Landscape Ecology Projects
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III. Dogwood in Doolittle prairie
General questions: Are there edge effects? Are the sizes of the clumps (clones?) a function of distance from other dogwoods? Can a reasonable historical picture be obtained from the spatial distribution of different sized clumps of this species?
What sort of spatial information might indicate that it is an invader as opposed to a stable member of the grassland community? What patterns might you expect and how would you look for them?
Task: Design a study that would provide evidence of the spatial spread of this plant. In doing this, construct hypotheses that would lead to support for the identification of the major modes of dispersal and how this could be expected to affect the species’ distribution over time. The study will be conducted on the northern half of Doolittle Prairie which is regularly burned as part of the prairie’s management plan
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Background: Dogwoods in the genus Cornus are species native to the tallgrass prairie region. They are a woody shrub that is often seen as an undesirable species that is often found along edges of streams, potholes, and forest/prairie borders. The seeds are dispersed by animals that consume the summer to fall produced fruits. Once established the plant may increase clonally. Hence the size of dogwood clumps may indicate age 