Lichen Recovery Following Heavy Grazing by Reindeer Delayed by Climate Warming
Introduced reindeer, Rangifer tarandus, over exploited lichen-rich plant communities on St. Matthew Island in the Bering Sea. A die-off of the reindeer followed, exacerbated by extreme weather in 1964, resulting in extirpation of the reindeer. A similar pattern of removal of lichens as major compone...
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| Format: | Text |
| Language: | unknown |
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DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln
2009
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| Online Access: | https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/natrespapers/586 https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/context/natrespapers/article/1593/viewcontent/Shulski_AMBIO_2009_Lichen_recovery_.pdf |
| Summary: | Introduced reindeer, Rangifer tarandus, over exploited lichen-rich plant communities on St. Matthew Island in the Bering Sea. A die-off of the reindeer followed, exacerbated by extreme weather in 1964, resulting in extirpation of the reindeer. A similar pattern of removal of lichens as major components of plant communities has occurred following introductions of reindeer to other islands at high latitudes. By 1985, two decades following die-off of the reindeer, total lichen biomass was only 6% of that in similar plant communities on adjacent Hall Island, not reached by the reindeer. By 2005, 41 y after the reindeer die-off, lichen regrowth on St. Matthew was only 12% of lichen biomass in the Hall Island communities. A warmer, drier climate and decreased fog in recent decades contributed to deterioration of conditions favoring lichen growth on St. Matthew Island. |
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