Abstract
No survey of plant communities has been performed recently in the Bergen Swamp, NY, USA, a unique strongly minerotrophic mire with active marl deposition. In summer 2004, I established an array of randomly placed plots throughout Bergen Swamp survey plant communities. The plant survey included stem counts of herbaceous plant species and shrubs within 1m square quadrats. I performed a Raup and Crick clustering analysis at two different spatial scales to group plant communities and found that there were five communities at the subplot level, and three communities at the plot level. I then used detrended correspondence analysis (DCA), an indirect gradient analysis, to infer and predict important local and landscape environmental gradients associated with identified communities. Observed differences between spatial scales are possibly a result of micro-topological differences related to hummock and hollow formation. The major environmental gradients associated with plant communities were, in order of decreasing importance, depth to water table, hydrologic activity, and pH.
Library of Congress Subject Headings
Plant communities--New York (State)--Genesee County; Swamp ecology--New York (State)--Genesee County
Publication Date
11-2-2005
Document Type
Thesis
Student Type
- Please Select One -
Department, Program, or Center
Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences (COS)
Advisor
Shipman, Paul - Chair
Recommended Citation
Hall, Aaron, "The environmental gradients and plant communities of Bergen Swamp, N.Y., U.S.A." (2005). Thesis. Rochester Institute of Technology. Accessed from
https://repository.rit.edu/theses/5652
Campus
RIT – Main Campus
Plan Codes
ENVS-MS
Comments
Note: imported from RIT’s Digital Media Library running on DSpace to RIT Scholar Works. Physical copy available through RIT's The Wallace Library at: QK177 .H35 2005