caa a22 4500 475750802 CHVBK 20180406123523.0 cr unu---uuuuu 170329e20000301xx s 000 0 eng 10.1023/A:1009804726307 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1023/A:1009804726307 Limiting mechanisms in the regeneration of the Chilean matorral - Experiments on seedling establishment in burned and cleared mesic sites [Elektronische Daten] [Milena Holmgren, Alejandro Segura, Eduardo Fuentes] The Chilean matorral is characterized by multispecific shrub clumps in dry areas but has a continuous canopy in wetter sites. It has been hypothesized that this difference is due to easier recolonization of open patches by shrub seedlings under more mesic conditions. Within the mesic range of the matorral we designed a field experiment to compare shrub seedling emergence, growth, and survival under the closed canopy of a secondary forest versus three types of open patches: burned, cleared of shrubs but with a herbaceous layer present, and clear without a herbaceous layer. After the first summer, survival of Quillaja saponaria seedlings was 75% in the burned site, 30% in the cleared patch without herbaceous vegetation, and 15% with herbaceous vegetation present, whereas there was 0% survival under the secondary forest canopy. After eight years, the percentages had dropped to: 22%, 12% and 3%, respectively. These results contrast strongly with the seedling establishment patterns in drier areas of the matorral where early seedling survival is higher under the shade of large shrubs. In the experimental mesic sites, seedlings did best on the burned site, not only in terms of survival, but also in terms of growth. After one year, seedling mean height was 10.2cm in the burned site, whereas 3.8cm and 5.3cm in the cleared patches without and with herbaceous respectively. After eight years, mean height differences between treatments had increased further: 147.7cm in the burned site, 40.3cm in the cleared patch without herbaceous cover and 13cm in the cleared patch with herbs. Our results indicate that the facilitative effect of nurse shrubs on seedling establishment found in dry ranges of the matorral is less important in more mesic sites. This difference may explain the continuous shrub cover in relatively mesic areas as opposed to the characteristic patchy structure of the matorral in its drier range. Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2000 Disturbance nationallicence Facilitation nationallicence Mediterranean-type ecosystems nationallicence Nurse plants nationallicence Postfire nationallicence Seedling emergence nationallicence Survival nationallicence Holmgren Milena Departamento de Ecología, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Casilla 114-D, Santiago, Chile aut Segura Alejandro GEF, 1 UN Plaza, 10017, New York, NY, USA) aut Fuentes Eduardo GEF, 1 UN Plaza, 10017, New York, NY, USA) aut Plant Ecology Kluwer Academic Publishers 147/1(2000-03-01), 49-57 1385-0237 147:1<49 2000 147 11258 https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009804726307 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009804726307 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Holmgren Milena Departamento de Ecología, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Casilla 114-D, Santiago, Chile aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Segura Alejandro GEF, 1 UN Plaza, 10017, New York, NY, USA) aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Fuentes Eduardo GEF, 1 UN Plaza, 10017, New York, NY, USA) aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Plant Ecology Kluwer Academic Publishers 147/1(2000-03-01), 49-57 1385-0237 147:1<49 2000 147 11258 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer