Historical influences on the vegetation and soils of the Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts coastal sandplain: Implications for conservation and restoration

Biological Conservation

Volumn 136, Issue 1, 2007, Pages 17-32

  Neill, Christopher ^a   Von Holle, Betsy ^b   Kleese, Katherine ^a   Ivy, Kristin D ^b   Colllins, Alexandra R ^b   Treat, Claire ^a   Dean, Mary ^a  

^a ECOSYSTEMS CENTER   (United States)

^b HARVARD UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

Exotic species; Land use history; New England; Sandplain grassland; Sandplain shrubland

Indexed keywords

ANTHROPOGENIC EFFECT; COMMUNITY COMPOSITION; ENVIRONMENTAL DISTURBANCE; ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION; FIRE HISTORY; HABITAT CONSERVATION; LAND USE CHANGE; PLANT COMMUNITY; SOIL CHEMISTRY; VEGETATION HISTORY;

MARTHA'S VINEYARD; MASSACHUSETTS; NEW ENGLAND; NORTH AMERICA; UNITED STATES;

PINUS RESINOSA; QUERCUS ILICIFOLIA;

EID: 33846510439     PISSN: 00063207     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2006.10.046     Document Type: Article

References (71)

1. 13C natural abundance measurements. Plant and Soil 173 (1995) 191-196
2. Askins R.A. Sustaining biological diversity in early successional communities: The challenge of managing unpopular habitats. Wildlife Society Bulletin 29 (2001) 409-4224
3. Bakker J.D., and Wilson S.D. Using ecological restoration to constrain biological invasion. Journal of Applied Ecology 41 (2004) 1058-1064
4. Barbour, H., Simmons, T., Swain P., Woolsley, H., 1998. Our Irreplaceable Heritage. Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program and The Massachusetts Chapter of the Nature Conservancy. Westborough, MA.
5. Bellemere J., Motzkin G., and Foster D.R. Legacies of the agricultural past in the forested present: an assessment of historical land-use effects on rich mesic forests. Journal of Biogeography 29 (2002) 1401-1420
6. Boerner R.E.J., Morris S.J., Sutherland E.K., and Hutchinson T.F. Spatial variability in soil nitrogen dynamics after prescribed burning in Ohio mixed-oak forests. Landscape Ecology 15 (2000) 425-439
7. Briggs J.M., Hoch G.A., and Johnson L.C. Assessing the rate, mechanisms and consequences of the conversion of tallgrass prairie to Juniperus virginiana forest. Ecosystems 5 (2002) 578-586
8. Brown J.R., and Archer S. Shrub invasion of grassland: recruitment is continuous and not regulated by herbaceous biomass or density. Ecology 80 (1999) 2385-2396
9. Burnham K.P., and Anderson D.R. Model Selection and Multimodel Inference: A Practical Information-Theoretic Approach (2002), Springer, New York
10. Cambardella C., and Elliot E. Carbon and nitrogen dynamics of soil organic matter fractions from cultivated grassland soils. Soil Science Society of America Journal 58 (1994) 122-130
11. Clarke, G.L., Patterson III, W.A., 2006. The distribution of rare plants in a coastal Massachusetts sandplain: implications for conservation and management. Biological Conservation, this issue, doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2006.10.043.
12. Compton J.E., and Boone R.D. Long-term impacts of agriculture on soil carbon and nitrogen in New England forests. Ecology 81 (2000) 2314-2330
13. Compton J.E., Boone R.D., Motzkin G., and Foster D.R. Soil carbon and nitrogen in a pine-oak sand plain in central Massachusetts: role of vegetation and land-use history. Oecologia 116 (1998) 536-542
14. Dunlop T. State forest tapped for massive clearing (2004), The Vineyard Gazette September 24
15. Dunwiddie P.W. Martha's Vineyard Landscapes: The Nature of Change (1994), Vineyard Conservation Society, Tisbury, MA
16. Dunwiddie P.W., and Adams M.B. Fire Suppression and Landscape Change on Outer Cape Cod, 1600-1994 (1995), National Park Service, New England System Support Office, Boston, MA
17. Dunwiddie P.W., Zaremba R.E., and Harper K.A. A classification of coastal heathlands and sandplain grasslands in Massachusetts. Rhodora 98 (1996) 117-145
18. Dunwiddie P.W., Patterson III W.A., Rudnicky J.L., and Zaremba R.E. Vegetation management in coastal grasslands on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts: effects of burning and mowing from 1982 to 1993. In: Vickery P.D., and Dunwiddie P.W. (Eds). Grasslands of Northeastern North America: Ecology and Conservation of Native and Agricultural Landscapes (1997), Massachusetts Audubon Society, Lincoln, MA 85-97
19. Dunwiddie P.W., and Sferra N. Loss of rare butterfly and plant species in coastal grasslands. Natural Areas Journal 11 (1991) 119-120
20. Dupouey J.L., Dambrine E., Laffite J.D., and Moares C. Irreversible impact of past land use on forest soils and biodiversity. Ecology 83 (2002) 2978-2984
21. Eberhardt R.W., Foster D.R., Motzkin G., and Hall B. Conservation of changing landscapes: vegetation and land-use history of Cape Cod National Seashore. Ecological Applications 13 (2003) 68-84
