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Coastal freshwater wetland plant community response to seasonal drought and flooding in Northwestern Costa Rica

Publication ,  Journal Article
Osland, MJ; González, E; Richardson, CJ
Published in: Wetlands
January 1, 2011

Wetlands in tropical wet-dry climates are governed by distinct and extreme seasonal hydrologic fluctuations. In this study, we investigated the plant community response to seasonal flooding and drought in Palo Verde Marsh, Costa Rica. Climate change models for the region predict reduced rainfall and a drier wet season which would likely alter seasonal hydrologic cycles and prompt vegetation change.We quantified compositional change following disturbance emphasizing seasonal differences in plant life-form abundance across life history stages via standing vegetation, seed bank, and seedling recruitment measurements. Whereas the dry season standing vegetation was dominated by emergent species, aquatic species (floating-rooted, free-floating, and submerged life forms) were more dominant during the wet season. Seed bank and seedling recruitment measurements indicated that many species are resilient with life history traits that enable them to respond rapidly to extreme hydrologic filters. Interestingly, species richness was highest during seasonal flooding. Our results highlight the importance of early-wet season rainfall for plant regeneration and community change. Our findings also indicate that a drier future would likely have a large impact upon wetland plant communities with a decrease in species richness and an increase in the abundance of drought-tolerant emergent species. © Society of Wetland Scientists 2011.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Wetlands

DOI

EISSN

1943-6246

ISSN

0277-5212

Publication Date

January 1, 2011

Volume

31

Issue

4

Start / End Page

641 / 652

Related Subject Headings

  • Ecology
  • 41 Environmental sciences
  • 37 Earth sciences
  • 31 Biological sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences
  • 05 Environmental Sciences
  • 04 Earth Sciences
 

Citation

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Osland, M. J., González, E., & Richardson, C. J. (2011). Coastal freshwater wetland plant community response to seasonal drought and flooding in Northwestern Costa Rica. Wetlands, 31(4), 641–652. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-011-0180-9
Osland, M. J., E. González, and C. J. Richardson. “Coastal freshwater wetland plant community response to seasonal drought and flooding in Northwestern Costa Rica.” Wetlands 31, no. 4 (January 1, 2011): 641–52. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-011-0180-9.
Osland MJ, González E, Richardson CJ. Coastal freshwater wetland plant community response to seasonal drought and flooding in Northwestern Costa Rica. Wetlands. 2011 Jan 1;31(4):641–52.
Osland, M. J., et al. “Coastal freshwater wetland plant community response to seasonal drought and flooding in Northwestern Costa Rica.” Wetlands, vol. 31, no. 4, Jan. 2011, pp. 641–52. Scopus, doi:10.1007/s13157-011-0180-9.
Osland MJ, González E, Richardson CJ. Coastal freshwater wetland plant community response to seasonal drought and flooding in Northwestern Costa Rica. Wetlands. 2011 Jan 1;31(4):641–652.
Journal cover image

Published In

Wetlands

DOI

EISSN

1943-6246

ISSN

0277-5212

Publication Date

January 1, 2011

Volume

31

Issue

4

Start / End Page

641 / 652

Related Subject Headings

  • Ecology
  • 41 Environmental sciences
  • 37 Earth sciences
  • 31 Biological sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences
  • 05 Environmental Sciences
  • 04 Earth Sciences