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The Flora and Ecology of a Nontropical Savanna, Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras" (2012)

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The Flora and Ecology of a Nontropical Savanna, Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras Northern Michigan University NMU Commons All NMU Master's Theses Student Works 2012 The lorF a and Ecology of a Nontropical Savanna, Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras Susan Fawcett Northern Michigan University Follow this and additional works at: https://commons.nmu.edu/theses Recommended Citation Fawcett, Susan, "The Flora and Ecology of a Nontropical Savanna, Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras" (2012). All NMU Master's Theses. 344. https://commons.nmu.edu/theses/344 This Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Works at NMU Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in All NMU Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of NMU Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected],[email protected]. THE FLORA AND ECOLOGY OF A NEOTROPICAL SAVANNA, UTILA, BAY ISLANDS, HONDURAS By Susan Fawcett THESIS Submitted to Northern Michigan University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Graduate Studies Office 2012 OLSON LIBRARY NORTHERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY THESIS DATA FORM In order to catalog your thesis properly and enter a record in the OCLC international bibliographic data base, Olson Library must have the following requested information to distinguish you from others with the same or similar names and to provide appropriate subject access for other researchers NAME: Susan Fawcett, DATE OF BIRTH: January 18, 1983 SIGNATURE APPROVAL FORM This thesis by Susan E. Fawcett is recommended for approval by the student’s Thesis Committee and Department Head in the Department of Biology and by the Dean of Graduate Studies. ___________________________________________________________ Committee Chair: Dr. Alan J. Rebertus Date ____________________________________________________________________ First Reader: Dr. Alec R. Lindsay Date __________________________________________________________ Second Reader: Dr. Mac Strand Date ___________________________________________________________ Department Head: Dr. Patrick Brown Date _________________________________________________________ Assistant Provost of Graduate Education Date and Research: Dr. Brian Cherry ABSTRACT THE FLORA AND ECOLOGY OF A NEOTROPICAL SAVANNA, UTILA, BAY ISLANDS, HONDURAS By Susan Fawcett Neotropical savannas comprise a biome of extraordinary diversity and endemism, which faces pervasive threats from human development. A basic understanding of ecological dynamics is required for effective conservation, but has not yet been achieved. This study seeks to address the abiotic underpinnings of vegetation assembly on the island of Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras. Floristic heterogeneity was assessed across multiple environmental gradients—of surface hydrology, microtopography, nutrient levels and pH—using Braun-Blaquet cover abundance in a stratified systematic sampling design. Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) and non- parametric multiplicative regression (NPMR) were applied to identify community types and to model species’ responses to environmental gradients. Habitats were categorized as three basic types: (1) sedge meadow; (2) Blechnum-Cladium parkland; and (3) woody hammock. Within each, many species distributions can be predicted by environmental gradients; but other species—notably Acoelorraphe wrightii and Chrysobalanus icaco—are generalists, whose distributions may reflect past disturbance. Microtopography is critical in determining distribution for a suite of species that occur only on mound formations in areas subject to prolonged inundation. Disturbance, particularly by hurricanes and fire, may promote within-habitat diversity: the exposed lignotubers and rhizomes of trees killed by saline inundation provide habitat for less flood-tolerant species in wet areas, while burned clones of A. wrightii and surrounding peat areas permit colonization by many herbaceous species. Pair-wise floristic comparisons between Utila and eight other neotropical savannas reveal fewer than half of the 40 savanna species found on Utila were present in any other single savanna site. Two species of i Cyperaceae, Fuirena scirpoidea and Rhynchospora tracyi, and a bromeliad, Tillandsia izabalensis, are new records for Honduras. Resumen Las sabanas neotropicales constituyen un bioma de diversidad y endemismo extraordinarios, el cual se enfrenta a graves amenazas por el desarrollo humano. Es imperativa una comprensión básica de esta dinámica ecológica para la conservación necesaria y eficaz , pero desgraciadamente todavía no se ha logrado. Este estudio trata de abordar las bases abióticas de la asamblea de vegetación en la isla de Utila, Islas de la Bahía, Honduras. La heterogeneidad florística se evalúa a través de múltiples gradientes ambientales de hidrología de superficie, microtopografía, los niveles de nutrientes y el pH, utilizando así la abundancia de Braun-Blaquet cubierta dentro de en un diseño de muestreo sistemático estratificado. Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) y la regresión multiplicativa no paramétrico (NPMR). Estos metódos se aplican para identificar los tipos de la comunidad y para modelar las respuestas de las especies a los gradientes ambientales. Los hábitats fueron clasificados en tres tipos básicos: (1) pradera de juncia; (2) campo de Blechnum-Cladium, y (3) hamaca de especies leñosas. Dentro de cada una, las distribuciones de muchas especies se pueden predecir de acuerdo a las gradientes ambientales, pero otras especies, sobre todo Acoelorraphe wrightii y Chrysobalanus icaco, son generalistas, y sus distribuciones pueden reflejar perturbaciones pasadas. La microtopografía es crítica en determinar la distribución de un conjunto de especies que sólo ocurren en las formaciones de montículos en las zonas sujetas a inundación prolongada. La perturbación, sobre todo por huracanes e incendios, pueden promover la diversidad dentro del hábitat: los tubérculos leñosos expuestos y los rizomas de árboles muertos debido a la salinización son el hábitat de las ii especies menos tolerantes a las inundaciones en las zonas húmedas, mientras que los clones de A. wrightii y las áreas de turba rodeadas quemadas permiten la colonización para muchas especies herbáceas. Las comparaciones florísticas por parejas entre Utila y ocho otras sabanas neotropicales revelan que menos de la mitad de las 40 especies de la sabana que se encuentran en Utila están presentes en cualquier otro sitio de la sabana neotropical. Dos especies de Cyperáceas, Fuirena scirpoidea y Rhynchospora tracyi y una especia de bromelia, Tillandsia izabalensis, son nuevos registros para Honduras. Key words: Acoelorraphe wrightii, Blechnum serrulatum, Caribbean, Cladium jamaicense iii Copyright by Susan Fawcett, 2012 iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my advisor, Dr. Alan Rebertus and committee members Drs. Mac Strand and Alec Lindsay for their guidance, Tyler Phillips for his inexhaustible companionship in the field, Dr. Paul House for his patience and expertise, Pamela Ortega and Patricia Steffan, at BICA Utila, and Angela Randazzo, Helder Perez, and Andrea Martínez at the Iguana Station for inspiration and logistical support, Romina Peña, Daniela Martínez, Stephanie Thornton, and Nardiah Belal for their assistance in the field and at base camp. Special thanks to Drs. Patrick Brown, Terry Seethoff, and Michael Broadway, the Spooner Foundation Grant, the Excellence in Education Grant, and the Merry Fund grant for financial assistance, Gerritt Davidse, Bruce Holst, Yanina Guerrero, Daniel Santamaria, German Carnevali, Robbin Moran, Benjamin Van Ee and William Montero for assistance identifying specimens, to the NMU biology department and my fellow grad students for advice and companionship, and lastly, to my parents, Robert and Letty Fawcett and my partner, Seth Kauppinen for their love and support. This thesis follows the format prescribed by the journal Biotropica. v TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………….……………2 METHODS……………….………………………………..….……………………..6 RESULTS………………………………………….………………………..………8 DISCUSSION……………………………………….……………….……………..15 LIST OF TABLES…………………………………………….…………….………..1 LIST OF FIGURES………………………………………………………….………..1 LITERATURE CITED……………………………………………….………………39 vi vii LIST OF TABLES TABLE 1. Species list for the Utila Savanna and adjacent habitats, Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras, 2011…………………………………………………………………………………………...….24 TABLE 2. Species of the Utila savanna shared with other neotropical savannas………………26 TABLE 3. Importance value, relative abundance (%) and frequency of occurrence for species (%) sampled in sedge meadow (n=60), Blechnum-Cladium parkland (n=44) and woody hammock (n=58) habitat in the savanna of Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras, 2011………………..27 TABLE 4. The most important variables for each species as determined by nonparametric multiplicative regression in HyperNiche 2.12, considering pH, conductivity and depth………..30 TABLE 5: Frequency of occurrence (%) of species on mounds and location on mounds as a percentage………………………………………………………………………………………..36 LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1. Map of Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras. ……………………………………………..23 FIGURE 2. Detrended Correspondence Analysis of species in the Utila Savanna………….…29 FIGURE 3A. Single variable model pH response curves………………………………………31 FIGURE 3B. Single variable model Conductivity response curves…………………………….32 FIGURE 3C. Single variable model depth of water table response curves……………………..33 FIGURE 3D. Single variable model percentage bare ground response curves…………………34 FIGURE 4. Detrended Correspondence Analysis of mounds in the Utila Savanna…………….35 FIGURE 5.
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