22. Ehrenfeld J.G., and Toth L.A. Restoration ecology and the ecosystem perspective. Restoration Ecology 5 (1997) 307-317
23. Ehrenfeld J.G., Kourtev P., and Huang W. Changes in soil functions following invasion of exotic understory plants in deciduous forests. Ecological Applications 11 (2001) 1287-1300
24. Farnsworth, E., 2006. Sandplain plant life history traits as a guide to multi-species management strategies for rare taxa. Biological Conservation, this issue.
25. Finzi A.C., van Breemen N., and Canham C.D. Canopy tree-soil interactions within temperate forests: species effects on soil carbon and nitrogen. Ecological Applications 8 (1998) 440-446
26. Fletcher P.C., and Roffolini R.J. Soil Survey of Dukes County, Massachusetts (1986), US Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, Washington, DC
27. Foster, D.R., Motzkin, G. 1999., Historical influences on the landscape of Martha's Vineyard. Harvard Forest Paper No. 23. Harvard Forest, Petersham, MA.
28. Foster D.R., and Motzkin G. Interpreting and conserving the openland habitats of coastal New England: insights from land use history. Forest Ecology and Management 185 (2003) 127-150
29. Foster D.R., Hall B., Barry S., Clayden S., and Parshall T. Cultural, environmental and historical controls of vegetation pattern and the modern conservation setting on the island of Martha's Vineyard, USA. Journal of Biogeography 29 (2002) 1381-1400
30. Gilliam F.S., Yurish B.M., and Adams M.B. Temporal and spatial variation of nitrogen transformations in nitrogen-saturated soils of a central Appalachian hardwood forest. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 31 (2001) 1768-1785
31. Gimmingham C.H. Ecology of Heathlands (1972), Chapman and Hall, London
32. Glatzel G. The impact of historical land-use and modern forestry on nutrient relations of Central European forest ecosystems. Fertilizer Research 27 (1991) 1-8
33. Goldstein P.Z. Lepidopteran assemblages and the management of sandplain communities on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. In: Vickery P.D., and Dunwiddie P.W. (Eds). Grasslands of Northeastern North America: Ecology and Conservation of Native and Agricultural Landscapes (1997), Massachusetts Audubon Society, Lincoln, MA 217-236
34. Grimm E.C. Fire and other factors controlling the Big Woods vegetation of Minnesota in the mid-nineteenth century. Ecological Monographs 54 (1984) 291-311
35. Gross A.O. The Heath Hen vol. 6 (1928), Memoirs of the Boston Society of Natural History, Boston, MA
36. Hooker B.A., Morris T.F., Peters R., and Cardon Z.G. Long-term effects of tillage and corn stalk return on soil carbon dynamics. Soil Science Society of America Journal 69 (2005) 188-196
37. Hubbard R.M., Vose J.M., Clinton B.D., Elliot K.J., and Knoepp J.D. Stand restoration burning in oak-pine forests in the southern Appalachians: effects on aboveground biomass and carbon and nitrogen cycling. Forest Ecology and Management 190 (2004) 311-321
38. Jassy J.H., Koerner W., Dambrine E., Dupouey J.L., and Benoit M. Influence of former agricultural land use on net nitrate production in forest soils. European Journal of Soil Science 53 (2002) 367-374
39. Lezberg A.L., Buresch K., Neill C., and Chase T. Mechanical land clearing to promote establishment of coastal sandplain grassland and shrubland communities. Restoration Ecology 14 (2006) 220-232
40. Litvaitis J.A. Shrubland and early-successional forests: critical habitats dependent on disturbance in the northeastern United States. Forest Ecology and Management 185 (2003) 1-4
41. Lovett G.M., and Reuth H. Soil nitrogen transformations in beech and maple stands along a nitrogen deposition gradient. Ecological Applications 9 (1999) 1330-1344
42. Marks P.L. On the origin of the field plants of the Northeastern United States. American Naturalist 122 (1983) 210-228
43. Marrs R.H., Gough M.W., and Griffiths M. Soil chemistry and leaching losses of nutrients from semi-natural grasslands and arable soils on three contrasting parent materials. Biological Conservation 57 (1991) 257-271
44. McCune B., and Mefford M.J. PC-ORD. Multivariate analysis of ecological data. fourth ed. (1999), MjM Software Design, Glenedon Beach, Oregon
45. MNHESP, (Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program), 2001. Biomap-guiding land conservation for biodiversity in Massachusetts. Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, Boston.
46. Mitchell R.J., Auld M.H.D., Hughes J.M., and Marrs R.H. Estimates of nutrient removal during heathland restoration on successional sites in Dorset, southern England. Biological Conservation 95 (2000) 233-246
47. Motzkin G., Foster D.R., Allen A., Harrod J., and Boone R. Controlling site to evaluate history: vegetation patterns of a New England sand plain. Ecological Monographs 66 (1996) 345-365
