Wetlands and buffers of trees grasses and shrubs help to keep runoff from fields out of the waterways slowing erosion of soil and blooms of algae downstream.
buckthorn. This nonnative shrub which has invaded two-thirds of the United states has long been known to negatively impact plant community composition
and forest structure but these two innovative studies slated to publish in upcoming editions of the Journal of Herpetology
and Natural Areas Journal demonstrate how this shrub negatively impacts native amphibians and affects habitat use by mammals including increased prevalence of coyotes and other carnivores.
Lincoln Park Zoo Reintroduction Biologist Allison Sacerdote-Velat Ph d. and Northern Illinois University Professor of Biological sciences Richard King have identified European buckthorn as a contributor to amphibian
Several amphibian species exhibit low hatching rates in sites that are infested heavily with European buckthorn.
The Chicago Wilderness 2004 Woodland Audit found that in the Chicagoland area alone more than 26 million stems of European buckthorn exist with a density of 558 stems per acre.
hypothesize that emodin may impact the reproductive success of other frog species in regions where buckthorn is not native.
The new study demonstrates how a shrub that is viewed by many as a decorative plant can become invasive
Additionally new research from the zoo's Urban Wildlife Institute reveals how the presence of the invasive shrub in forest preserves and natural areas correlates to increased prevalence of carnivores.
and nestlings such as robins when nests are built in buckthorn and honeysuckle compared to nests built in native shrubs or trees.
The relationship between invasive plants and wildlife is complex. This is the first study of its kind to investigate the association between buckthorn
and habitat use by mammal species explained Director of the Urban Wildlife Institute Seth Magle Ph d. We know based on prior research that birds which build nests in buckthorn are more susceptible to predation.
Our study found that the presence of buckthorn alters wildlife distribution and attracts some carnivore species. We now know that there are significantly more coyotes raccoons
and opossums in buckthorn invaded areas and significantly fewer white-tailed deer. Magle hypothesizes that the carnivores could be drawn to buckthorn areas
because birds and their nests are easier to prey upon. He suggests that deer may be avoiding these areas
because buckthorn is an undesirable food source and also due to the increased prevalence of coyotes.
Research shows that deer fawns are a relatively common food item for Chicago-area coyotes.
In some areas like Lake County Forest Preserve District where Sacerdote-Velat works regularly ecologists and land managers have been committed to removing buckthorn from the area.
The data set collected from 2001 to 2008 includes a sample of all trees shrubs vines herbs grasses fern
and shrubs burn during a forest fire and remain in the soil after the fire ensuring the forest will regenerate.
fiber crops such as flax and cotton; ornamental plants like roses and lilies; Echinacea St john's wort and other medicinal herbs;
and what Khoury calls iconic U s. crops including sugar maple and wild rice. The rich assortment of U s. crop wild relatives came as something of a surprise to him
and his colleagues but Khoury says there are several possible reasons for it. For one although North america is itself not a major center of crop plant diversity it abuts one--Mesoamerica--where crops like corn bean squash
In reality there is a de facto moratorium in Europe on the cultivation of genetically engineered crops such as maize cotton
or triple cassava and maize yields by introducing disease-resistant plant varieties increasing fertilizer use
The research focused the state of Mato grosso the epicenter of an agricultural revolution that has made Brazil one of the world's top producers of soybeans corn cotton and other staple crops.
With wheat all the seeds germinated in one to two days instead of four or five and with peas and beans the typical 40 percent rate of germination rose to 60 to 70 percent.
or triple cassava and maize yields by introducing disease-resistant plant varieties increasing fertilizer use
Parasite-infected monarch butterflies protect their offspring against high levels of parasite growth by laying their eggs on anti-parasitic milkweed.
Working with cotton--a well-defined cellulosic material--as their model system the researchers applied PALM imaging in combination with a mathematical analysis they devised.
and branches corn stalks and cotton fibers and it is the main component of paper and cardboard.
whether the presence of an audience influences the behaviour and the testosterone changes of Japanese quails (Coturnix japonica) after a fight.
prices rose by 44%before taking inflation (8. 3%)into account in Spain in the years 2006-2010 but by only 10%before inflation (8. 5%)in the Canary islands during the same period.
It was authored co by civil engineering postdoctoral researchers Jeryang Park and Heather Gall and by Rao and Dev Niyogi Indiana state climatologist and an associate professor in the Purdue Department of Agronomy and the Department of Earth
In places where trees and shrubs have encroached into native grassland soil carbon increased 31 percent after several decades according to the study.
