Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USA
ABSTRACTArctic-alpine vegetation in the eastern United States is unique to northern New England and New York and is disjunct from similar areas in eastern Canada. We present the first study of the non-native flora in the region, specifically focusing on New Hampshire’s White Mountains. By combining...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15230430.2023.2243704 |
| _version_ | 1797224827750187008 |
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| author | Daniel D. Sperduto William F. Nichols Michael T. Jones |
| author_facet | Daniel D. Sperduto William F. Nichols Michael T. Jones |
| author_sort | Daniel D. Sperduto |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACTArctic-alpine vegetation in the eastern United States is unique to northern New England and New York and is disjunct from similar areas in eastern Canada. We present the first study of the non-native flora in the region, specifically focusing on New Hampshire’s White Mountains. By combining literature and herbaria searches, field surveys, and a seventeen-year evaluation at an alpine hut in a hypothesis-driven framework, we document the composition, chronology, and persistence of non-native plant species establishments, regress richness in relation to elevation and disturbed area, and evaluate similarities to nineteen other alpine floras globally. Our results indicate that the White Mountains support one of the most species-rich non-native alpine floras known in the world, with 58 species detected at thirty-one sites since 1874, comprising 19 percent of 300 species documented in New Hampshire’s 22 km2 of alpine tundra. There is a negative relationship between non-native alpine plant richness and elevation along a mountain road on Mt. Washington. Moreover, elevation predicts richness per unit area in proximity to clusters of built structures in alpine areas. The compositions, geographic origins, and dominant ruderal strategies of non-native species are similar to those of Arctic and other alpine non-native floras globally. Sørenson similarity index and nonmetric multidimensional scaling ordination of twenty alpine regions reveals the White Mountains have highest similarity with widely separated mountain regions in Australia, Hawaii, the Rocky Mountains, the Andes, Southern Africa, and Iceland, driven by shared species of Eurasian origin. We report the unexpected discovery of Plagiobothrys hispidulus, a borage native to western North America not previously reported from New Hampshire. These findings have important implications for managers of alpine areas in eastern North America and may facilitate the early detection, monitoring, and control of non-native species, minimizing their establishment and spread. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:48:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ae5f039205b748b3b92933477e720cb2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1523-0430 1938-4246 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T13:59:19Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-ae5f039205b748b3b92933477e720cb22024-04-03T14:36:12ZengTaylor & Francis GroupArctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research1523-04301938-42462023-12-0155110.1080/15230430.2023.2243704Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USADaniel D. Sperduto0William F. Nichols1Michael T. Jones2USDA Forest Service, White Mountain National Forest, Campton, New Hampshire, USADivision of Forests and Lands, Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, NH Natural Heritage Bureau, Concord, New Hampshire, USADivision of Fisheries and Wildlife, Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, Westborough, Massachusetts, USAABSTRACTArctic-alpine vegetation in the eastern United States is unique to northern New England and New York and is disjunct from similar areas in eastern Canada. We present the first study of the non-native flora in the region, specifically focusing on New Hampshire’s White Mountains. By combining literature and herbaria searches, field surveys, and a seventeen-year evaluation at an alpine hut in a hypothesis-driven framework, we document the composition, chronology, and persistence of non-native plant species establishments, regress richness in relation to elevation and disturbed area, and evaluate similarities to nineteen other alpine floras globally. Our results indicate that the White Mountains support one of the most species-rich non-native alpine floras known in the world, with 58 species detected at thirty-one sites since 1874, comprising 19 percent of 300 species documented in New Hampshire’s 22 km2 of alpine tundra. There is a negative relationship between non-native alpine plant richness and elevation along a mountain road on Mt. Washington. Moreover, elevation predicts richness per unit area in proximity to clusters of built structures in alpine areas. The compositions, geographic origins, and dominant ruderal strategies of non-native species are similar to those of Arctic and other alpine non-native floras globally. Sørenson similarity index and nonmetric multidimensional scaling ordination of twenty alpine regions reveals the White Mountains have highest similarity with widely separated mountain regions in Australia, Hawaii, the Rocky Mountains, the Andes, Southern Africa, and Iceland, driven by shared species of Eurasian origin. We report the unexpected discovery of Plagiobothrys hispidulus, a borage native to western North America not previously reported from New Hampshire. These findings have important implications for managers of alpine areas in eastern North America and may facilitate the early detection, monitoring, and control of non-native species, minimizing their establishment and spread.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15230430.2023.2243704Arctic-alpine vegetationclimate changehuman disturbanceinvasivePresidential Rangerecreation impacts |
| spellingShingle | Daniel D. Sperduto William F. Nichols Michael T. Jones Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USA Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research Arctic-alpine vegetation climate change human disturbance invasive Presidential Range recreation impacts |
| title | Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USA |
| title_full | Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USA |
| title_fullStr | Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USA |
| title_full_unstemmed | Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USA |
| title_short | Non-native vascular flora of alpine areas in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, USA |
| title_sort | non native vascular flora of alpine areas in the white mountains new hampshire usa |
| topic | Arctic-alpine vegetation climate change human disturbance invasive Presidential Range recreation impacts |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15230430.2023.2243704 |
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