Ten Years in Rehabilitation of Spoil: Appearance, Plant Colonists, and the Dominant Herbivore
| Autor: | William H.G. Hale, David J. Hambler, Jean M. Dixon |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 1995 |
| Předmět: |
Herbivore
Ecology Health Toxicology and Mutagenesis Jacobaea Management Monitoring Policy and Law Biology biology.organism_classification Pollution Spatial heterogeneity Colonisation Seral community Ruderal species Plant cover Species richness Nature and Landscape Conservation Water Science and Technology |
| Zdroj: | Environmental Conservation. 22:323-334 |
| ISSN: | 1469-4387 0376-8929 |
| DOI: | 10.1017/s0376892900034895 |
| Popis: | Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) have influenced a sown pioneer grassland on limestone quarry spoil from its outset. They have been responsible for middens characterized by a distinct microspatial assemblage of plant species, in which common mesic species are favoured. They have benefited conservation through producing spatial heterogeneity of the spoil surface — thus increasing the number of available ecological niches. They have also mediated an importation of plant nutrients so gradual that competitive ruderal species have (with the exception of Ragwort, Senecio jacobaea) not been encouraged, whilst some desirable ‘rabbit-resistant’ species have become established particularly on the middens.‘Normal grazing’ is a behavioural pattern which can maintain a sward, even when potentially dominating mesic species become established. However, ‘casual grazing’, and browsing, of conspicuous or rare plants, is likely to be disadvantageous. Manipulation of intrinsically unpredictable seral quarry floras through interference by Rabbit populations, or with Rabbit-access, may be an option on such sites. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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