Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USA
Plant colonization patterns on deglaciated terrain give insight into the factors influencing alpine ecosystem development. Our objectives were to use a chronosequence, extending from the Little Ice Age (~1850) terminal moraine to the present glacier terminus, and biophysical predictors to characteri...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Land |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/306 |
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| author | Ami Bryant Lynn M. Resler Dianna Gielstra Thomas Pingel |
| author_facet | Ami Bryant Lynn M. Resler Dianna Gielstra Thomas Pingel |
| author_sort | Ami Bryant |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Plant colonization patterns on deglaciated terrain give insight into the factors influencing alpine ecosystem development. Our objectives were to use a chronosequence, extending from the Little Ice Age (~1850) terminal moraine to the present glacier terminus, and biophysical predictors to characterize vegetation across Sperry Glacier’s foreland—a mid-latitude cirque glacier in Glacier National Park, Montana, USA. We measured diversity metrics (i.e., richness, evenness, and Shannon’s diversity index), percent cover, and community composition in 61 plots. Field observations characterized drainage, concavity, landform features, rock fragments, and geomorphic process domains in each plot. GIS-derived variables contextualized the plots’ aspect, terrain roughness, topographic position, solar radiation, and curvature. Overall, vegetation cover and species richness increased with terrain age, but with colonization gaps compared to other forelands, likely due to extensive bedrock and slow soil development, potentially putting this community at risk of being outpaced by climate change. Generalized linear models revealed the importance of local site factors (e.g., drainage, concavity, and process domain) in explaining species richness and Shannon’s diversity patterns. The relevance of field-measured variables over GIS-derived variables demonstrated the importance of fieldwork in understanding alpine successional patterns and the need for higher-resolution remote sensing analyses to expand these landscape-scale studies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c20515e383bc4bfe9e6b4e992b751d14 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2073-445X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Land |
| spelling | doaj-art-c20515e383bc4bfe9e6b4e992b751d142025-08-20T02:03:31ZengMDPI AGLand2073-445X2025-02-0114230610.3390/land14020306Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USAAmi Bryant0Lynn M. Resler1Dianna Gielstra2Thomas Pingel3Department of Geography, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USADepartment of Geography, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USACollege of General Studies, University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ 85040, USADepartment of Geography, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902, USAPlant colonization patterns on deglaciated terrain give insight into the factors influencing alpine ecosystem development. Our objectives were to use a chronosequence, extending from the Little Ice Age (~1850) terminal moraine to the present glacier terminus, and biophysical predictors to characterize vegetation across Sperry Glacier’s foreland—a mid-latitude cirque glacier in Glacier National Park, Montana, USA. We measured diversity metrics (i.e., richness, evenness, and Shannon’s diversity index), percent cover, and community composition in 61 plots. Field observations characterized drainage, concavity, landform features, rock fragments, and geomorphic process domains in each plot. GIS-derived variables contextualized the plots’ aspect, terrain roughness, topographic position, solar radiation, and curvature. Overall, vegetation cover and species richness increased with terrain age, but with colonization gaps compared to other forelands, likely due to extensive bedrock and slow soil development, potentially putting this community at risk of being outpaced by climate change. Generalized linear models revealed the importance of local site factors (e.g., drainage, concavity, and process domain) in explaining species richness and Shannon’s diversity patterns. The relevance of field-measured variables over GIS-derived variables demonstrated the importance of fieldwork in understanding alpine successional patterns and the need for higher-resolution remote sensing analyses to expand these landscape-scale studies.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/306glacier forelandsplant successiondeglaciationbiophysical interactionsGlacier National ParkSperry Glacier |
| spellingShingle | Ami Bryant Lynn M. Resler Dianna Gielstra Thomas Pingel Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USA Land glacier forelands plant succession deglaciation biophysical interactions Glacier National Park Sperry Glacier |
| title | Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USA |
| title_full | Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USA |
| title_fullStr | Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USA |
| title_full_unstemmed | Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USA |
| title_short | Vegetation Succession Patterns at Sperry Glacier’s Foreland, Glacier National Park, MT, USA |
| title_sort | vegetation succession patterns at sperry glacier s foreland glacier national park mt usa |
| topic | glacier forelands plant succession deglaciation biophysical interactions Glacier National Park Sperry Glacier |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/306 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT amibryant vegetationsuccessionpatternsatsperryglaciersforelandglaciernationalparkmtusa AT lynnmresler vegetationsuccessionpatternsatsperryglaciersforelandglaciernationalparkmtusa AT diannagielstra vegetationsuccessionpatternsatsperryglaciersforelandglaciernationalparkmtusa AT thomaspingel vegetationsuccessionpatternsatsperryglaciersforelandglaciernationalparkmtusa |