Seed-source environment predicts drought response for a priority restoration species, Plantago patagonica

Klein, Zoe Marie (2022) Seed-source environment predicts drought response for a priority restoration species, Plantago patagonica. Masters thesis, Northern Arizona University.

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Abstract

In drylands of the Southwestern United States, drought is a common disturbance. However, the intensity, duration, and severity of drought is increasing because of anthropogenic climate change. Restoration efforts are often thwarted by drought induced effects on plant germination, survival, and reproduction, and we expect these challenges to exacerbate restoration failure in the future. The careful selection of plant materials to match the future environment may be one way to improve restoration success under climate change. Here, we focus on a priority restoration species in the arid southwestern United States, Plantago patagonica sourced from environments that differ in rainfall variability. With a combination of greenhouse and common garden experiments, we quantified how collection site temperature, precipitation, and variability in precipitation impacted performance in twelve populations of P. patagonica under experimentally imposed drought conditions. We found that seeds sourced from variable precipitation environments have higher adult mortality (p < 0.01, R2c=0.09, R2m=0.24), higher SLA (p < 0.05, R2c=0.22, R2m=0.36), and larger total biomass (p < 0.05, R2c=0.08, R2m=0.28) under experimental drought. Contrary to expectations, these results suggest that consistent and predictable precipitation regimes have prepared populations of Plantago patagonica to survive in drought conditions. We also find that spring temperature and rainfall of seed source locations impact performance, drought response, and plasticity for P. patagonica. We suggest that the consideration of seed source rainfall variability, temperature, and precipitation in wild seed collection efforts for ultimate use in restoration can improve the success of restoration projects in arid lands under climate change.

Item Type:	Thesis (Masters)
Publisher’s Statement:	© Copyright is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the Cline Library, Northern Arizona University. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.
Keywords:	drought; plantago patagonica; plasticity; rainfall variability; ecological restoration; seed-source
Subjects:	Q Science > QH Natural history > QH301 Biology
NAU Depositing Author Academic Status:	Student
Department/Unit:	Graduate College > Theses and Dissertations College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences > School of Earth Sciences and Environmental Sustainability
Date Deposited:	22 May 2023 21:21
Last Modified:	22 May 2023 21:21
URI:	https://openknowledge.nau.edu/id/eprint/5892

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