Seed banks and seedling occurrence in a high Arctic oasis at Alexandra Fjord, Ellesmere Island, Canada

• Published in: Canadian Journal of Botany
• Main Authors: Freedman, B., Hill, N., Svoboda, J., Henry, G.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Science Publishing 1982
• Subjects: Plant Science; Arctic; Ellesmere Island; Canada
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/b82-259; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/b82-259

The sizes and floras of the seed banks and seedling communities are described for a variety of habitats in a high Arctic lowland oasis on Ellesmere Island, located at 79° N latitude. Four disturbed habitats had larger seed banks than did four undisturbed habitats (averaging 3070/m 2 vs. 63/m 2 ). The seedling densities measured in the disturbed habitats were also larger (1780/m 2 vs. 180/m 2 ). The data indicate that sexual reproduction is important to the herbaceous, short-lived, ruderal species which colonize disturbed sites in the high Arctic. This contrasts with the more conservative strategy of stress-tolerant species that occur in relatively closed and undisturbed habitats, which tend to propagate by vegetative mechanisms.