<p>The objective of this study was to increase understanding of the processes structuring and controlling the species richness of riparian plant communities. In particular, I examined the unimodal relationship, found in many rivers, between plant species richness and location along the river corridor. The most important finding was that this pattern is dynamic and varies with time, most likely in response to large-scale flood disturbances. I also found that the sensitivity to flood disturbance varied with the environmental setting of the riparian reaches. Turbulent sections of the river retained high species richness, whereas tranquil reaches had significantly lower species richness in years following high and prolonged flooding, compared to a period without extreme flood events. Riparian soils along turbulent reaches are more resistant to oxygen depletion during floods, a factor which is likely to contribute to the maintenance of species richness. </p><p>The finding that the species richness pattern varied with time led me to ask which factors control plant diversity along riparian zones. I addressed this question by formulating three contrasting, although not mutually exclusive, hypotheses: (1) longitudinal patterns in riparian plant species richness are governed by local, river-related processes independent of the regional species richness, (2) riparian plant species richness is controlled by dispersal along the river, i.e., longitudinal control, and (3) the variation in riparian plant species richness mirrors variation in regional richness, i.e., lateral control. I found indications of all three types of control, although local factors seemed to fit most of the criteria. Riparian species richness was not significantly correlated to species richness in the surrounding upland valley. It was however significantly negatively correlated to soil pH, a local habitat factor of the reach. The fact that the species richness pattern varied in time, corresponding to the presence or absence of extreme flood events suggest that it is influenced by local disturbance regimes. The potential for control by longitudinal dispersal was found to be highest in the middle reaches of a river. Here, the similarity between upland and riparian vegetation was lowest, and invasibility (germination ability) was highest. Earlier work has shown that regulated rivers have an inverted species richness pattern compared to free-flowing rivers, with lowest species richness in the middle reaches. One potential mechanism behind this could be varying susceptibility to disturbance along the river. I tested this by experimentally disturbing the vegetation, applying the same level of disturbance along an entire free-flowing river. However, the response to experimental disturbance did not vary with location, likely because of a major flood disturbance preceding the experiment.</p>

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

<p>The aim of this thesis was to examine factors affecting the distribution of macroalgal species both vertically (depth zonation) and geographically along the Baltic Sea salinity gradient. Interactions between the physical environment and basic biological traits of the algae are emphasised.</p><p>Previously well-described macroalgal vegetation profiles were re-investigated. Long-term changes of the vegetation that can be coupled to an increased large-scale eutrophication were recorded in both the Baltic Sea and in the Skagerrak.</p><p>Photosynthetic properties of macroalgae with different morphologies from typical depth zonations in the Skagerrak and the Baltic Sea were assessed. A novel method that makes it possible to classify macroalgal species along a morphological gradient based on photosynthetic properties is presented. Such a gradient can be used as an alternative to more discrete subdivisions into functional-form groups.</p><p>Small-scale variation in the natural sediment load was shown to affect the composition of sublittoral rocky-shore macroalgal communities in a long-term field experiment. Generally, species with an extended reproductive period were more tolerant to sedimentation than species depending on short periods of spore release. The effect of the sediment treatments increased with depth.</p><p>Field experiments in the Baltic Sea showed that fragments of <i>Furcellarialumbricalis</i>, <i>Polysiphoniafucoides</i> and <i>Rhodomela confervoides</i> are able to reattach to the substrate under field conditions. This enables persistence of populations since these species are practically sterile in the area. Field observations suggested that sessile animals can facilitate the fixation of algal fragments to the substrate.</p><p>Genetic variation of the chlorophyte <i>Cladophorarupestris</i> was assessed by allozyme electrophoresis. Two genetically differentiated groups of populations were found, one Baltic Sea group and one North Sea group, with a distinct border in the southern Kattegat near the entrance to the Baltic Sea.</p>

