Canopy influence as a factor in determining understory community composition

Four tree species (i.e. Pinus ponderosa, Juiperus scopulorum, Quercus Gambelii, and Ceanothus velutinus were chosen for this study. Ten individuals of each species were selected and their associated understory communities and adjacent non-understory communities sampled. Data taken included biotic an...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Wilcox, Richard B.
Format: Others
Published: BYU ScholarsArchive 1977
Subjects:
Online Access:https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/8001
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=9001&context=etd
Description
Summary:Four tree species (i.e. Pinus ponderosa, Juiperus scopulorum, Quercus Gambelii, and Ceanothus velutinus were chosen for this study. Ten individuals of each species were selected and their associated understory communities and adjacent non-understory communities sampled. Data taken included biotic and abiotic parameters. The data was subjected to similarity index analysis, cluster analysis, discriminant analysis, and x^2 analysis. The results were confirmed by all tests. The forest canopy was shown to directly influence the understory community. The understory community is a shrub-grass dominated type while the non-understory community is an annual-forb dominated type. The different tree species were also shown to differentially influence their associated understory communities.