abstract: Die-off of screwbean mesquite (Prosopis pubescens), a species native to the American Southwest, has been documented regionally within the last decade. Historical causes for episodic mortality of the more widely distributed velvet mesquite (Prosopis velutina) and honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) include water table declines and flood scour. Causes of the recent die-offs of P. pubescens have received little study. Numerous riparian restoration projects have been implemented regionally that include screwbean mesquite. Restoration propagules from foreign sources can introduce diseases, and low genetic diversity plantings may allow for disease irruptions. I asked: 1) Are die-offs associated with a particular age class, 2) Is die-off suggestive of a pathogen or related to specific environmental stressors, 3) Are mortality influences and outcomes the same between restoration and local populations, 4) Are particular land uses and management associated with die-off, and 5) Are populations rebounding or keeping pace with mortality? I documented the screwbean mesquite population status at rivers and wetlands in Arizona with varying levels of restoration. I used logistic regression and Pearson correlation analysis to explore mortality response to site factors and disease related variables. I compared mortality response and disease severity between local and restoration populations. Biotic damage surfaced as the most important factor in statistical analyses, suggesting that mortality was caused by a pathogen. Mortality was greatest for young size classes (3 to 14 cm), and biotic damage was higher for individuals at infrequently flooded areas. Strong differences were not found between local and restoration populations – however restoration populations were less stressed and had lower biotic damage. Novel urban and restored sites may provide refuge as site conditions at other locations deteriorate. A culmination of past water diversion, development and land use may be surfacing, rendering riparian species vulnerable to diseases and triggering such events as region-wide die-off. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Plant Biology 2016

Memoria para optar al Título Profesional de Ingeniero Forestal

Thesis (MSc)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Invasive alien plants have had diverse ecological and social impacts on recipient ecosystems and are a major problem for land managers. Successful management demands an understanding of the ecology of invading taxa. The invasive status and impacts are documented for Prosopis populations in South Africa. However, unresolved taxonomic issues, the extent of hybridization, the applicability of morphology as a species identification approach, and the role that some traits plays in the invasion success have not been studied. This creates a gap that hinders implementation of effective management policies. In this thesis I use a phylogenetic approach to determine the taxonomic make-up of invasive Prosopis populations in South Africa (Chapter 2) and compare the results to morphological identification (Chapter 3). I also look at seedling growth rates in the context of variation in genome size and seed size (Chapter 4). Almost all regions invaded by Prosopis are characterized by taxonomic uncertainty exacerbated by the ease of inter-specific hybridization. In Chapter 2 I aim to resolve taxonomic issues of invasive Prosopis populations in South Africa using a phylogenetic approach. In addition, I aim to unravel the extent of hybridization and the species involved in South Africa. Here, I found that Prosopis populations in South Africa comprise both reported and previously unreported species, indicating a need for a reassessment of the identity of invasive taxa. Hybridization is prevalent and all confirmed species are involved. These findings call for a rethink of legislation and management approaches, e.g. the selection of classical biological control agents. Overall the extent of hybridization indicates that Prosopis species in South Africa comprise a freely inter-breeding population typical of a syngameon. Proper morphological identification of invasive species is crucial for ecological studies and management of invasions. In Chapter 3, I use the total evidence approach to assess whether morphological approaches for identification are adequate for identifying Prosopis species in South Africa. I found that Prosopis taxa in South Africa cannot be reliably distinguished using existing morphological keys. This is likely due mainly