Biology ETDs
Publication Date
Spring 5-14-2022
Abstract
Terrestrial ecosystems are critical to human and ecological processes but many gaps in our knowledge remain regarding how terrestrial plant communities assemble and respond to global change. I used field experiments distributed around the world, including long-term experiments from the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge (SNWR) in New Mexico and deserts of the southwestern U.S., to evaluate the consequences of drought and other abiotic stressors on plant communities. Dominant grasses were particularly important for the productivity and structure of grasslands at SNWR. In general, the structure of desert plant communities had high resistance to extreme drought, though grasses and other perennial species were most negatively impacted. Global change drivers altered the beta diversity of plant communities both locally and among sites. Continued study of how communities respond to abiotic disturbances is of increasing importance as we try to conserve modern ecosystems and predict the consequences of anthropogenic global change.
Language
English
Keywords
community ecology, plant ecology, global change, climate change, drought, Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Biology
Level of Degree
Doctoral
Department Name
UNM Biology Department
First Committee Member (Chair)
Dr. Scott Collins
Second Committee Member
Dr. Jennifer Rudgers
Third Committee Member
Dr. Marcy Litvak
Fourth Committee Member
Dr. Benjamin Wong Blonder
Recommended Citation
Ohlert, Timothy J.. "Biodiversity and global change in terrestrial ecosystems." (2022). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/biol_etds/422