| Abstract Detail
Ecology Reed, Zachary [1], Bridges, Edwin [2], Orzell, Steve [3], Budach, Brett [3]. Local-scale niche modeling of Stenanthium densum (Melanthiaceae), a fire-stimulated flowering plant endemic to the southeastern Coastal Plain. Stenanthium densum (Desr.) Zomlefer & Judd is a fire-stimulated flowering perennial endemic to the southeastern US coastal plain ranging from southeastern Virginia to central Florida and west to southern Mississippi, where it is found in seepage slopes, bogs, and wet savannas. In south-central Florida where it is at its southern range limit, it is a precocious (at full anthesis in as little as <30 days post fire) seepage wetland specialist that is threatened by hydrologic alterations and changes in the natural fire regime. At Avon Park Air Force Range (APAFR) in Polk and Highlands Counties, Florida, we collected 11,276 sub-metric GPS points between 2010 and 2020 to aid in determining its spatial distribution and rarity at APAFR. These occur primarily within two landscapes: within herbaceous seepage slopes along the Bombing Range Ridge – a Plio-Pleistocene central Florida ridge – and on the Osceola Plain on slightly sloping ecotones between pine savannas and herbaceous seasonal wetlands. Utilizing detailed vegetation class and soil coverages in conjunction with slope and hydrological raster datasets produced from a high resolution (1m accuracy) LiDAR-derived digital elevation model (DEM), we fit an ecological niche model for this species at APAFR. Niche modeling allowed us to identify other potentially suitable habitat for the species at APAFR, as well as to disentangle ecological drivers that might affect the distribution of this species within the south-central Florida portion of its range.
1 - 794 87th Avenue North, Saint Petersburg, FL, 33702, United States
2 - 3801 Florida Avenue, Sebring, FL, 33872
3 - 3801 Florida Avenue, Sebring, FL, 33872, USA
Keywords:
Ecological niche modeling
Stenanthium
Melanthiaceae
Fire-adapted
wetland
wetland specialist
seepage
LIDAR
Florida
Central Florida
pine savanna
flatwoods
herbaceous
depression wetlands.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: ECO4, Ecology 4: Vegetation and Community Ecology
Location: Virtual/Virtual
Date: Thursday, July 30th, 2020
Time: 11:30 AM
Number: ECO4007
Abstract ID:826
Candidate for Awards:Ecological Section Best Graduate Student Paper |
