The effect of Celastrus orbiculatus, oriental bittersweet, on the herbaceous layer along a western North Carolina creek
- WCU Author/Contributor (non-WCU co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Jenny Rebecca Browder (Creator)
- Institution
- Western Carolina University (WCU )
- Web Site: http://library.wcu.edu/
- Advisor
- Greg Adkison
Abstract: Nonnative, invasive plants such as Celastrus orbiculatus Thunb. (Oriental bittersweet)
threaten the biodiversity of areas they invade. I examine bittersweet’s effect on the diversity,
richness, and total abundance of the herbaceous layer of Dingle Creek in western North Carolina
and its effect on the abundance of several native species found along Dingle Creek: Phlox
stolonifera, Viola sororia, Arisaema triphyllum, and Thelypteris noveboracensis. I selected an
area in this floodplain where bittersweet appeared to be encroaching but was not dominant to
establish a transect of paired quadrats. A pair was defined as one quadrat with bittersweet and
one quadrat without bittersweet. Abundance of all species in the herbaceous layer was measured
as percent cover and as number of rooted shoots in each quadrat. I found that bittersweet is
negatively affecting the community. Specifically, quadrats containing bittersweet had lower
richness, diversity, and total abundance compared to quadrats without the invasive plant. Nearly
a third of the species sampled were absent from quadrats with bittersweet. Also, one of the four
populations I examined, T. noveboracensis, was less abundant in bittersweet quadrats relative to
quadrats without bittersweet. These results, along with the abundance of young individuals of
bittersweet in the floodplain and the dominance of bittersweet in areas where it has apparently
been long established, all suggest that this species's highly developed morphological and
physiological adaptations may allow it to eventually dominate this site.
The effect of Celastrus orbiculatus, oriental bittersweet, on the herbaceous layer along a western North Carolina creek
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Created on 5/1/2011
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Thesis
- Language: English
- Date: 2011
- Keywords
- abundance, Celastrus orbiculatus, diversity, invasive species, oriental bittersweet, richness
- Subjects
- Celastrus orbiculatus -- Ecology -- North Carolina -- Biltmore Forest
- Plant invasions -- North Carolina -- Biltmore Forest