Alternative community states in an old field grassland succession in Inland Pampas, Argentina

LAURA YAHDJIAN

Berkeley, California

Conferencia; Dep. Environmental, Science, Policy and Management of UCB; 2010

University of California at Berkeley

Ecosystems functional changes along secondary succession in grasslands of the Inland Pampas and its relation with the persistence of exotic plants. Laura Yahdjian, IFEVA-Facultad de Agronomia (UBA)/CONICET y Cátedra de Ecología. Av. San Martin 4453,(C1417DSE Ecological succession starts after a disturbance and leads to changes in plant species composition and ecosystem functioning, that in turn, modify the trajectory of succession. The study of post-agricultural succession (i.e. old field) in Inland Pampa grasslands has shown that the recover of natural communities is affected by the presence of different exotic plant species. The objective of this proposal is to evaluate changes in ecosystem functioning along post- agricultural succession in Inland Pampa grasslands to understand the mechanisms behind plant species turnover and the causes of exotic plant species persistence in this system. We will evaluate litter decomposition, nutrient turnover and soil respiration in plots that were sown by different plant assemblages and that represent different successional stages (early successional species, native and exotic late successional species), under different resource availability. Plots were installed in Estancia “San Claudio”, in the county of Carlos Casares, Buenos Aires, Argentina. This project will asses ecosystem processes in successional grasslands which were poorly explored, to evaluate the recovery of native grasses.