to the proliferation of hybrids with a diverse morphology. Therefore, molecular tools are crucial for confirming any morphological identities and for determining the presence of any unreported species. Genome size and seed size have been reported to be associated with invasiveness in a number of plant groups, but not often in a system with multiple hybrids like Prosopis. In Chapter 4, I first investigate the relationship between genome size and seed size in invasive populations of Prosopis spp. in South Africa and secondly I investigate how genome and seed sizes influence germination and early growth. Here I found that genome size loses its distinctness, being diluted in hybridizing populations, but can still be used to assess hybridization events themselves. Large seed size seems to be important for invasiveness as it positively influences germination and early growth. This thesis confirms the taxonomic conundrum of Prosopis species in invasive ranges. This coupled with inadequacy of morphological identification calls for a global study involving native and invasive range taxa to clarify the existing confusions. In view of the presence of unreported Prosopis species in South Africa and extensive hybridization, a rethink of the current legislation and control is needed. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Uitheemse indringer plante het grootskaalse ekologiese en sosiale impakte op die ekosisteme wat hulle indring en stel 'n groot uitdaging vir bestuurders van natuurlike hulpbronne. Suksesvolle bestuur en bestryding van indringer plante verg deeglike kennis oor hulle ekologie. Die indringer status en impakte van Prosopis populasies in Suid Afrika is reeds voorheen beskryf. Nieteenstaande, die problematiese taksonomie, die omvang van hibridisasie, die waarde van morfologiese identifikasie, en die rol wat sekere eienskappe speel in die sukses van hierdie groep is nog nie bestudeer nie. Daar is dus 'n gaping in kennis wat die effektiewe beheer van die groep in Suid Afrika belemmer. In hierdie tesis pas ek 'n filogenetiese benadering toe om die taksonomiese verwantskappe van Prosopis populasies in Suid Afrika te bepaal (Hoofstuk 2) en vergelyk my resultate met morfologiese identifikasie sleutels (Hoofstuk 3). Ek ondersoek ook saailing groei tempos in die konteks van variasie in genoom en saad groote in die groep (Hoofstuk 4). Bykans alle areas in Suid Afrika waar Prosopis voorkom word gekenmerk deur taksonomiese onsekerheid, verder bemoeilik deur die gemak waarmee spesies vrylik hibridiseer. Ek vind dat beide bekende en voorheen-onbeskryfde Prosopis spesies in Suid Afrika aangetref word en beklemtoon die behoefte om die identiteit van spesies in die land te hersien. Hibridisasie kom algemeen voor tussen alle spesies teenwoordig in Suid Afrika. Hierdie bevindinge beklemtoon dat wetgewing en beheermaatreêls hersiening benodig, byvoorbeeld in die toepassing van biologiese beheer. In samevatting kom dit voor asof hibridisasie gelei het tot 'n vrytelende Prosopis groep in Suid Afrika, tipies van 'n singameon. Ordentlike morfologiese identifikasie van indringer spesies is belangrik in enige ekologiese studie en die implementering van doeltreffende beheermaatreëls. In Hoofstuk 3 gebruik ek ʼn ‘totale bewys’ benadering om vas te stel of morfologiese eienskappe alleenlik genoegsaam is om Prosopis spesies in Suid Afrika korrek te kan identifiseer. Ek vind dat spesies nie geloofwaardig geïdentifiseer kan word nie, heel moontlik as gevolg van wydverspreide hibridisasie tussen alle spesies teenwoordig in die land. Genoom en saad groote is voorheen geassosieer met die indringer aard van verskeie plant groepe. In Hoofstuk 4 ondersoek ek die verwantskap tussen genoom en saad groote. Tweedens bepaal ek die invloed van genoom en saad groote op ontkieming en vroeë groei eienskappe van Prosopis. My bevindinge toon dat, terwyl die kenmerklikheid van genoom groote verloor word as gevolg van hibridisasie, dit steeds hibridisasie gebeurtenisse per se kan identifiseer. Groot sade het ook ʼn positiewe invloed op die ontkieming en vroeë groei eienskappe van Prosopis. Die tesis bevestig die taksonomiese onduidelikheid van indringer Prosopis taksa in Suid Afrika. Tesame met die onakkuraatheid van morfologiese sleutels beklemtoon my bevindinge die behoefte vir ʼn dringende wêreldwye studie op indringer en inheemse populasies van Prosopis om taksonomiese onsekerhede op te klaar. Die identifikasie van nuwe spesies in Suid Afrika beklemtoon ook die behoefte om huidige wetgewing en beheer van die groep in die land te hersien.

