Effects of prairie fragmentation on above and below ground diversity, and nitrogen fixation
Background
In 1800 there were more than 18 million ha of tall grass prairies
in Minnesota. Today less than 1% survives, mainly in areas that
are not suited for agriculture, and along railway tracks or roadsides.
Where the effects of fragmentation on diversity have been studied
in other ecosystems, the
result has usually been a loss in diversity, with some plant and
animal species becoming extinct. In none of these studies, however,
have the relationship between above- and below-ground diversity
been considered. We have begun studies using Dalea purpurea
and the rhizosphere organisms associated with it as a model.
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Ten prairie fragments in the area of Hoffman,
MN have been identified (area ranges from < 0.3 to 8.6
acres) and the distribution of purple prairie clovers in them
mapped using GPS.
We will examine effects of fragmentation
on plant (AFLP) and microbial (REP-PCR) diversity, and on
N2 fixation.
We will also study Rhizobium
survival as a saprophyte in soil, and examine effects of perennial
plant growth in reinforcing dominance of particular rhizobia. |
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