Rodent mounds facilitate shrubs and shrubs inhibit seedlings in the Mojave Desert, USA

Walker, Lawrence R.; Vrooman, Steven S.; Thompson, Daniel

doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2014.10.002

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…This postfire increase in nutrients could also explain more rapid growth rates observed in our study (Fisher, Zak, Cunningham, & Whitford, ). Additionally, with lower shrub density after fire (Horn et al, ), it is possible that there may be a greater proportion of rodent burrowing underneath the regenerating shrubs, which increases soil nutrient levels, soil permeability, shrub size, and seedling survival that can increase soil resource availability linked to faster growth rates (Titus, Nowak, & Smith, ; Walker, Vrooman, & Thompson, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Conversely, water additions reduced the amount of fruit produced in creosote (Cunningham, Syvertsen, Reynolds, & Willson, 1979;Fisher et al, 1988). Increased fruit numbers could be also be driven by higher nitrogen availability following fire (Esque, Kaye, et al, 2010), competitive release for soil resources (Ehleringer, 1984;Horn et al, 2015), or higher levels of nutrients from root reserves or rodents (Kabeya & Sakai, 2005;Walker et al, 2015). Differences in canopy density and morphology could also contribute to the higher fruit numbers in burned areas ( Figure 5; Horn et al, 2015).…”

Section: Postfire Reproductive Responsementioning

confidence: 99%

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Creosote growth rate and reproduction increase in postfire environments

Molinari

Bishop

Bekker

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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Human activities are changing patterns of ecological disturbance globally. In North American deserts, wildfire is increasing in size and frequency due to fuel characteristics of invasive annual grasses. Fire reduces the abundance and cover of native vegetation in desert ecosystems. In this study, we sought to characterize stem growth and reproductive output of a dominant native shrub in the Mojave Desert, creosote bush (Larrea tridentata (DC.) Coville) following wildfires that occurred in 2005. We sampled 55 shrubs along burned and unburned transects 12 years after the fires (2017) and quantified age, stem diameter, stem number, radial and vertical growth rates, and fruit production for each shrub. The shrubs on the burn transects were most likely postfire resprouts based on stem age while stems from unburn transects dated from before the fire. Stem and vertical growth rates for shrubs on burned transects were 2.6 and 1.7 times higher than that observed for shrubs on unburned transects. Fruit production of shrubs along burned transects was 4.7‐fold more than shrubs along paired unburned transects. Growth rates and fruit production of shrubs in burned areas did not differ with increasing distance from the burn perimeter. Positive growth and reproduction responses of creosote following wildfires could be critical for soil stabilization and re‐establishment of native plant communities in this desert system. Additional research is needed to assess if repeat fires that are characteristic of invasive grass‐fire cycles may limit these benefits.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Postfire Reproductive Responsementioning

confidence: 99%

Creosote growth rate and reproduction increase in postfire environments

Molinari

Bishop

Bekker

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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“…Merriam’s Kangaroo Rats, on the other hand, are known to scatter hoard their food resources in shallow pits ( Leaver & Daly, 2001 ). These different behaviors could influence plant communities, given that the caching behavior of pocket mice, for example, can influence seed germination and invasive grass establishment ( Sommers & Chesson, 2016 ; Walker, Vrooman & Thompson, 2015 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Urbanization alters small rodent community composition but not abundance

Guevara

Ball

2018

PeerJ

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Desert ecosystems are one of the fastest urbanizing areas on the planet. This rapid shift has the potential to alter the abundances and species richness of herbivore and plant communities. Herbivores, for example, are expected to be more abundant within urban desert remnant parks located within cities due to anthropogenic activities that concentrate food resources and reduce native predator populations. Despite this assumption, previous research conducted around Phoenix, AZ, USA has shown that top-down herbivory led to equally reduced plant biomass in both urban and outlying locations. It is unclear if this insignificant difference in herbivory at urban and outlying sites is due to unaltered desert herbivore populations or altered activity levels that counteract abundance differences. Small rodent herbivore/granivore populations were surveyed at four sites inside and four sites outside of the core of Phoenix during fall 2014 and spring 2015 in order to determine whether abundances and richness differ significantly between urban and rural sites. In order to survey species composition and abundance at these sites, 100 Sherman traps and eight larger wire traps that are designed to attract and capture small vertebrates such as mice, rats, and squirrels were set at each site for two consecutive trap nights. Results suggest that the commonly assumed effect of urbanization on herbivore abundances does not apply to small rodent populations in a desert city, as overall small rodent abundances were statistically similar regardless of location. Though a significant difference was not found for species richness, a significant difference between small rodent genus richness at these sites was observed, with altered community composition. The compositional differences likely reflect the altered vegetative community and may impact ecological interactions at these sites.

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“…Merriam's Kangaroo Rats, on the other hand, are known to scatter hoard their food resources in shallow pits (Leaver & Daly, 2001). These different behaviors could influence plant communities, given that the caching behavior of pocket mice, for example, can influence seed germination and invasive grass establishment (Sommers & Chesson, 2016;Walker et al, 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Peer Review #2 of "Urbanization alters small rodent community composition but not abundance (v0.1)"

McKinney¹

2018

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Desert ecosystems are one of the fastest urbanizing areas on the planet. This rapid shift has the potential to alter the abundances and species richness of herbivore and plant communities. Herbivores, for example, are expected to be more abundant within urban desert remnant parks located within cities due to anthropogenic activities that concentrate food resources and reduce native predator populations. Despite this assumption, previous research conducted around Phoenix, AZ, USA has shown that top-down herbivory led to equally reduced plant biomass in both urban and outlying locations. It is unclear if this insignificant difference in herbivory at urban and outlying sites is due to unaltered desert herbivore populations or altered activity levels that counteract abundance differences.Small rodent herbivore/granivore populations were surveyed at four sites inside and four sites outside of the core of Phoenix during fall 2014 and spring 2015 in order to determine whether abundances and richness differ significantly between urban and rural sites. In order to survey species composition and abundance at these sites, 100 Sherman traps and 8 larger wire traps that are designed to attract and capture small vertebrates such as mice, rats, and squirrels were set at each site for two consecutive trap nights. Results suggest that the commonly assumed effect of urbanization on herbivore abundances does not apply to small rodent populations in a desert city, as overall small rodent abundances were statistically similar regardless of location. Though a significant difference was not found for species richness, a significant difference between small rodent genus richness at these sites was observed, with altered community composition. The compositional differences likely reflect the altered vegetative community and may impact ecological interactions at these sites.

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Rodent mounds facilitate shrubs and shrubs inhibit seedlings in the Mojave Desert, USA

Cited by 7 publications

References 39 publications

Creosote growth rate and reproduction increase in postfire environments

Creosote growth rate and reproduction increase in postfire environments

Urbanization alters small rodent community composition but not abundance

Peer Review #2 of "Urbanization alters small rodent community composition but not abundance (v0.1)"

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