Improving food safety and food security is imperative to adequately feed a growing population that is expected to exceed 9 billion people by 2050. Mushroom cultivation provides unique opportunities to take advantage of underutilized resources and produce high-quality food from otherwise inedible or unsafe food sources. Pleurotus ostreatus is a ligninolytic and biotechnologically relevant fungus that can be cultivated on a diverse array of lignocellulosic byproducts. Prosopis spp. are abundant in the Sonoran Desert and broadly distributed in semi-arid to arid regions around the globe. Prosopis spp. legumes (pods), and approximately 25% of all commonly cultivated crops, are susceptible to aflatoxin contamination, a highly carcinogenic and potentially lethal mycotoxin. This work aimed to (1) identify novel lignocellulosic byproducts from the Sonoran Desert for use as substrate materials in Pleurotus ostreatus (oyster mushroom) cultivation; (2) evaluate the safety of mushrooms cultivated on plant products that are contaminated with aflatoxin; and (3) measure the amount of aflatoxin that is degraded by P. ostreatus after the contaminated products have been colonized by the fungus. Prosopis spp. pods were identified as suitable substrate component for P. ostreatus production by conducting yield evaluations and finding that the biological efficiency increased with increasing percentages of pods. No detectable quantity of aflatoxin could be measured in mushrooms that were cultivated on maize that was naturally contaminated with aflatoxin B1 at concentrations up to 2500 ng g⁻¹. P. ostreatus degraded AFB₁ by >85% in maize with initial concentrations of 2500 ng g⁻¹ AFB₁ in repeated experiments. Thus, the cultivation of P. ostreatus on aflatoxin-contaminated products may be a viable method to produce a safe and high quality food from an otherwise unsafe food source, and may double as a means to reduce the aflatoxin concentration in contaminated plant products to levels that are acceptable for use as livestock feed.

I studied the insect seed predator community on mesquite plants (Prosopis spp.) to investigate patterns of community composition in space and time, attempting to better understand the factors that led to the coexistence of many seed predator species on a single plant. This dissertation begins by testing the controversial species limits of Prosopis section Algarobía because hosts may act as environmental filters to insect seed predators. I found evidence for at least eight North American Prosopis species (section Algarobía). Second, I describe and add to the known natural history of 113 arthropod species among 315,174 individuals I collected from seedpod samples across the United States and Mexico. These samples included 187 trees from eight North American Prosopis species from section Algarobía and three from section Strombocarpa. Third, I examined reproductive timing in Prosopis and show that neighboring trees of the same species reproduce synchronously, whereas closely related species stagger reproduction. I found that photoperiod is the main cue that initiates flowering, but that multiple cues are involved. Thus, synchronous reproduction may act as an equalizing process that facilitates coexistence of seed predators in this system. Fourth, I tested for evidence of spatial and temporal niche partitioning among Prosopis seed predators. I found that the rank abundance of seed predators varies little over space and time, suggesting that this community exists in a homogeneous competitive environment. I also found that although a few species restrict the use of seeds to particular host plants or developmental stages of the pods, there is little evidence of niche partitioning. Finally, I looked for evidence of competition between seed predators and examined a number of factors that may allow for coexistence of these species. I found no evidence of interspecific competition or facilitation, suggesting that species somehow either avoid competition or that present patterns are the product of past competitive interactions. Natural enemies occur too sporadically to allow for apparent competition and I found no relationship between their occurrence or abundance and those of the seed predator species I studied. I found a positive correlation between rank abundance ability and fecundity, inconsistent with expectations of life-history or competitive-colonization trade-offs. Therefore, the only stabilizing process consistent with patterns found in this system is the niche regeneration hypothesis. I found that one seed predator species lays eggs most often away from both interspecific and intraspecific competitors, a pattern consistent with active avoidance as a second equalizing process within this system.

Invasive plants pose serious threats to economic, social and environmental interests throughout the world. Developing strategies for their management requires a range of information that is often impractical to collect from ground based surveys. In other cases, such as retrospective analyses of historical invasion rates and patterns, data is rarely, if ever, available from such surveys. Instead, historical archives of remotely sensed imagery provides one of the only existing records, and are used in this research to determine invasion rates and reconstruct invasion patterns of a ca 70 year old exotic mesquite population (Leguminoseae: Prosopis spp.) in the Pilbara Region of Western Australia, thereby helping to identify ways to reduce spread and infill. A model was then developed using this, and other, information to predict which parts of the Pilbara are most a risk. This information can assist in identifying areas requiring the most vigilant intervention and pre-emptive measures. Precise information of the location and areal extent of an invasive species is also crucial for land managers and policy makers for crafting management strategies aimed at control, confinement or eradication of some or all of the population. Therefore, the third component of this research was to develop and test high spectral and spatial resolution airborne imagery as a potential monitoring tool for tracking changes at various intervals and quantifying the effectiveness of management strategies adopted. To this end, high spatial resolution digital multispectral imagery (4 channels, 1 m spatial resolution) and hyperspectral imagery (126 channels, 3 m spatial resolution) was acquired and compared for its potential for distinguishing mesquite from coexisting species and land covers. / These three modules of research are summarised hereafter. To examine the rates and patterns of mesquite invasion through space and time, canopies were extracted from a temporal series of panchromatic aerial photography over an area of 450 ha using unsupervised classification. Non-mesquite trees and