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Long-term dynamics of tropical walking sticks in response to multiple large-scale and intense disturbances

  • Population ecology - Original Paper
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Abstract

Understanding the effects of disturbance and secondary succession on spatio-temporal patterns in the abundance of species is stymied by a lack of long-term demographic data, especially in response to infrequent and high intensity disturbances, such as hurricanes. Moreover, resistance and resilience to hurricane-induced disturbance may be mediated by legacies of previous land use, although such interactive effects are poorly understood, especially in tropical environments. We address these central issues in disturbance ecology by analyzing an extensive dataset, spanning the impacts of Hurricanes Hugo and Georges, on the abundance of a Neotropical walking stick, Lamponius portoricensis, in tabonuco rainforest of Puerto Rico during the wet and dry seasons from 1991 to 2007. By synthesizing data from two proximate sites in tabonuco forest, we show that resistance to Hurricane Hugo (97% reduction in abundance) was much less than resistance to Hurricane Georges (21% reduction in abundance). Based on a powerful statistical approach (generalized linear mixed-effects models with Poisson error terms), we documented that the temporal trajectories of abundance during secondary succession (i.e., patterns of resilience) differed between hurricanes and among historical land use categories, but that the effects of hurricanes and land use histories were independent of each other. These complex results likely arise because of differences in the intensities of the two hurricanes with respect to microclimatic effects (temperature and moisture) in the forest understory, as well as to time-lags in the response of L. portoricensis to changes in the abundance and distribution of preferred food plants (Piper) in post-hurricane environments.

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Acknowledgments

This research was facilitated by grant numbers BSR-8811902, DEB-9411973, DEB-0080538, and DEB-0218039 from the National Science Foundation to the Institute of Tropical Ecosystem Studies, University of Puerto Rico, and the International Institute of Tropical Forestry as part of the Long-Term Ecological Research Program in the Luquillo Experimental Forest. Additional support was provided by the USDA Forest Service, the University of Puerto Rico, the Department of Biological Sciences at Texas Tech University, and the Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering at the University of Connecticut. The clarity of the manuscript was improved because of comments from two anonymous reviewers. The staff of El Verde Field Station provided valuable logistical support in Puerto Rico. Finally, we thank the mid-sized army of students and colleagues who have assisted with collection of field data over the years.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 3107 Horsebarn Hill Road, Storrs, CT, 06269-4210, USA

    Michael R. Willig & Steven J. Presley

  2. Department of Biological Sciences, Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater, MA, 02325, USA

    Christopher P. Bloch

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  1. Michael R. Willig
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  2. Steven J. Presley
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Correspondence to Michael R. Willig.

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Communicated by Roland Brandl.

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Willig, M.R., Presley, S.J. & Bloch, C.P. Long-term dynamics of tropical walking sticks in response to multiple large-scale and intense disturbances. Oecologia 165, 357–368 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-010-1737-7

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