<p>Traditionally, females have been considered to be strictly monogamous. Today, we know that females in the majority of species actively seek out and mate with several males. Trying to understand female preferences, including what benefits mate choice entails, has been the focus of intense research during the last decades. Females can gain both direct (e.g. access to better territories or paternal care) and indirect (i.e. genetic) benefits. The aim of this thesis is to further our understanding of the female reproductive strategies in the ruff, <i>Philomachus pugnax</i> (Aves, Scolopacidae). The ruff is a lekking wader, where males gather on leks to display to females that come there to mate. Males do not provide any paternal care to the offspring. Lekking systems are ideal for studying indirect benefits of female choice, as females do not gain any direct benefits from males.</p><p>Females mated with several males and 50% of the broods were fathered by at least two males. The level of genetic similarity between two parents has previously been shown to be an important source of variation in offspring fitness. Males that were less closely related to the female fathered more offspring in broods with multiple paternity, such that females that mated multiply gained in terms of receiving more outbred offspring. There did not, however, appear to be an overall female preference for less closely related males. There are two genetically determined male reproductive strategies in the ruff, that differ in behaviour and morphology. There was no evidence for females taking male strategy into account when choosing a partner.</p><p>Female post-fertilisation strategies may also influence fitness, e.g. through differential investment in eggs, gender of the offspring and choice of breeding habitat. Females allocated sex in a non-random manner dependent upon body condition, such that females in good condition had more daughters.</p><p>Females were found to nest in higher than average vegetation and in areas with higher than average abundance of insects, factors likely to influence predation rates on both eggs and young, as well as foraging opportunities for the precocial young. Further, females were faithful to their previous breeding site and usually nested within meters of their previous nest. Hatching success did not, however, affect a female’s decision to return or not.</p>

<p>In this thesis, I have studied long shoot performance in the monoecious, deciduous tree <i>Betula</i> <i>pubescens</i> ssp. <i>czerepanovii</i>. In field studies and a common garden experiment, I have a) studied how environmental variations affect the performance of long shoots in mountain birch, and b) described the relationship between long shoot performance and characteristics of the parent long shoot.</p><p>I have shown that difference in long shoot performance to some extent can be explained by environmental variables such as temperature, precipitation and global radiation the current and previous summer, annual soil and air temperatures, and the length of growing season. For example, a low summer temperature the previous summer had a negative effect on a majority of long shoot characteristics. Variation in shoot characteristics was of the same magnitude along the regional east-western gradient as along the local altitudinal gradient. Variation among individual trees was of the same magnitude as variation among years. Further, long shoot performance was affected by the parent shoot characteristics and reflects that primordia of different organs are formed in the previous summer. </p><p>On several occasions, freezing damage to mountain birch has been observed on Mt Njulla in northernmost Sweden. Following such damage, fewer but larger leaves emerge. Damages were compensated for with increased number of buds on long shoots produced the same year and one year after damage. Moreover, there were more new long shoots born on short shoots among damaged trees. Dormant buds and short shoots fulfil important functions in a fluctuating environment and as an adaptation to recurring damages of different origin and severity.</p><p>Differences in the performance among mountain birch saplings grown in a common-garden at Abisko could to a large degree be explained by their origin. Further, saplings from Sweden and from Iceland responded differently to defoliation, and fertilization did not alter the responses to defoliation.</p>

The objective of this study was to increase understanding of the processes structuring and controlling the species richness of riparian plant communities. In particular, I examined the unimodal relationship, found in many rivers, between plant species richness and location along the river corridor. The most important finding was that this pattern is dynamic and varies with time, most likely in response to large-scale flood disturbances. I also found that the sensitivity to flood disturbance varied with the environmental setting of the riparian reaches. Turbulent sections of the river retained high species richness, whereas tranquil reaches had significantly lower species richness in years following high and prolonged flooding, compared to a period without extreme flood events. Riparian soils along turbulent reaches are more resistant to oxygen depletion during floods, a factor which is likely to contribute to the maintenance of species richness. The finding that the species richness pattern varied with time led me to ask which factors control plant diversity along riparian zones. I addressed this question by formulating three contrasting, although not mutually exclusive, hypotheses: (1) longitudinal patterns in riparian plant species richness are governed by local, river-related processes independent of the regional species richness, (2) riparian plant species richness is controlled by dispersal along the river, i.e., longitudinal control, and (3) the variation in riparian plant species richness mirrors variation in regional richness, i.e., lateral control. I found indications of all three types of control, although local factors seemed to fit most of the criteria. Riparian species richness was not significantly correlated to species richness in the surrounding upland valley. It was however significantly negatively correlated to soil pH, a local habitat factor of the reach. The fact that the species richness pattern varied in time, corresponding to the presence or absence of extreme flood events suggest that it is influenced by local disturbance regimes. The potential for control by longitudinal dispersal was found to be highest in the middle reaches of a river. Here, the similarity between upland and riparian vegetation was lowest, and invasibility (germination ability) was highest. Earlier work has shown that regulated rivers have an inverted species richness pattern compared to free-flowing rivers, with lowest species richness in the middle reaches. One potential mechanism behind this could be varying susceptibility to disturbance along the river. I tested this by experimentally disturbing the vegetation, applying the same level of disturbance along an entire free-flowing river. However, the response to experimental disturbance did not vary with location, likely because of a major flood disturbance preceding the experiment.