shrubs were not discernible from mesquite using this imagery (or technique) and so were masked out using an image acquired prior to invasion. The accuracy of the mesquite extractions were corroborated in the field and found to be high (R2 = 0.98, P<0.001); however, accuracy varied between classes (R2 = 0.55 to 0.95). Additional sampling may be required in some of the wider class intervals, particularly the moderate density class (30 to 90%) as sampling frequency was poor within the range of 60 to 90%. This is a direct result of there being relatively few quadrats available to be randomly selected in this class. That is, quadrats with between 60-90% cover were only evident in 4% of the test area. A more robust approach would, therefore, be to split this class into two (e.g. 30-60% and 60-90%) and select an additional 15 quadrats in the 60-90% range. The resolution of the imagery (1.4 m) precluded mapping shrubs smaller than 3 m2. Rates and patterns were compared to mesquite invasions in its native range. / It was determined that: (i) the shift from grass to mesquite domination had been rapid, with rates of increase in canopy cover comparable to invasive populations where it is native; (ii) rate of patch recruitment was high in all land types (stony flats, red-loamy soils and the riparian zone), but patch expansion and coalescence primarily occurred over the riparian zone and redloamy soils; (iii) mesquite had been spread by sheep and macropods and the recent switch to cattle is likely to exacerbate spread as it is a far more effective dispersal vector; and (iv) early successional patterns, such as high patch initiation followed by coalescence of existing stands are similar to where mesquite is native, but patch mortality did not occur. A knowledge based model was used to predict which parts of the Pilbara region are most at risk. Several limitations of models often employed in predicting suitability ranges of invasive plants were identified and include: (i) an inability to incorporate the notion that within a suitability range there is likely to be a scale of favourability; (ii) an inability to assign greater importance to evidence that is likely to have more importance in defining the areas suitable for invasion; and (iii) an inability to control the level of conservatism in the final results. These three shortcomings were mitigated through the use of: (i) fuzzy membership functions to derive a range of favourability from poor to best; (ii) pairwise comparison to derive higher weights for layers perceived to be more important and vice versa; and (iii) the use of ordered weighted averaging to directly control the level of conservatism (or risk) inherent in the models produced. / Based on the outcomes of the historical reconstruction of spatial rates and patterns, data sources included land types, land use, and the derivation of a steady state wetness index from spot height data. Model outputs were evaluated using two methods: the area under the curves (AUC) produced from relative operating characteristic (ROC) plots and by the maximum Kappa procedure. Both techniques agreed that the model most representative of the validation data was the one assuming the most risk. To create a Boolean output representing areas suitable/not suitable for invasion, optimal cut-points were derived using the point closest to the top left hand corner of the ROC plot and by the maximum Kappa method. Both methods obtained identical cut-points, but it is argued that the coefficient produced by the maximum Kappa method is more easily interpreted. The highest AUC was found to be 0.87 and, based on the maximum Kappa method, can be described as good to very good agreement with the validation records used. Digital multispectral imagery (DMSI), acquired in the visible and near infrared portions of the spectrum (3 visible bands, 1 near infrared) with a spatial resolution of 1 m and hyperspectral imagery (126 bands, 3 m spatial resolution) was acquired to assess the potential of developing a reliable and repeatable mapping tool to facilitate the monitoring of spread and the effects of control efforts. Woody vegetation was extracted from the images using unsupervised classification and grouped into patches based on contiguity. Various statistics (e.g. maximum, minimum, median, mean, standard deviation, majority and variety) were assigned to these patches to garner more information for species separation. / These statistics were explored for their ability to separate mesquite from coexisting species using Tukey’s Honestly Significantly Different (HSD) test and, to reduce redundancy, followed by linear discriminant analysis. Two approaches were taken to select the patch statistics offering the best discrimination. The first approach selected patch statistics that best discriminated all species (named “overall separation”). This was compared to a second approach, which selected the best patch statistics that separated each species from mesquite on a pairwise basis (named “pairwise separation”). The statistics offering the best discrimination were used as input in an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) to assign class labels. An incremental cover evaluation, whereby producer’s accuracy was computed from mesquite patches grouped into various size-classes, showed that identification of mesquite patches smaller than 36 m2 was relatively low (43-51%) regardless of the method used for choosing between the patch statistics or image type. Accuracy improved for patches >36 m2 (66-94%) with both approaches and image types. However, both approaches used on the hyperspectral imagery were more reliable at capturing patches >36 m2 than the DMSI using either approach. The lowest omission and commission rates were obtained using pairwise separation on the hyperspectral imagery, which was significantly more accurate than DMSI using an overall separation approach (Z=2.78, P<0.05), but no significant differences were found between pairwise separation used on either media. / Consequently, all methods and imagery types, except for DMSI processed using overall separation, are capable of accurately mapping mesquite patches >36 m2. However, hyperspectral imagery processed using pairwise separation appears to be superior, even though not statistically different to hyperspectral imagery processed using overall separation or DMSI processed using pairwise separation at the 95% confidence level. Mapping smaller patches may require the use of very high spatial resolution imagery, such as that achievable from unmanned airborne vehicles, coupled with a hyperspectral instrument. Alternatively, management may continue to rely on visual airborne surveys flown at low altitude and speed, which have proven to be capable at mapping small and isolated mesquite shrubs in the study area used in this research.

