AN ECOLOGICAL STUDY OF THREE SPECIES OF EPIPHYTIC BROMELIADS IN JAMAICA (POPULATION DYNAMICS).
Item
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Title
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AN ECOLOGICAL STUDY OF THREE SPECIES OF EPIPHYTIC BROMELIADS IN JAMAICA (POPULATION DYNAMICS).
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Identifier
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AAI8708291
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identifier
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8708291
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Creator
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HUNTER, DALE M.
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Contributor
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Ghillean T. Prance
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Date
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1987
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Biology, Ecology
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Abstract
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Three bromeliad species, Tillandsia complanata, Vriesia incurva and V. sintenisii, were found to partition vertical space in their Mor Ridge Forest habitats in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica. The 750 m('2) study area had 7454 bromeliads supported by 648 trees of 15 families and 22 species. Mean heights above ground were significantly different for each species (1.6, 2.7, 1.8 m respectively). The three bromeliads showed definite support tree preferences which were independent of tree frequency and were not greatly influenced by the texture, pH or capillarity of bark. I designed a new instrument (based on water displacement) for measuring bark texture and capillarity.;The leaves of all three species are long lived. The calculated mean leaf life of Vriesia incurva is 1,279 days, that of Tillandsia complanata is 724 days and that of V. sintenisii is 450 days. There were no significant differences in the relative growth rates of leaves among the species and among the size classes. The absolute growth of Vriesia sintenisii was greater than that of Tillandsia complanata and V. incurva. There were more individuals of V. sintenisii (N = 4804) than T. complanata (N = 1880) and V. incurva (N = 769) combined. The larger number of V. sintenisii plants may be due to the greater measured fecundity of this species.;Only Vriesia sintenisii occurs naturally on the forest floor and individuals of each size class of all three species were transplanted to the ground. All transplants had significantly higher relative growth rates of leaves than non-transplanted ones. It is proposed that since all size classes of the three species grow well on the forest floor, Tillandsia complanata and Vriesia incurva are excluded at the seed stage or earliest germination stage of the life cycle. The very low pH of the forest floor (2.8 - 3.5) may also inhibit the germination of the seeds of Tillandsia complanata and Vriesia incurva. Since the rates of growth for all species within each group (transplanted and non-transplanted) are not different, the general climate of the area may have the greatest influence on the growth of these species.;The three bromeliads, rather than directly competing, may have partitioned the vertical space as well as the support trees in their habitat.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
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Program
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Biology
