Date of Award
12-2024
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy - Forestry
Department
Forestry
First Advisor
Dr. K. Rebecca Kidd
Second Advisor
Dr. Jeremy Stovall
Third Advisor
Dr. Brian Oswald
Fourth Advisor
Dr. James Van Kley
Fifth Advisor
Dr. Steven Jack
Abstract
The research contained in this document characterizes environmental niches of bottomland hardwood (BLH) plant species, focusing on how gradients in light availability and flooding shape understory composition and exploring a potential trade-off between shade and flood tolerance. Field surveys demonstrated that small canopy gaps in BLH forest support shade-tolerant tree seedlings and increase understory plant diversity, but suppress shade-intolerant hardwoods such as oaks and hickories. A complementary greenhouse study demonstrated that two oak species exhibited similar responses to the experimental imposition of shading, flooding, and a combination of both. Both species responded to shading by a reduction in dark respiration rate, light compensation point, and height growth rate. Both species responded to flooding by increasing diameter growth rate, but only when not subject to shade. Together, these findings contribute to a broader understanding of the ecological factors that shape species’ distributions within BLH forests.
Repository Citation
Albrecht, Clifton F., "The Regeneration Niche in Bottomland Hardwood Forests: Tree and Herbaceous Communities Along Interacting Gradients of Flood and Light in East Texas Floodplains" (2024). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 583.
https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/583
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