48. Motzkin G., Ciccarello S.C., and Foster D.R. Frost pockets on a level sand plain: does variation in microclimate help maintain persistent vegetation patterns?. Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society 129 (2002) 154-163
49. Motzkin G., Eberhardt R., Hall B., Foster D.R., Harrod J., and MacDonald D. Vegetation variation across Cape Cod, Massachusetts: environmental and historical determinants. Journal of Biogeography 29 (2002) 1439-1454
50. Motzkin G., and Foster D.R. Grasslands, heathlands and shrublands in coastal New England: historical interpretations and approaches to conservation. Journal of Biogeography 29 (2002) 1569-1590
51. Ogden J.A.E., and Rejmanek M. Recovery of native plant communities after the control of a dominant invasive plant species, Foeniculum vulgare: implications for management. Biological Conservation 125 (2005) 427-439
52. Owen K.M., and Marrs R.H. Creation of heathland on former arable land at Minsmere, Suffolk, UK: the effects of soil acidification on the establishment of Calluna and ruderal species. Biological Conservation 93 (2000) 9-18
53. Patterson III W.A., and Clark G.L. Restoring barrens shrublands: decreasing fire hazard and improving rare plant habitat. In: Masters R.E., and Galley K.E.M. (Eds). Proceedings of the 23rd Tall Timbers Fire Ecology Conference: Fire in Grassland and Shrubland Ecosystems (2006), Tall Timbers Research Station, Tallahassee, FL
54. Patterson III W.A., Saunders K.E., and Horton L.J. Fire regimes of Cape Cod National Seashore. Office of Scientific Studies 83-1 (1983), National Park Service, Washington, DC
55. 13C to detect the historic presence of little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) grasslands on Martha's Vineyard. Restoration Ecology 11 (2002) 116-122
56. Pickett S.T.A. Population patterns through twenty years of old field succession. Vegetation 49 (1982) 45-59
57. Phillips D.H., Foss J.E., Buckner E.R., Evans R.M., and FitzPatrick E.A. Response of surface horizons in an oak forest to prescribed burning. Soil Science Society of America Journal 64 (2000) 754-760
58. Rejmánek M. Invasibility of plant communities. In: Drake J.A., Mooney H.A., Castri F.d., Groves R.H., Kruger F.J., Rejmánek M., and Williamson M. (Eds). Biological Invasions: A Global Perspective (1989), Wiley, Chichester, UK 369-388
59. Robarge, W.P., Fernandez, I., 1986. Quality assurance methods manual for laboratory analytical techniques, Laboratory Analytical Techniques Manual, US Environmental Protection Agency and US Forest Service, Corvallis, OR.
60. Romme W.H., and Despain D.G. Historical perspective on the Yellowstone fires of 1988. BioScience 39 (1989) 695-699
61. Schimel D.S. Carbon and nitrogen turnover in adjacent grassland and cropland ecosystems. Biogeochemistry 2 (1986) 345-357
62. Schmidt E.L., and Belser L.W. Nitrifying bacteria. In: Page A.L., Miller R.H., and Keeney D.R. (Eds). Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 2: Chemical and Microbiological Properties. second ed. (1982), American Society of Agronomy, Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI 1027-1042
63. Sorrie, B.A., Somers, P., 1999. The vascular plants of Massachusetts: A county checklist. Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, Westborough, MA.
64. Sutherland W.J., and Hill D.A. Managing Habitats for Conservation (1995), Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
65. Tiffney W.N. The role of nutrient-level control in maintaining and restoring lowland heaths: British and Northern European techniques of potential application in Northeastern North America. In: Vickery P.D., and Dunwiddie P.W. (Eds). Grasslands of Northeastern North America, Ecology and Conservation of Native and Agricultural Landscapes (1997), Center for Biological Conservation, Massachusetts Audubon Society, Lincoln, MA 69-78
66. Tilman D. Species richness of experimental productivity gradients: how important is colonization limitation. Ecology 74 (1993) 2179-2191
67. TTOR (The Trustees of Reservations). Conserving our Common Wealth-A Vision for the Massachusetts Landscape (1999), The Trustees of Reservations, Beverly, MA
68. United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. 1848. Maps of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. Marine Biological Laboratory Archives, Woods Hole, MA.
69. Vitousek P.M., D'Antonio C.M., Loope L.L., and Westbrooks R. Biological invasions as global environmental change. American Scientist 84 (1996) 468-478
70. Wagner D.L., Nelson M.W., and Schweitzer D.F. Shrubland Lepidoptera of southern New England and southeastern New York: ecology, conservation and management. Forest Ecology and Management 185 (2003) 95-112
71. Zar J.H. Biostatistical Analysis. fourth ed. (1999), Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