Longevity, recruitment and mortality of desert plants in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA
Bowers JE, Webb RH, Rondeau RJ. 1995. Longevity, recruitment and mortality of desert plants in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA. Journal of Vegetation Science. 6(4):551-564
Longevity, recruitment, and mortality were determined for 38 species characteristic of ungrazed desert scrub. Individual plants that survived 100 yr or more included Acacia greggii, Ambrosia dumosa, Atriplex canescens, A. confertifolia, Echinocactus polycephalus, Ephedra spp., Fouquieria splendens, Larrea tridentata, Lycium andersonii, Opuntia acanthocarpa, O. basilaris, O. erinacea, Pleuraphis rigida and Yucca angustissima. This is the first evidence of long lifespan for most of these species, particularly the succulents. Most of the long-lived species registered overall increases in population during the past century. Climatic fluctuations over the past century are probably largely responsible for these recruitment and mortality patterns, but nurse plants, predation refuges and other biotic factors may also play a role.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Bowers, Janice; Webb, Robert; Rondeau, R
- Units
- GRCA , MOJA
- Keywords
- Desert, Mortality, Plant Studies, Taxa Links To References