Corn and cotton have been modified genetically to produce pest-killing proteins from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis or Bt for short.
As reported in the study the pyramid strategy has been adopted extensively with two-toxin Bt cotton completely replacing one-toxin Bt cotton
We tested the underlying assumptions of the models in lab experiments with a major pest of corn and cotton.
As expected the resistant caterpillars survived after munching on cotton plants producing only that toxin. The surprise came
when Carriã re's team put them on pyramided Bt cotton containing Cry2ab in addition to Cry1ac.
and may also explain the reports indicating some field populations of cotton bollworm rapidly evolved resistance to both toxins.
In addition to Kern Gilbert and Hossain other scientists involved in the research include Kalpesh Patel Soma Ghosh and Anil Bhunia from Johns Hopkins. Story Source:
For some really problematic plants like yellow star thistle landowners are required not to do anything. It made no sense to
Boal said prairie chickens for example are not very likely to use cotton fields to nest in or for lekking (places where males aggregate to try to attract females to mate with).
The survey revealed that more than 80%of people in these areas use wetland resources including collecting water catching fish hunting bush meat (Sitatunga a type of antelope
and aluminum-sensitive plants she found a similar MATE1 allele (version of a gene) in both types of plants.
but in his view there could well be an increase in bushes and lianas. This would also have negative consequences for the local population.
Allen said cows stood for longer bouts of time as their core body temperatures rose from 101 degrees Fahrenheit to above 102 degrees.
hemp or other plant materials. These are sterilized mixed with nutrients and chilled. Then the mycelia spawn are added
and inhibiting the invasion of aggressive nonnative species including Scotch broom and hairy cat's ear.
Industrial forest managers and private landowners in Washington and Oregon are already using early results of the study to prevent Scotch broom invasions Harrington said.
in the Arctic is visible on the ground as an increasing abundance of tall shrubs
This may portend a decoupling between growing season warmth and vegetation productivity in some parts of the North as the ramifications of amplified greenhouse effect--including permafrost thawing frequent forest fires outbreak of pest infestations
The study was modeled after one conducted in a shrub-oak ecosystem in Colorado where scientists calculated a 180-meter ecological effect zone based on their results.
The tree tomatoa researcher at the UPM is collaborating in the characterization of genetic resource of the tree tomato to enhance its cultivation and commercialization in Andean and Mediterranean countries.
The tree tomato has a high potential for Andean cultivation but it is currently not well-utilized.
and the Universidad T cnica Particular de Loja (Ecuador) have detailed the morphology and genetic diversity of tree tomato.
The tree tomato (Solanum betaceum or Cyphomandra betacea) can reach up three meters of height and belongs to the Solonaceae family
Dr Heather Whitney a co-author of the study said: This novel communication channel reveals how flowers can potentially inform their pollinators about the honest status of their precious nectar and pollen reserves.
when looking for nectarflower colors that contrast with their background are more important to foraging bees than patterns of colored veins on pale flowers according to new research by Heather Whitney from the University of Cambridge in the UK and her colleagues.
He found that shrubs such as willow and birch became the dominant plants in response to warming where the herbivorous animals were excluded from the ecosystem.
When these shrubs expand in the plant community they tend to shade their neighbors and the build up of leaf litter around the shrubs tends to cool the soil surface reducing the availability of soil nutrients for other plants Post said.
As a result shrubs can quickly out-compete other plants and reduce species diversity in the process.
On the other hand in those areas where caribou and musk ox were able to graze freely shrub responses to warming were muted
and species diversity within the plant community was maintained. Post said the take-home message from his study is that in a warming climate intact populations of large herbivores may be crucial to the maintenance of plant-community diversity and to the persistence of existing plant communities.
Many animals that dwell in trees bushes deadfall or underground perish from the blazes or succumb later from lack of food and shelter or increased predation.
Luke Alphey and colleagues explain that the Lepidoptera a large family of insects with a caterpillar stage cause widespread damage worldwide to cotton;
They developed the lethal genetic sexing system in two pests the pink bollworm which damages cotton crops and the diamondback moth
The impact of this finding may also have heath implications for other groups of people who eat large quantities of rice daily.#
In addition the tropical C4-type grasses and shrubs of the modern African savannah began to dominate the landscape earlier than thought replacing C3-type grasses that were suited better to a wetter environment.
Grasses trees and shrubs have obvious differences but in times of stress their communities exhibit less negative competitive pressure and more facilitative positive interaction.
