Research Database
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4
Historical Fire and Ventenata dubia Invasion in a Temperate Grassland
Year: 2021
Ventenata (Ventenata dubia L.) is an invasive annual grass that has rapidly expanded its range across temperate grassland and shrub-steppe ecosystems in western North America. However, there is little published regarding its ecology, especially its relationship with fire on rangelands. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of fire on ventenata invasion in the Pacific Northwest Bunchgrass (PNB) Prairie. Given the influence of fire on the invasion of other annual grasses such as cheatgrass ( Bromus tectorum L.), we expected that fire would facilitate the spread and increase in…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Expanding the invasion footprint: Ventenata dubia and relationships to wildfire, environment, and plant communities in the Blue Mountains of the Inland Northwest, USA
Year: 2020
Questions: A recently introduced non-native annual grass, Ventenata dubia, is challengingprevious conceptions of community resistance in forest mosaic communitiesin the Inland Northwest. However, little is known of the drivers and potential ecologicalimpacts of this rapidly expanding species. Here we (1) identify abiotic and biotichabitat characteristics associated with the V. dubia invasion and examine how thesediffer between V. dubia and other problematic non-native annual grasses, Bromustectorum and Taeniatherum caput-medusae; and (2) determine how burning influencesrelationships between V…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Expansion of the invasive European mistetoe in California, USA
Year: 2020
The horticulturist Luther Burbank introduced the European mistletoe (Viscum album L.) to Sebastopol, Sonoma County, California, USA, around 1900 to grow as a Christmas ornament crop and tincture for medicinal use. The mistletoe has since spread from the point of introduction on apple to other hardwood trees, especially non-native hardwoods in yards and farms of the region. Mistletoe surveys were previously conducted in1971,1986, and 1991. We re-surveyed the region in 2019, with emphasis on the 1991 perimeter, and documented the current farthest distribution of V. album. This represents a 120-…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Invasive grasses: A new perfect storm for forested ecosystems?
Year: 2020
Exotic grasses are a widespread set of invasive species that are notable for their ability to significantly alter key aspects of ecosystem function. Understanding the role and importance of these invaders in forested landscapes has been limited but is now rising, as grasses from Eurasia and Africa continue to spread through ecosystems of the Americas, Australia, and many Pacific islands, where they threaten biodiversity and alter various aspects of the fire regime. The ecological, social and economic impacts of the grass-fire cycle associated with species such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum)…
Publication Type: Journal Article