Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration
Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) recruitment during the 1980s–90s was suppressed by Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus canadensis) herbivory on winter ranges in the Yellowstone region, and saplings (young aspen taller than 2 m) were rare. Following the 1995–96 reintroduction of gray wolves (Canis lupus),...
Main Authors: | , , , |
---|---|
Other Authors: | |
Format: | Text |
Language: | unknown |
Published: |
Hosted by Utah State University Libraries
2018
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/7777 https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8778&context=aspen_bib |
id |
ftutahsudc:oai:digitalcommons.usu.edu:aspen_bib-8778 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftutahsudc:oai:digitalcommons.usu.edu:aspen_bib-8778 2023-05-15T15:49:47+02:00 Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration Painter, Luke E. Beschta, Robert L. Larsen, Eric J. Ripple, William J. Ecological Society of America 2018-08-30T07:00:00Z application/pdf https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/7777 https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8778&context=aspen_bib unknown Hosted by Utah State University Libraries https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/7777 https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8778&context=aspen_bib Copyright for this work is held by the author. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user. For more information contact the Institutional Repository Librarian at digitalcommons@usu.edu. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ PDM CC-BY Aspen Bibliography aspen recruitment Canis lupus Cervus canadensis Greater Yellowstone herbivory indirect effects passive restoration Populus tremuloides trophic cascade wapiti Agriculture Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Forest Sciences Genetics and Genomics Plant Sciences text 2018 ftutahsudc 2022-03-07T21:45:54Z Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) recruitment during the 1980s–90s was suppressed by Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus canadensis) herbivory on winter ranges in the Yellowstone region, and saplings (young aspen taller than 2 m) were rare. Following the 1995–96 reintroduction of gray wolves (Canis lupus), browsing decreased and sapling recruitment increased in Yellowstone National Park. We compared aspen data from inside the park to data collected in three winter ranges outside the park. For most areas, the percentage of young aspen browsed annually was 80–100% in 1997–98, decreasing to 30–60% in 2011–15. Sapling recruitment was inversely correlated with browsing intensity, and increased despite climate trends unfavorable for aspen. Browsing decreased with decreasing elk density, a relationship suggesting that densities greater than about 4 elk/km2 resulted in consistently strong browsing effects likely to suppress aspen recruitment. Changes in elk density and distribution were influenced by predators, as well as human hunters. Most evidence for trophic cascades involving large terrestrial mammals has been from protected areas within national parks. This study provides evidence of widespread changes in plant communities resulting from large carnivore restoration, extending outside a protected national park to areas with hunting, livestock grazing, and other human activities. Text Canis lupus Utah State University: DigitalCommons@USU |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Utah State University: DigitalCommons@USU |
op_collection_id |
ftutahsudc |
language |
unknown |
topic |
aspen recruitment Canis lupus Cervus canadensis Greater Yellowstone herbivory indirect effects passive restoration Populus tremuloides trophic cascade wapiti Agriculture Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Forest Sciences Genetics and Genomics Plant Sciences |
spellingShingle |
aspen recruitment Canis lupus Cervus canadensis Greater Yellowstone herbivory indirect effects passive restoration Populus tremuloides trophic cascade wapiti Agriculture Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Forest Sciences Genetics and Genomics Plant Sciences Painter, Luke E. Beschta, Robert L. Larsen, Eric J. Ripple, William J. Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration |
topic_facet |
aspen recruitment Canis lupus Cervus canadensis Greater Yellowstone herbivory indirect effects passive restoration Populus tremuloides trophic cascade wapiti Agriculture Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Forest Sciences Genetics and Genomics Plant Sciences |
description |
Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) recruitment during the 1980s–90s was suppressed by Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus canadensis) herbivory on winter ranges in the Yellowstone region, and saplings (young aspen taller than 2 m) were rare. Following the 1995–96 reintroduction of gray wolves (Canis lupus), browsing decreased and sapling recruitment increased in Yellowstone National Park. We compared aspen data from inside the park to data collected in three winter ranges outside the park. For most areas, the percentage of young aspen browsed annually was 80–100% in 1997–98, decreasing to 30–60% in 2011–15. Sapling recruitment was inversely correlated with browsing intensity, and increased despite climate trends unfavorable for aspen. Browsing decreased with decreasing elk density, a relationship suggesting that densities greater than about 4 elk/km2 resulted in consistently strong browsing effects likely to suppress aspen recruitment. Changes in elk density and distribution were influenced by predators, as well as human hunters. Most evidence for trophic cascades involving large terrestrial mammals has been from protected areas within national parks. This study provides evidence of widespread changes in plant communities resulting from large carnivore restoration, extending outside a protected national park to areas with hunting, livestock grazing, and other human activities. |
author2 |
Ecological Society of America |
format |
Text |
author |
Painter, Luke E. Beschta, Robert L. Larsen, Eric J. Ripple, William J. |
author_facet |
Painter, Luke E. Beschta, Robert L. Larsen, Eric J. Ripple, William J. |
author_sort |
Painter, Luke E. |
title |
Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration |
title_short |
Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration |
title_full |
Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration |
title_fullStr |
Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration |
title_full_unstemmed |
Aspen Recruitment in the Yellowstone Region Linked to Reduced Herbivory After Large Carnivore Restoration |
title_sort |
aspen recruitment in the yellowstone region linked to reduced herbivory after large carnivore restoration |
publisher |
Hosted by Utah State University Libraries |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/7777 https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8778&context=aspen_bib |
genre |
Canis lupus |
genre_facet |
Canis lupus |
op_source |
Aspen Bibliography |
op_relation |
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/7777 https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8778&context=aspen_bib |
op_rights |
Copyright for this work is held by the author. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user. For more information contact the Institutional Repository Librarian at digitalcommons@usu.edu. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_rightsnorm |
PDM CC-BY |
_version_ |
1766384816153952256 |