University of Kentucky
Studies in Entomology: Study 1: Arthropod Abundance and Diversity in a Bluegrass Savanna Remnant
Institution
University of Kentucky
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
Lynne Rieske-Kinney; Bruce Webb
Abstract
Human population pressures over the past centuries, including fragmentation and intensive land utilization, have placed increasing pressures on the unique and sensitive ecosystem of the Inner Bluegrass region. Pre-European settlement vegetation in the region consisted of open canopied, savanna-like forests characterized by oaks and ash that differed considerably from surrounding forests. Bur oak and blue ash are “signature trees” of the Inner Bluegrass, but the region also sustains chinquapin and shumard oaks, white ash, hickories, and Kentucky coffee trees. Recent recognition of the value and rarity of this ecosystem led to significant steps toward its preservation, including establishment of Griffith Woods Research Farm. The property has been intensively farmed since the 1820’s, including crop cultivation and livestock grazing. This intense land utilization has resulted in a present day patchwork of vegetation types and successional stages, including agricultural, old savanna, and post savanna woodlands. Griffith Woods contains some of the most valuable remnants of true oak-ash savanna and associated communities remaining. The unique nature of these community associates was the focus of our study. Our objectives were to characterize the arthropod community associated with Griffith Woods. We chose to evaluate this in the context of habitat (savanna versus agricultural) and dominant tree species (oak versus ash). Specifically, our objectives were to 1) characterize the ground-dwelling arthropod community with respect to abundance, diversity, and seasonal distribution, 2) compare abundance and diversity of savanna-associated arthropods to agricultural arthropod associates, and 3) evaluate the extent to which dominant tree species might affect arthropod community composition.
Studies in Entomology: Study 1: Arthropod Abundance and Diversity in a Bluegrass Savanna Remnant
Human population pressures over the past centuries, including fragmentation and intensive land utilization, have placed increasing pressures on the unique and sensitive ecosystem of the Inner Bluegrass region. Pre-European settlement vegetation in the region consisted of open canopied, savanna-like forests characterized by oaks and ash that differed considerably from surrounding forests. Bur oak and blue ash are “signature trees” of the Inner Bluegrass, but the region also sustains chinquapin and shumard oaks, white ash, hickories, and Kentucky coffee trees. Recent recognition of the value and rarity of this ecosystem led to significant steps toward its preservation, including establishment of Griffith Woods Research Farm. The property has been intensively farmed since the 1820’s, including crop cultivation and livestock grazing. This intense land utilization has resulted in a present day patchwork of vegetation types and successional stages, including agricultural, old savanna, and post savanna woodlands. Griffith Woods contains some of the most valuable remnants of true oak-ash savanna and associated communities remaining. The unique nature of these community associates was the focus of our study. Our objectives were to characterize the arthropod community associated with Griffith Woods. We chose to evaluate this in the context of habitat (savanna versus agricultural) and dominant tree species (oak versus ash). Specifically, our objectives were to 1) characterize the ground-dwelling arthropod community with respect to abundance, diversity, and seasonal distribution, 2) compare abundance and diversity of savanna-associated arthropods to agricultural arthropod associates, and 3) evaluate the extent to which dominant tree species might affect arthropod community composition.