Mammalian soil disturbance, plant cover, and soil nitrogen in a prairie restoration
Issue Date
2020-05Author
Alexander, Helen M.
Barnes, Courtney
Timm, Robert M.
Sikes, Benjamin A.
Type
Article
Article Version
Scholarly/refereed, publisher version
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Small mammal disturbances in tallgrass prairies are known to influence a variety of ecosystem properties, including plant establishment, plant diversity, and soil nutrient dynamics. We explored direct and indirect effects of mammalian soil disturbance on a newly established grassland restoration site. In 2016–2017, we measured variation in small mammal soil disturbance, plant cover, and total inorganic nitrogen, all within the same plots. Within our site, interior plots had greater disturbance than plots located near site edges. On average, plots with high soil disturbance in 2016 had high disturbance in 2017, and disturbance in the first year was greater than in the second year. Soil disturbance was associated with an overall decline in grass cover and an increase in forb cover (especially Asteraceae). However, there were no associations between soil disturbance and either inorganic nitrogen or plant species richness/diversity on the new restoration site. Our study supports the important link between prairie plant communities and small mammal soil disturbance, potentially creating heterogeneity that is important for tallgrass prairie restoration and conservation.
Collections
Citation
Alexander, H. M., C. Barnes, R. M. Timm, and B. A. Sikes. 2020. Mammalian soil disturbance, plant cover, and soil nitrogen in a prairie restoration. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Sciences 123(1–2):179–190.
Items in KU ScholarWorks are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.
We want to hear from you! Please share your stories about how Open Access to this item benefits YOU.