The Effects of Interactions Among Disturbances in Determining Vegetation and Ecosystem Recovery
Because California grasslands are largely dominated by annual plants, they can experience extreme fluctuations due to variations in precipitation, management practices, and wildfire. In particular, annual grasses can be limited in their response to disturbance events that limit their seed production or survival. In these circumstances, ecosystem resilience can be reliant on the seedbank of wildflowers.
In 2018, more than 65% of HREC’s 5,300 acres burned in the Mendocino Complex wildfire. Research on site has provided one of the only known existing pre-wildfire data on key variables that drive grassland vegetation recovery such as seed productivity, seedbanks, nutrient cycling, and plant composition. The fire has also provided unique opportunities to quantify the effects of other disturbances on the landscape that could not previously be observed. For example, researchers are now investigating if gopher mounds and ant nests provide islands of recovery as hotspots of unburned seeds post-fire. Research is also focused on how grazing pre- and post-fire impacts the recovery of plant communities and ecosystem functions post-fire.
Researcher Spotlight: Dr. Valerie Eviner and Dr. Mary Cadenasso
Valerie and Mary are ecologists and professors in the Department of Plant Sciences at UC Davis. With diverse research interests in plant invasions, restoration, ecosystem services, species conservation, global change, and range management, Valerie works with land managers to answer both theoretical and applied questions situated in complex systems. You can learn more on her Lab’s Webpage. Mary's research aims to explain variations across the landscape in plant ecology and ecosystem functions. She works in diverse ecosystems across the world, including cities, riparian systems, agricultural systems, savannas and grasslands. Check out the Cadenasso Landscape and Urban Ecology (CLUE Lab) site for more information.
Learn More!
Watch Valerie explain how UC researchers are compiling the wisdom from current and previous management and research trials to provide decision-support for land managers and policy makers across California.
