User: | Open Learning Faculty Member:
There are many ecological processes that relate to my research at Cates Park on the successful growth of Tsuga heterophylla on nurse logs.
- Anthropogenic microdisturbances caused by timber harvesting is followed by gap phase microsuccessions occurring throughout the park where large, old growth trees have been logged.
- These microsuccessions likely have founder-controlled communities, as the species that grow on nurse logs have similar environmental tolerances, as I have observed ample species richness.
- Facilitation is an ecological process that benefits Tsuga heterophylla, as the substrate of the abiotic nurse habitats benefits this conifer’s success.
- Because I am collecting information on canopy cover, I might be able to analyze asymmetric competition, to determine if larger species that cast more shade exclude smaller flora.
Keywords that summarize this research in Cates Park are
- microdisturbance and microsuccession
- nurse log
- Temperate Rainforest
