Sebastian Sundberg

Species diversity, niche metrics and species associations in harvested and undisturbed bogs

. Competition is considered an important force in structuring plant communities and in governing niche relations, but communities recovering from disturbance, may be less governed by species interactions and less orderly organized. To address this issue, we studied species richness, abundance and patterns of association between plant species at three spatial scales (1 m2, 1/25 m2, 1/625 m2) in two ombrotrophic mires in east-central Sweden. One was at a secondary successional stage following peat extraction 50 yr ago and the other was undisturbed. Peat extraction leads to a change in hydrology which is slowly restored by the formation of new peat. Niche breadth and niche overlap along the gradient of height above the water table were calculated for the five common Sphagnum species occurring at both mires in an attempt to better understand differences in species co-occurrence at each mire. Species cover differed between the mires, and the number of species per plot was higher in the undisturbed community at all scales, suggesting that the degree of species intermingling was greater than at the harvested site. At all scales, the number of non-random associations was higher, and niche overlap lower among ecologically similar species (e.g. hollow Sphagnum species) in the undisturbed mire. These differences indicate that random events are important in colonization, and that biotic interactions between neighbours later result in a higher degree of non-randomness. In addition, we surveyed a number of abandoned peat pit sites to test the effect of disturbance for species composition at a regional scale. Ombrotrophic peat pits contained several Sphagnum species normally associated with minerotrophic mires, and species of wooded mires occurred frequently in peat pits, making them more species-rich than undisturbed bogs. There were also Sphagnum species new to, or rare in, this part of Sweden which indicates effective long-distance dispersal. Even 50 yr after peat extraction had ceased, the vegetation had not recovered to its original composition.

The Role of Sphagnum in Peatland Development and Persistence

Sphagnum mosses not only dominate large areas of the boreal peatlands, but they have also formed these habitats by their growth and production of decay-resistant litter. As they invade, they can quickly transform a high-pH fen with little peat accumulation to a bog where large amounts of carbon is stored. They are also responsible for the many types of surface patterns observed in peatlands. Their ability to shape and transform mires can to a large extent be understood from the peculiar anatomy and biochemistry, a fact which makes the links between species’ traits and ecosystem functions in peatlands very strong.

The Fate of the Missing Spores — Patterns of Realized Dispersal beyond the Closest Vicinity of a Sporulating Moss

It is well-known that many species with small diaspores can disperse far during extended temporal scales (many years). However, studies on short temporal scales usually only cover short distances (in, e.g., bryophytes up to 15 m). By using a novel experimental design, studying the realized dispersal, we extend this range by almost two orders of magnitude. We recorded establishment of the fast-growing moss Discelium nudum on introduced suitable substrates, placed around a translocated, sporulating mother colony. Around 2,000 pots with acidic clay were placed at different distances between 5 m and 600 m, in four directions, on a raised bog, with increased pot numbers with distance. The experiment was set up in April–May and the realized dispersal (number of colonized pots) was recorded in September. Close to the mother colony (up to 10 m), the mean colonization rates (ratio of colonized pots) exceeded 50%. At distances between 10 and 50 m colonization dropped sharply, but beyond 50 m the mean colonization rates stabilized and hardly changed (1–3%). The estimated density of spores causing establishments at the further distances (2–6 spores/m2) was realistic when compared to the estimated spore output from the central colonies. Our study supports calculations from earlier studies, limited to short distances, that a majority of the spores disperse beyond the nearest vicinity of a source. The even colonization pattern at further distances raises interesting questions about under what conditions spores are transported and deposited. However, it is clear that regular establishment is likely at the km-scale for this and many other species with similar spore output and dispersal mechanism.

Air humidity thresholds trigger active moss spore release to extend dispersal in space and time

Understanding the complete dispersal process is important for making realistic predictions of species distributions, but mechanisms for diaspore release in wind-dispersed species are often unknown. However, diaspore release under conditions that increase the probability of longer dispersal distances and mechanisms that extend dispersal events in time may have evolutionary advantages. We quantified air humidity thresholds regulating spore release in the moss Brachythecium rutabulum. We also investigated the prevailing micrometeorological conditions when these thresholds occur in nature and how they affect dispersal distances up to 100 m, using a mechanistic dispersal model. We show that moss spores were mainly released when the peristome teeth were opening, as relative air humidity (RH) decreased from high values to relatively low (mainly between 90% and 75% RH). This most often occurred in the morning, when wind speeds were relatively low. Surprisingly, the model predicted that an equally high proportion of the spores would travel distances beyond 100m (horizontally) when released in the wind conditions prevailing during events of RH decrease in the morning, that lead to peristome opening, as in the highest wind speeds. Moreover, a higher proportion of the spores reached high altitudes when released at the lower wind speeds during the morning compared to the higher speeds later in the day, indicating a possibility for extended dispersal distances when released in the morning. Dispersal in the morning is enhanced by a combination of a more unstable atmospheric surface layer that promotes vertical dispersal, and a lower wind speed that decreases the spore deposition probability onto the ground, compared to later in the day. Our study demonstrates an active spore release mechanism in response to diurnally changing air humidity. The mechanism may promote longer dispersal distances, because of enhanced vertical dispersal and because spores being released in the morning have more time to travel before the wind calms down at night. The mechanism also leads to a prolonged dispersal period over the season, which may be viewed as a risk spreading in time that ultimately also leads to a higher diversity of establishment conditions, dispersal distances and directions.

Explaining species distributions by traits of bryophytes and vascular plants in a patchy landscape

The species pool theory helps us understand species distributions at different geographical scales. In theory, species pools consist of species passing the filters between different geographical scales. Filters of dispersal and environment act between the regional and local pools, while filters of biotic interactions act between the local and the community pools. We studied bryophytes and vascular plants restricted to rich (calcareous) fens that occur as patches in a forested landscape. We then examined their frequencies and abundances at the local and regional scales and related the results to traits important for dispersal and competition. Our results show that weft-forming bryophytes and vascular plants with far-creeping rhizomes have higher local frequency than predicted from their regional frequency. Dispersal traits did not explain any variation in the distributions. This indicates that environmental and biotic filters are more important than dispersal limitation at the regional scale, and that clonal expansion is the most important factor for high frequency and abundance at the local scale in these nutrient poor habitats.