Analyses of studies of grasses trees and shrubs for example found that despite the obvious differences among these plant types they all shifted toward less negative or more positive interactions.
and other areas of the world are experiencing an increase in bush and wildfires which may continue
These include their use in the fight against fires in areas dominated by bushes and in controlling exotic vegetation plagues that could put ecosystems at risk.
study suggestsin Missouri forests dense thickets of invasive honeysuckle decrease the light available to other plants hog the attention of pollinators
Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) a mid-story shrub introduced from East asia as an ornamental and to provide bird habitat is the black hat in the oak-hickory forests.
but what does it mean for people who have been hacking down honeysuckle in their backyards
Take that bush honeysuckle choking Missouri's natural areas for example. It was seeded by birds carrying honeysuckle berries from backyards.
To prevent it from turning beloved nature preserves into shrub monocultures people must remove it from their yards
or choose not to plant it in the first place. While the small scale justifies the fight the large scale offers hope.
That rose to 4. 7 billion gallons in 2007 and 7. 5 billion in 2012.
if any effect on reducing CO2 emissions and may actually increase them while posing a threat to natural habitats
Between 1981 and 1991 the number of salmonella infections rose by 170%in the UK driven primarily by an epidemic of Salmonella enteritidis
Her research also showed that the people who would have benefitted from the shaman's knowledge practiced small-scale farming of maize manioc and arrowroot and collected palm nuts tree fruits and wild tubers.
It looks like black cotton thread but behaves like both metal wires and strong carbon fibers.
The resulting graph looks less like tree branches and more like a tangled shrub or mass of vines.
The trunk of the shrub represents the major relationships between the groups and the largest branches represent distinct populations as they develop over time from left to right on the graph.
extracted from Yucca schidigera at 0. 03%by volume an emulsified petroleum insecticide at a rate of 1%by volume clove oil alone (no adjuvant) and a nontreated control.
But there is hope that periodic flows will bring back willow mesquite and cottonwood trees revive insects
alfalfa canola corn cotton soybean and sugar beet. Food-producing animals such as cows pigs goats chickens
and Walter Dodds university distinguished professor of biology are researching grassland streams and the expansion of nearby woody vegetation such as trees and shrubs.
In their latest research the biologists studied 25 years of aerial photography on Konza and observed the expansion of trees and shrubs in riparian areas
and shrubs Veach said. Although we can reduce woody expansion by burning more frequently we can't prevent it from occurring over time Veach said.
and shrubs additional actions are need to maintain quickly disappearing grassland ecosystems. It's clear from this research that
and shrubs Veach said. Woody vegetation also may be expanding in grasslands because of more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere Dodds said.
which was derived from Texas mesquite wood was prepared to exacting standards in the lab of Rice geochemist Caroline Masiello a study co-author to ensure comparable results across soil types.
because it was isolated first as a volatile produced by jasmine Kolomiets said. Jasmonic acid one of perhaps 600 oxylipin molecules identified in plants is known to have diverse functions.
Friedman and colleagues write that strongly depositional sediment transport interacted with floodplain shrubs to produce a characteristic narrow trapezoidal channel.
For example farmers in the United states and Australia have used planting of pest-friendly refuges to delay evolution of insect resistance to genetically engineered corn and cotton.
Providing refuges of conventional plants has been especially effective for suppressing resistance in the pink bollworm an invasive pest of cotton.
Natural repellants such as clove oil citronella lemon grass eucalyptus castor oil peppermint lavender and cedar oil all work to a limited extent Pitts said
After examining the population trends of birds in desert sagebrush and chaparral habitats of the West the report's authors identify aridlands as the habitat with the steepest population declines in the nation.
Swafford noted that their acreage suffered a debilitating freeze in March that reduced the trees to tumbleweed look-alikes.
Cotton root rot a long-established disease in much of the state has been a problem for young trees according to Stein.
or shrubs and then brought them back to the lab where they anesthetized them and flushed the stomachs of their contents.
U s. tons) of India's wheat rice soybean and cotton crops in 2005. India could feed 94 million people with the lost wheat
Cotton--one of India's major commercial crops--lost more than 5 percent of its 3. 3 million metric ton (3. 6 million U s. tons) annual output in 2005 costing
One is based on shrubs trees and herbs whose photosynthesis contains intermediate products with three carbon atoms (C3).
Small antelopes such as springbok or steenbok specialise on shrubs and herbs whereas the oryx antelope feeds on grass--just like the cattle.
which were hidden by thorn bushes except for a narrow passage. The only way to reach their tree is passing the trap.
