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Barriers to shrub reestablishment following fire in the seasonal submontane zone of Hawai'i

Oecologia volume 93, pages 557–563 (1993)Cite this article

Abstract

Introduced grass species have invaded extensive areas of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and increased the size and frequency of fire. Following fire, grass cover is enhanced while native shrub cover is reduced; the reduction in most shrubs persists for at least 20 years even in the absence of fire. Shrub seedlings were planted in burned and unburned plots with and without grass cover. Biomass of 14 month old shrub seedlings was generally highest in recently burned/grass removed plots, intermediate in old burn/grass removed plots, and lowest in unburned/grass removed plots. In contrast, shrub biomass in plots with grass cover was low and did not differ significantly among burn treatments. Light competition is likely to be responsible for differences in shrub growth rates; grass cover reduced light to 1–10% of background levels. In addition, pool sizes of available soil N were highest in recently burned, intermediate in old burn, and lowest in unburned areas.

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  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, 94305, Stanford, CA, USA

    Flint Hughes & Peter M. Vitousek

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  1. Flint Hughes
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  2. Peter M. Vitousek
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Hughes, F., Vitousek, P.M. Barriers to shrub reestablishment following fire in the seasonal submontane zone of Hawai'i. Oecologia 93, 557–563 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00328965

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00328965

Key words

  • Hawaiian Islands
  • Plant competition
  • Fire
  • Grass invasion
  • Seasonally dry forest