DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.4056024
title: Investigating the abundance of herbaceous plant species in an area dominated by woody plant species

description: Meta-Data: Herbaceous Plants Abundance of native plants - the total number of individuals of native plants within each quadrat were counted and recorded. Native plants were assigned by the T.A. before beginning data collection. Each plant was considered a separate individual based on growth of a single stem. For species of moss, a continuous area of the species was considered a single colony and was counted as one individual. n = 25; discrete data Abundance of exotic plants - the total number of individuals of exotic plants within each quadrat were counted and recorded. Exotic plants were assumed to be all other plants that were not native. Each plant was considered a separate individual based on growth of a single stem. n = 25; discrete data Total number of flowers (quadrat) - the total number of independent flower heads within each quadrat was counted and recorded. Each bunch of flowers on a single plant was counted as a separate flower head. n= 25; discrete data Woody Plants Abundance of woody plants - data regarding the abundance of woody plants within a 2m^2 (0.5m on either side along 2m of the transect) patch of ground along the transect was counted as discrete, whole values. Any plant equal to or greater than 1.5m tall was considered a woody plant. n = 25; discrete data Canopy cover - data regarding the amount of canopy cover by woody plants. At the halfway point of each 2m segment along the transect, the canopy cover was estimated by holding up our fingers and making a square to estimate the amount of greenery visible within the square. The amount of canopy cover against the sky was recorded as percentages. n = 25; continuous data Ground cover - data regarding the amount of vegetative cover along a transect with woody plants. At the halfway point of each 2m segment along the transect, the vegetative cover was estimated by looking down at an area of 1.5 m^2. The amount of vegetation against soil cover was recorded as percentages. Both living and dead plant species were considered as vegetative ground cover. n = 25; continuous data Total number of flowers (transect) - data regarding the amount of flowers within a 2m^2 (0.5m on either side along 2m of the transect) patch of ground along the transect was counted. Any plant that had parts resembling flowers (containing petals and/or filaments) was considered a flower and recorded as discrete, whole values. n = 25; discrete data Vertebrates and Invertebrates Abundance of vertebrates - data regarding the abundance of vertebrate species within a 50m radius was surveyed for 15 minutes. Any and all vertebrates were recorded as whole, discrete values. If the same vertebrate was seen more than once, only the first sighting was recorded. n = 1; discrete data Number of different vertebrate species - data regarding the amount of different vertebrate species observed within a 50m radius was surveyed for 15 minutes. Any set of individuals that closely resembled each other was considered a single species and was counted as one species. n = 1; discrete data Abundance of humans - data regarding the abundance of humans observed within a 50m radius was surveyed for 15 minutes. All humans were recorded as whole, discrete values. If one human was observed more than once, it counted only as one sighting. Classmates were excluded from these observations. n = 1; discrete data Abundance of invertebrates observed - data regarding the abundance of invertebrate species within a 5m radius was surveyed for 15 minutes. All invertebrate species were recorded as whole, discrete values. n = 1; discrete data Invertebrates Abundance pan traps - data regarding the abundance of invertebrate species captured in a pan trap placed along a transect at every 3 meters. Anything resembling an invertebrate (species with wings and/or legs) was representative of an individual. n = 6; discrete data Abundance sweeps - data regarding the abundance of invertebrate species captured in each sweep net along a 50m transect. Anything resembling an invertebrate (species with wings and/or legs) was representative of an individual. n = 10; discrete data Methods: In order to assess the correlation between the abundance of woody and herbaceous plant species, four different data sets were collected within one field site. The habitat type being studied was a forest, specifically Danby Woodlot (43.768756, -79.5079; elevation 126.30201) located at York University. The dominant species found in Danby Woodlot was deciduous trees including Maple trees with invasive species such as Buckthorn. The study was conducted between 2:30 and 3:30 pm on October 24th, 2016 under mostly cloudy conditions with breaks of sunlight. The temperature was 10 degrees C, wind speed was 21 km/hour. We collected data on the abundance of herbaceous and woody plants, as well as abundance of vertebrates and invertebrates through various techniques including quadrat and transect sampling, pan traps, sweep nets, and point surveys. Equipment used includes transect measuring tapes, quadrats, sweep nets, pan traps, soapy water, pen and paper. Herbaceous plants: To investigate the abundance of native and exotic plant species within both a grassland and disturbed open space, data was taken through quadrat sampling. Quadrats (0.5 x 0.5m) were randomly placed every two meters, alternating left and right, along a 50m transect. A total of 25 replicates were taken. The total number of observed flower heads was also recorded for each quadrat. Woody plants: To investigate the abundance of woody plants within both a grassland and disturbed open space, data was collected for every 2m on a transect on the abundance of woody plants and flowers and percentage of canopy and vegetative cover. Vertebrates and Invertebrates: To investigate the abundance of vertebrates and invertebrates within both a grassland and a disturbed open space, data was through a point survey. Observations were made for 15mins within a 50m (vertebrates) and 5m (invertebrates) radius. Invertebrates: In order to examine abundance of invertebrates on both a grassland and disturbed open space, pan traps and sweep net techniques were used. 6 pan traps were placed in 3 meter pace along the transept, and filled with soapy water. After 1 hr, total number of invertebrate species were counted in each pan trap, and recorded to the data sheet. 10 sweep nets along 50 meter transect were done, alternating placement of the transact after each completed sweep. Total number of invertebrate species captured after each sweep was collected and recorded in the data set table. Hypothesis: There will be a greater abundance of woody plant species than herbaceous plant species in the forest habitat due to increased competition between the species for resources such as sunlight and space caused by increased canopy cover and ground cover. Predictions: 1. There will be a greater abundance of herbaceous plants in areas with low canopy cover due to decreased competition for resources. 2. With an increase in canopy cover there will be a decrease in vegetative ground cover due to a lower availability of resources such as sunlight. 3. As abundance of woody plants increases, abundance of herbaceous plants decreases due to a limited availability of sunlight for herbaceous plants.