Unexpected diversity in New zealand tree, kanuka genus Kunzeaat the stroke of a pen a New zealand endemic tree has for the last 31 years been regarded incorrectly the same as a group of'weedy'Australian shrubs and small trees.
and shrubs were regarded now as identical to their distant Australian relatives all of which are serious agricultural pests known there as Burgan.
Technical Meeting Tulsa OK March 17-18 2014) Because the fuel for wildland fires is mostly in the undergrowth three species of shrub
the chamise bush; manzanita which can grow as a bush or small tree; and scrub oak a small tree.
A. Dahale; S. Ferguson; B. Shotorban; S. Mahalingam Effects of Distribution of Bulk Density and Moisture Content on Shrub Fires International J. Wildland Fire 22 (5) pp. 625-641 2013
) In a computer model we are using very small volumes of space on the order of one cubic millimeter on one end to a cubic meter on the other end he says.
Currently under study is the effect of shrubs as undergrowth in wildland fires and how proximity and wind can influence their combustion characteristics.
We light the shrub then figure out how much time it takes to burn out Dr. Mahalingam says.
S. Mahalingam Numerical investigation of stationary shrub fire in crosswind Paper 070fr-0073 presented at the 8th U s. National Combustion Meeting Salt lake city UT May 19
-22 2013) The UAH scientists are looking at how the interaction of fires in shrubs near each other can create energy hot spots in a conflagration.
Shrubs burned in controlled settings are being compared to computer modeled shrub fires to assess predictive qualities.
As you bring the shrubs closer together is the fuel being consumed faster and the energy created faster as a result?
We are interested in how the fire spreads from shrub to shrub what the interaction is and at what spacing and
It turns out that for cases with no wind you really have to get the shrubs close together for one to affect the other.
S. Mahalingam Flame merging in two neighboring shrub fires Paper 070fr-0198 presented at the 8th U s. National Combustion Meeting Salt lake city UT May 19
#Trees, shrubs invading critical grasslands, diminish cattle productionhalf of Earth's land mass is made up of rangelands
Woody plants such as trees and shrubs are moving in and taking over leading to a loss of critical habitat
and shrub cover of one percent leads to a two percent loss in livestock production.
In recent years the U s. government shelled out millions of dollars in an effort to stop the advance of trees and shrubs.
Researchers also used remote sensors to calculate the production of grasses and shrubs. And to account for the effects of different socioeconomic factors researchers quantified the impact of tree cover on livestock production in two areas of the world that have similar environments but different level of economic development.
Why are trees and shrubs taking over grasslands? There are several hypotheses as to why woody plant encroachment is happening.
of a common tree poppy California redwood chaparral currant Jeffrey pine and Valley oak. Manual adjustments to the automatic algorithm can be saved for different plants
which after a year and half rose to 600 and we plan to double it in a few months.
The fact that hemlock loss didn't increase water yield in the short-term was due to the rapid growth response of cooccurring trees and shrubs in the riparian forests;
including the addition of energy transmission towers affect avian predators nesting in sagebrush landscapes. Researchers compared nesting habitat selection between Common Ravens
and three raptor species commonly found in sagebrush ecosystems: Red-tailed hawks Swainson's Hawks and Ferruginous Hawks.
Raven populations have increased precipitously in the past four decades in sagebrush ecosystems largely as a result of fragmentation and development of anthropogenic structures.
The study took place on the sagebrush landscapes of the U s. Department of energy's Idaho site
Increases In common Raven distribution and abundance in the American west mirror declines in distribution and abundance of Greater Sage-grouse where energy transmission corridors and other land use changes have altered sagebrush steppe
Industrial development wildfires invasive plant species and other disturbances are changing sagebrush landscapes throughout the western United states. Our results shed light on how these avian predators might change with them said Coates of USGS. The study Landscape alterations
influence differential habitat use of nesting Buteos and ravens within sagebrush ecosystem: Implications for transmission line development will appear in the August 2014 print issue of the journal The Condor.
â#¢Approximately 74 percent of nests were located on natural substrates mostly juniper trees. â#¢Selected areas dominated by contiguous stands of sagebrush. â#¢Ferruginous Hawk nests were located farther from roads
The chaparral shrublands of southern California and similar sagebrush ecosystems in the Great Basin are adapted not to the kind of frequent fire typical of the mountain conifer forests in California.
Roses blooming in December? Thanks to technology that the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Richard Vierstra has been developing for years these things may soon be possible.
