Determinants of Mangrove Species Distribution in Neotropical Forests

253 Pages·2017·10.72 MB·English

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LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School
1993
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Karen Lee Mckee
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College
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Mckee, Karen Lee, "Determinants of Mangrove Species Distribution in Neotropical Forests: Biotic and
Abiotic Factors Affecting Seedling Survival and Growth." (1993). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses.
5656.
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Order Number 9419910
Determinants of mangrove species distribution in neotropical
forests: Biotic and abiotic factors affecting seedling survival and
growth
McKee, Karen Lee, Ph.D.
The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical Col., 1993
300 N. Zeeb Rd.
Ann Arbor, MI 48106

DETERMINANTS OF MANGROVE SPECIES DISTRIBUTION IN NEOTROPICAL
FORESTS: BIOTIC AND ABIOTIC FACTORS AFFECTING SEEDLING
SURVIVAL AND GROWTH
A Dissertation
Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the
Louisiana State University and
Agricultural and Mechanical College
in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
in
The Department of Botany
by
Karen Lee McKee
B.S., Mississippi State University, 1972
M.S., North Carolina State University, 1977
December 1993
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A number of people contributed in various ways to this dissertation. I would
like to thank them and indicate the role each played in my pursuit of a doctoral degree.
Several people provided assistance in the field work. Mark Hester helped with
some of the characterization of vegetation zones and measurement of soil factors in
Belize (Chapters 2 and 3). Kathryn Flynn assisted with a portion of the seedling
recruitment study (Chapter 3), and Karla Coreil helped with some of the environmental
measurements (Chapter 3). Jenny Apple participated in one of the predation
experiments (Chapter 4).
In the laboratory, Karla Coreil assisted me with a number of analyses and data
entry. Analysis of the water samples for NH4 was conducted by Tom Oswald. Iam
also grateful to Gene Turner for permission to use his laboratory's C-H-N analyzer.
Elemental analysis of water samples was conducted by Judy Chupasko and Myrta
Christian using Dr. Robert Gambrell's ICP spectrometer.
Consultations with Dr. Barry Moser of the Department of Experimental Statistics
and informal discussions with Mark Hester allowed me to make informed decisions
regarding the design and analysis of field and laboratory experiments.
I would like to thank Dr. William H. Patrick, Jr., director of the Wetland
Biogeochemistry Institute and my immediate supervisor, for encouraging me to pursue a
degree while in his employment.
I am indebted to Dr. Klaus Rutzler of the National Museum of Natural History
and the Smithsonian Institution's Caribbean Coral Reef Ecosystems program for
providing travel funds and logistical support for my field work in Belize. Without
Klaus's support, I would never have had the opportunity to conduct research in such a
unique environment.
I also appreciate the efforts of my committee members: Dr. Shirley Tucker, Dr.
Mary Musgrave, Dr. David Longstreth, Dr. Robert Twilley, and Dr. Jim L. Chambers.
I am especially grateful to my major advisor, Dr. James B. Grace, for accepting me as a
student, but allowing me the freedom to make decisions and conduct my research as an
independent investigator. All provided their time, ideas, and advice at various stages in
my doctoral program.
I would also like to thank several other colleagues for their input and support.
Dr. Thomas J. Smith, in provided suggestions and critical comments on portions of my
dissertation (Chapters 4 and 8). He also assisted me in setting up one of the predation
experiments at Twin Cays. Dr. Robert R. Twilley introduced me to his research site at
Rookery Bay, Florida where one of my field studies was conducted (Chapter 8). Dr.
Candy Feller and I spent a great deal of time together in Belize, each conducting our
respective doctoral research projects. She offered information and advice about all
aspects of the mangrove ecosystem at Twin Cays as well as stimulating ideas and
discussions about ecology.
All of my friends and family, in Baton Rouge and elsewhere, have provided
encouragement and emotional support throughout this process. I must ackowledge one
person in particular, whose love and support carried me through difficult periods. My
husband and colleague, Irv Mendelssohn, has provided constant encouragement,
inspiration, and advice to me, both on a personal and a professional level. Words are
inadequate to express my gratitude for his patience and understanding.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS..........................................................................................ii
ABSTRACT...................................................................................................................v
INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................1
CHAPTER
1 LITERATURE REVIEW.....................................................................7
2 MANGROVE ZONATION AND EDAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS
IN A BELIZEAN ISLAND FOREST.............................................24
3 SEEDLING SURVIVAL OF NEOTROPICAL MANGROVES:
EFFECTS OF ESTABLISHMENT ABILITY AND EDAPHIC
FACTORS................................................................................................71
4 MANGROVE SPECIES DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS AND
PROPAGULE PREDATION IN BELIZE.....................................100
5 INTERSPECIFIC VARIATION IN RELATIVE GROWTH RATE,
BIOMASS PARTITIONING, AND DEFENSIVE CHARACTER­
ISTICS OF NEOTROPICAL MANGROVE SEEDLINGS.............125
6 RELATIVE SALT TOLERANCE OF THREE NEOTROPICAL
MANGROVE SPECIES...................................................................146
7 GROWTH AND PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES OF
MANGROVE SEEDLINGS TO ROOT ZONE ANOXIA...............165
8 SOIL PHYSICOCHEMICAL PATTERNS AND MANGROVE
SPECIES DISTRIBUTION: RECIPROCAL EFFECTS?..............192
OVERALL CONCLUSIONS.............................................................................219
BIBLIOGRAPHY...................................................................................................225
APPENDIX: LETTERS OF PERMISSION 238
VITA ..................................................................... 241
ABSTRACT
Mangroves are salt-tolerant trees and shrubs that dominate the intertidal zone in
many tropical and subtropical coastal regions. These intertidal forests often exhibit
relatively distinct and recurring patterns of species distribution. A series of field and
laboratory experiments examined biotic and abiotic factors affecting survival and growth
of three neotropical mangrove species: Rhizophora mangle (red mangrove), Avicennia
germinans (black mangrove), and Laguncularia racemosa (white mangrove).
A field survey across a mangrove island range in Belize revealed six vegetation
zones based on differences in dominant canopy species, size and vigor of the trees,
spatial position relative to the shoreline, and hydro-edaphic conditions. Variation in
relative densities of seedlings was correlated with physicochemical factors and distance
from conspecific, reproductive adults. Differential recruitment occurred in areas of
contrasting edaphic conditions. Biotic factors such as predation also varied spatially and
temporally and contributed to seedling mortality.
Seedling growth patterns indicated substantial differences among species in
terms of relative growth rate, biomass partitioning, morphological and physiological
flexibility and defensive properties. Field distributions and laboratory culture
experiments indicated that the three species are naturally abundant in conditions that are
sub-optimal for their growth, but where stress factors, resource availability, and
herbivores prevent or limit the growth of other species.
The results support the hypothesis that mangrove zonation is primarily the result
of specialization by species to different portions of the intertidal. Predation pressure,
resource availability, and stress intensity were found to vary across the intertidal and
generated a series of contrasting conditions for mangrove seedling recruitment.
Hypersaline conditions in the high intertidal favor Avicennia, which was determined to
have a high salt tolerance. Rhizophora is dominant in the low intertidal since its growth