The aim of this thesis was to examine factors affecting the distribution of macroalgal species both vertically (depth zonation) and geographically along the Baltic Sea salinity gradient. Interactions between the physical environment and basic biological traits of the algae are emphasised. Previously well-described macroalgal vegetation profiles were re-investigated. Long-term changes of the vegetation that can be coupled to an increased large-scale eutrophication were recorded in both the Baltic Sea and in the Skagerrak. Photosynthetic properties of macroalgae with different morphologies from typical depth zonations in the Skagerrak and the Baltic Sea were assessed. A novel method that makes it possible to classify macroalgal species along a morphological gradient based on photosynthetic properties is presented. Such a gradient can be used as an alternative to more discrete subdivisions into functional-form groups. Small-scale variation in the natural sediment load was shown to affect the composition of sublittoral rocky-shore macroalgal communities in a long-term field experiment. Generally, species with an extended reproductive period were more tolerant to sedimentation than species depending on short periods of spore release. The effect of the sediment treatments increased with depth. Field experiments in the Baltic Sea showed that fragments of Furcellarialumbricalis, Polysiphoniafucoides and Rhodomela confervoides are able to reattach to the substrate under field conditions. This enables persistence of populations since these species are practically sterile in the area. Field observations suggested that sessile animals can facilitate the fixation of algal fragments to the substrate. Genetic variation of the chlorophyte Cladophorarupestris was assessed by allozyme electrophoresis. Two genetically differentiated groups of populations were found, one Baltic Sea group and one North Sea group, with a distinct border in the southern Kattegat near the entrance to the Baltic Sea.

Traditionally, females have been considered to be strictly monogamous. Today, we know that females in the majority of species actively seek out and mate with several males. Trying to understand female preferences, including what benefits mate choice entails, has been the focus of intense research during the last decades. Females can gain both direct (e.g. access to better territories or paternal care) and indirect (i.e. genetic) benefits. The aim of this thesis is to further our understanding of the female reproductive strategies in the ruff, Philomachus pugnax (Aves, Scolopacidae). The ruff is a lekking wader, where males gather on leks to display to females that come there to mate. Males do not provide any paternal care to the offspring. Lekking systems are ideal for studying indirect benefits of female choice, as females do not gain any direct benefits from males. Females mated with several males and 50% of the broods were fathered by at least two males. The level of genetic similarity between two parents has previously been shown to be an important source of variation in offspring fitness. Males that were less closely related to the female fathered more offspring in broods with multiple paternity, such that females that mated multiply gained in terms of receiving more outbred offspring. There did not, however, appear to be an overall female preference for less closely related males. There are two genetically determined male reproductive strategies in the ruff, that differ in behaviour and morphology. There was no evidence for females taking male strategy into account when choosing a partner. Female post-fertilisation strategies may also influence fitness, e.g. through differential investment in eggs, gender of the offspring and choice of breeding habitat. Females allocated sex in a non-random manner dependent upon body condition, such that females in good condition had more daughters. Females were found to nest in higher than average vegetation and in areas with higher than average abundance of insects, factors likely to influence predation rates on both eggs and young, as well as foraging opportunities for the precocial young. Further, females were faithful to their previous breeding site and usually nested within meters of their previous nest. Hatching success did not, however, affect a female’s decision to return or not.