In some parts of Australia where Aboriginal people no longer are burning the bush ecologists are recording rapid declines in threatened species
because the animals can hide from predators like dingoes in older bush grass and spend most of their time eating shoots and fruits in patches of younger vegetation.
and bush in rocky areas and ridges surrounding eucalyptus-and acacia-dotted grassy sand plains where they forage.
and burn bush to obtain food to survive Codding says. The'conservation'of kangaroos is an outcome that evolved he says.
Indeed kangaroo population levels close to the village--where they were hunted first--are the same as at great distances from the community where there is little hunting and bush burning.
and features fruits such as bush tomato and bush raisin eaten by the Martu and hill kangaroos.
The two final stages occur five to 15 years after fire: Manguu when spinifex grass forms hummocks and re-establishes dominance
and kangaroo) and foraging for bush fruits Codding says. The researchers also monitored how long Martu hunters were away from their camps and
and shrubs while promoting nutritionally rich grass for that summer's grazing. Currently burning of Flint Hills prairie is concentrated typically in late April.
#Brother of Hibiscus flower is found alive and well on Maui, Hawaiimost people are familiar with Hibiscus flowers-they are an iconic symbol of tropical resorts worldwide where they are planted commonly in the landscape.
Some like Hawaii's State Flower-Hibiscus brackenridgei-are endangered species. Only a relatively few botanists
and Hawaiian conservation workers however are aware of an equally beautiful and intriguing related group of plants known as Hibiscadelphus-literally brother of Hibiscus.
Brother of Hibiscus species are endangered in fact highly. Until recently only one of the seven previously known species remained in its natural habitat the other having gone extinct.
These trees are known only or were known from five of the eight main Hawaiian islands. Two are still alive in cultivation saved in part because of their beautiful showy blossoms.
Hawaiians know these trees as hau kuahiwi-hau being a type of lowland Hibiscus common throughout the tropical Pacific
#Engineering a protein to prevent brain damage from toxic agentsresearch at New york University is paving the way for a breakthrough that may prevent brain damage in civilians
In 3 to 5 years shrubs produced a wealth of berries. Mature trees remained for the acorn harvest
and air qualityto reduce fire hazard in the United states wildland managers often utilize the silvicultural practice of mechanically cutting woody shrubs and suppressed trees (ladder fuels).
Diverse plant species that included trees shrubs herbaceous perennials a grass and a rush were selected to allow the researchers to evaluate the performance of a wide range of evergreen deciduous woody and herbaceous plants.
Nesting on lowland heath such as parts of Sherwood forest and Thames Basin Heath it can be affected by development such as housing
and as part of the planning process developers must now provide data on presence and abundance of this species and provide mitigation plans to prevent their disturbance before planning applications will be considered.
#Fecal transplants let packrats eat poisonwoodrats lost their ability to eat toxic creosote bushes after antibiotics killed their gut microbes.
A toxic resin coats the leaves of the creosote bush; juniper toxins are found inside juniper needles.
Desert woodrats in the Mojave started eating creosote bushes while desert woodrats in the Great Basin kept eating toxic juniper to
Fighting invasive species--like buckthorn and gypsy moths and garlic mustard--is a big part of our work here Herrick says
Long flowers like honeysuckle or columbine are too deep for short-tongued bees. But longer isn't always better;
#Beloved crape myrtle in nurseries now susceptible to bacterial leaf spotit's enough to send gardeners into conniptions.
Crape myrtle a tree adored for its bright flowers that scream summer carefree maintenance and even its colorful bark now has a disease problem--although so far only in the commercial nursery setting.
or overhead irrigation and some crape myrtle varieties are more susceptible than others. I've been working with crape myrtles for a long time
and they've been such a disease-resistant plant for such a long time so it's pretty significant
The U s. crape myrtle crop had a value of nearly $43 million in 2010 and Florida is its second-biggest producer behind Texas. Florida has more companies producing crape myrtle
however with 130 compared with 72 in Texas. In the June issue of the journal Plant disease the UF/IFAS team outlined the first report of the disease
They believe it is the first report of the bacterium causing leaf spot in crape myrtle.
The researchers say for now the disease affects only crape myrtle commercial producers and is spread by factors such as overhead irrigation systems
I think you can safely say that nearly every crape myrtle producer would have the disease at this point Knox said.
Crape myrtle is so close to Southern gardeners'hearts that they endlessly debate such topics as how to spell its name (variants include crepe myrtle crape myrtle
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