Monitoring butterfly assemblages in southern California to assess the impact of habitat and climate modifications

Dartnell, Sofia; Hamlett, Nancy V.; Meyer, Wallace M.

doi:10.1007/s10841-022-00371-w

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 53 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In May 2017, a human-ignited fire burned approximately 1.96 ha, mostly burning previously intact CSS areas, as well as areas near the BFS lake. There had not been a fire in our study area in at least the last 40 years, though there was another fire at the BFS in 2013 [46]. This study was conducted in the CSS burned areas (Figure 1).…”

Section: Study Sitementioning

confidence: 93%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Herbivore Influence on Post-Fire California Sage Scrub Plant and Soil Microbial Assemblages

et al. 2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

California sage scrub (CSS) is an endangered, shrub-dominated, southern California ecosystem type threatened by increasing fire frequencies and conversion to non-native grasslands. As CSS harbors a rich endemic flora and fauna and is critical for maintaining key ecosystem services; significant attention has been focused on understanding how many key factors (N-deposition, drought, and competition with non-natives) influence post-fire CSS recovery. Unfortunately, few studies have examined the role of herbivores. For five years, we investigated the influence of herbivores on post-fire CSS succession by annually surveying plant assemblages in control (herbivores allowed access) and experimental (herbivore excluded) plots at the Bernard Field Station following a fire in May 2017. We found that herbivores reduce the cover of both invasive grasses and native shrubs, and negatively impact Artemisia californica survivorship. Consequently, post-fire plant restoration efforts should not discount the effects of herbivores. While native forb cover was elevated in plots that permitted herbivores, plots near the fire edge experienced increased herbivory pressure and lower cover of most plants. Despite modifications in plant assemblages, we did not observe differences in soil microbe abundances, fungi assemblage structure, or nutrient concentrations. We suggest that restoration practitioners consider caging ‘shrub regeneration’ areas to facilitate post-fire CSS recovery.

show abstract

Section: Study Sitementioning

confidence: 93%

“…The BFS harbors five distinct habitat types and is surrounded by urban habitats [46]. Approximately 25 ha is composed of intact CSS, characterized by native drought-deciduous and drought-tolerant shrubs, though this area also supports a variety of native forbs and non-native grass and forb species at low densities.…”

Section: Study Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

Herbivore Influence on Post-Fire California Sage Scrub Plant and Soil Microbial Assemblages

et al. 2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…While the BFS features five distinct habitat types (see [34]), this study was restricted to the CSS habitat, which comprises ~25 ha, and an area of recovering sage scrub (7 ha) following a fire in 2013, where the native fall-blooming shrubs are most commonly found. Flower-visiting insects may also access adjacent properties, which include suburban yards.…”

Section: Study Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to these photographic surveys, we also examined photos taken during systematic monthly butterfly surveys conducted from February 2015 through December 2021 [34]. A total of 47 h of effort was expended on surveys during the bloom period of the three shrubs of interest (September-November).…”

Section: Photo Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flower-Visiting Insect Assemblages on Fall-Blooming Native California Sage Scrub Shrubs

et al. 2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Pollinator studies in the endangered California sage scrub ecosystem have focused on spring insect assemblages, when most plant species bloom. Consequently, the insect assemblages using common fall-blooming sage scrub shrubs Lepidospartum squamatum, Ericameria pinifolia, and Baccharis pilularis remain undescribed. Our study aimed to: (1) document flower-visiting insect assemblages on fall-blooming shrubs, (2) assess the efficacy of three sampling techniques in inventorying insect assemblages, and (3) explore, using DNA metabarcoding, which plants are utilized and the extent to which surrounding suburban habitats’ plants are also used. While elevated sampling is required to inventory flower-visiting insects, we describe a diverse assemblage consisting of 123 species. Insect assemblages differed between L. squamatum and B. pilularis, as well as, E. pinifolia and B. pilularis, but not between L. squamatum and E. pinifolia. Direct sampling approaches (netting and photo documentation) collected 115 species not collected by passive malaise traps, highlighting that active observations are required to describe flower-visiting insect assemblages. Sequencing the ITS2 region of pollen from abundant visitors revealed that a majority of pollen is from the sage scrub ecosystem, highlighting its value. Our results indicate that the presence of fall-blooming shrubs may be critical for maintaining diverse sage scrub insect and pollinator assemblages.

show abstract

Evaluating the status and habitat preferences of the threatened skipper, Euphyes vestris harbisoni, in southern California, USA

Lyons,

Faulkner,

Deutschman

et al. 2024

J Insect Conserv

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Monitoring butterfly assemblages in southern California to assess the impact of habitat and climate modifications

Cited by 5 publications

References 53 publications

Herbivore Influence on Post-Fire California Sage Scrub Plant and Soil Microbial Assemblages

Herbivore Influence on Post-Fire California Sage Scrub Plant and Soil Microbial Assemblages

Flower-Visiting Insect Assemblages on Fall-Blooming Native California Sage Scrub Shrubs

Evaluating the status and habitat preferences of the threatened skipper, Euphyes vestris harbisoni, in southern California, USA

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About