Kim Tarde Vegetation Ecology Summer 2014 Mountain Research Station, University of Colorado, Boulder

Ponderosa Pine Most widely distributed species in North America (Little, 1971) Characterized by open grassland interspersed with widely spaced trees Several species have an association with Ponderosa Pines Spike Fescue, Needle-and- Thread (Alexander, 1988)

Grass Species Spike Fescue Native, indicator of community climax with wind dispersal (Bradley et. al., 1992) Needle-and-Thread Native, mid-successional species with wind dispersal Cheat Grass Invasive, originally from Europe and parts of Asia The number and size of infestations increased dramatically over twenty years (Mosely et. al., 1999) Smooth Brome Invasive, originally from Eurasia Highly adaptable

Orientation There is a correlation with the orientation of aspen and kinnikinnik surrounding Ponderosa when looking at the roots of the species (Berndt et. al., 1954) Microhabitats for grass species have a suggested pattern in regions with foraging hens (Rumble et. al., 1996)

Question What is the orientation of grass species around Ponderosa Pines and how may canopy cover affect these species? Null Hypothesis: There is no pattern within the grass species orientation or canopy cover of a Ponderosa Pine. Alternative Hypothesis: There is a pattern within the grass species orientation and canopy cover of a Ponderosa Pine.

Plot Set-up Cover Classes: Class 1: 0-5% Class 2: 5-25% Class 3: 25-50% Class 4: 50-75% Class 5: 75-95% Class 6: % Randomly chose Ponderosas Pseudoreplication Three trees in the same area 10m diameter

Orientation: Spike Fescue and Needle-and- Thread P-Values Spike Fescue: Needle-and- Thread: Significant relationship between spike fescue and a N+NE orientation Indication of a relationship between needle-and-thread and a S+SW orientation

Orientation: Native vs. Invasive Species Compared the two native species (spike fescue and needle- and-thread) with two invasive species (Cheat Grass and Smooth Brome) P-value: NNE: N+NE SSW: S+SW

Canopy Cover: Cheat Grass Canopy Cover <50%>50% Species Cover Class P-value: Present in most plots No statistically significant difference in orientation around Ponderosa Pines

Orientation and Canopy Cover: Open Ground Plot Orientation NNESSW Canopy Cover 0-30%70-100% Ground Cover Class P-value: P-value: Significant relationship with more open ground to the N+NE Significant relationship showing less open ground with more canopy cover

Discussion Spike Fescue and Needle-and-Thread appear to have opposite orientations Needle-and-Thread adapted to drier conditions, Spike Fescue is not No difference in the distribution between native and invasive species Native species are found on separate sides of the tree, invasive species are found on all sides Cheat grass has no relationship with orientation or canopy cover Able to grow in many different conditions, almost impossible to get rid of Open ground was more likely to be found in plots with less canopy cover More sunlight, less moisture

Conclusions There could be a relationship between spike fescue, needle-and-thread, and orientation; and open ground and canopy cover For future research, you would need larger sample sizes and true replication

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