected to natural deer browsing or no browsing. Individuals from historically browsed populations exhibited significantly higher tolerance than those from historically protected populations. Herbivory by deer reduced lifetime fruit production by only 20% in historically browsed populations, as opposed to 57% in historically protected populations. Two mechanisms were correlated with this increased tolerance: increased number of flowering days and increased fruits per flowering node. Synthesis The increased tolerance of historically browsed populations suggests that these populations evolved increased tolerance or that historically protected populations lost tolerance over time. Variation in tolerance traits in native plant species may allow them to persist in the face of rapid ecological change.
Data from "Elevation affects both the occurrence of ungulate browsing and its effect on tree seedling growth for four major tree species in European mountain forests"
<p>This repository contains the field data used in the paper from Bernard et al. on the interactive effect of elevation and ungulate browsing on tree regeneration. This dataset is associated with a github repository containing the code to run the analyses of the paper, publicly available at https://github.com/jbarrere3/BaccaraPaper</p>
Supplementary material 1 from: Tofilski A (2018) DKey software for editing and browsing dichotomous keys. ZooKeys 735: 131-140. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.735.21412
Video tutorial describing how to build a simple taxonomic key using DKey software : Explanation note: Use any video player which supports MP4 format in order to see the tutorial.
Supplementary material 2 from: Tofilski A (2018) DKey software for editing and browsing dichotomous keys. ZooKeys 735: 131-140. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.735.21412
Video tutorial describing how to import a taxonomic key to DKey software : Explanation note: Use any video player which supports MP4 format in order to see the tutorial.
Data from: Does wolf presence reduce moose browsing intensity in young forest plantations?
Large carnivores can be a key factor in shaping their ungulate prey's behavior, which may affect lower trophic levels. While most studies on trade-offs between food acquisition and risk avoidance by ungulate prey species have been conducted in areas with limited human impact, carnivores are now increasingly returning to highly anthropogenic landscapes. Many of these landscapes are dominated by forestry, and ungulate-forestry conflicts are an increasing issue. The aim of this study was to test if the indirect effects of a re-colonizing large predator, the wolf (Canis lupus), results in a change in browsing intensity by moose (Alces alces) in young forest plantations in a boreal forest in Sweden. We selected 24 different forest plantations, with 12 located in low-wolf and 12 in high-wolf utilization areas. In each plantation, we measured browsing intensity, tree height, tree density, distance to the closest forest edge and we counted the number of moose pellet groups. In contrast to our predictions, wolf utilization was not the main driver of moose browsing patterns. Instead, moose browsing intensity declined with tree density and height. Separate analyses on the main tree species showed that wolf utilization had an influence, but browsing intensity was in fact higher in the high-wolf utilization areas for three out of five tree species. This pattern seemed to be driven by a strong confounding relationship between wolf utilization, tree density and height, which were both lower in the high-wolf utilization areas. We argue that this confounding effect is due to wolves being pushed towards the less productive parts of the landscape away from human activity centers. Therefore, we concluded that in order to better understand carnivore driven risk- mediated effects on herbivore behavior in anthropogenic landscapes we need to better understand the complexity of human-carnivore-prey-ecosystem interactions.
Data from: Evidence of a spatial auto-correlation in the browsing level of four major European tree species
Moran's I of the browsing level of fir, spruce, beech and oak in the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg <p>Data supporting the results publised in "Evidence of a spatial auto-correlation in the browsing level of four major European tree species" by Hagen and Suchant (2020).</p> <p>The contribution of spatial processes to the spatial patterns of ecological systems is widely recognised, but spatial patterns in the ecology of plant-herbivore interactions have rarely been investigated quantitatively owing to limited budget and time associated with ecological research. Studies of the level of browsing on various tree species reported either no spatial auto-correlation or a small effect size. Further, the effects of disturbance events, such as hurricanes, which create large forest openings on spatial patterns of herbivory are not well understood. In this study, we used forest inventory data obtained from the federal state of Baden-Württemberg (Southern Germany) between 2001 and 2009 (grid size: 100×200 m) and thus, after hurricane Lothar struck Southern Germany in 1999. We investigated whether the browsing level of trees (height <= 130 cm) in one location is independent of that of the neighbourhood. Our analyses of 1.758.622 saplings (187.632 sampling units) of oak (Quercus), fir (Abies), spruce (Picea) and beech (Fagus) revealed that the browsing level is characterised by a short distance spatial auto-correlation. The application of indicator variables based on browsed saplings should account for the spatial pattern as the latter may affects the results and therefore also the conclusions of the analysis.</p>
Data from: Browsed twig environmental DNA: diagnostic PCR to identify ungulate species
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Effects of different moose browsing pressures on the succession of plant communities within the herbaceous and saplings layers of a boreal forest
Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.
Climate influences the value of a plant structural defence against browsing
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Data from: Evidence of a spatial auto-correlation in the browsing level of four major European tree species
Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.
Data from: Simulated caribou browsing limits the effect of nutrient addition on the growth of Betula glandulosa, an expanding shrub species in Eastern Canada
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Data from: Historically browsed jewelweed populations exhibit greater tolerance to deer herbivory than historically protected populations
Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.
Data from: Does wolf presence reduce moose browsing intensity in young forest plantations?
Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.
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