University, Forstwiss. Fak., Diss.--Göttingen, 2007.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Texas at El Paso, 2009. / Title from title screen. Vita. CD-ROM. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online.

Submitted by Haroudo Xavier Filho (haroudo.xavierfo@ufpe.br) on 2016-01-12T18:45:44Z No. of bitstreams: 1 LUCIANA_dissertação_2015.pdf: 1199510 bytes, checksum: afc829bda50e491374dfb4257cc3dfb0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-01-12T18:45:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 LUCIANA_dissertação_2015.pdf: 1199510 bytes, checksum: afc829bda50e491374dfb4257cc3dfb0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-13 / CNPq / A pressão antrópica no semiárido aliada às severas condições climáticas desse ambiente acarretam uma maior degradação da Caatinga, contribuindo para a entrada de espécies exóticas. Ao se estabelecerem em nichos disponíveis, essas espécies têm grandes condições de se tornarem invasoras e desencadearem grandes impactos negativos à biota nativa. A algaroba, Prosopis juliflora, é uma espécie que ocorre naturalmente em alguns países das Américas, tendo sido introduzida deliberadamente no nordeste brasileiro durante a década de 40, servindo principalmente como forragem para bovinos e caprinos. Apesar das várias possibilidades de uso dessa planta (lenha, carvão, construção de casa e cercas, alimentação humana), a sua introdução na Caatinga traz sérios malefícios aos processos ecológicos naturais, alterando diretamente a biota nativa. O objetivo desse estudo é compreender o padrão de distribuição da algaroba na Caatinga sob o efeito de diferentes fatores (temperatura, precipitação, disponibilidade de água e indicadores de perturbação) e inferir sobre as consequências da propagação dessa invasora à flora nativa. Para isso, registramos pontos de presença e ausência da P.juliflora na Caatinga do Parque Nacional do Catimbau, Pernambuco, para gerar modelos que explicassem as condições favoráveis à ocorrência da algaroba. Além disso, escolhemos 10 áreas de Caatinga invadida e 10 áreas nativas para estudo comparativo da composição e estrutura dessas comunidades. Os primeiros resultados mostram que a algaroba tem preferência por áreas próximas às redes hidrográficas e casas e que fatores abióticos (temperatura e precipitação) apontam regiões do semiárido com alta susceptibilidade de ocorrência dessa invasora. Outros resultados mostram a algaroba estruturando comunidades de Caatinga invadida por meio de fatores interativos com espécies nativas subordinadas. Além disso, essa invasão promove a redução das diversidades alfa e gama sem, no entanto, afetar a diversidade beta; algumas espécies regenerantes conseguem coexistir com a algaroba, mas talvez não atinjam a idade adulta. E por fim, os resultados sugerem que o solo de áreas invadidas exige mais umidade e matéria orgânica e maior teor de Na+. Recomendamos fortemente a execução de planos emergenciais de controle da P. juliflora na Caatinga, incentivamos a continuidade desta pesquisa a longo prazo e a execução de novos projetos deste cunho no sertão nordestino. / Anthropic pressure on semiarid combined to severe weather conditions in that environment cause further deterioration of Caatinga, contributing to input of alien species. To settle in niches available, these species have great conditions to become invasive and initiate negative impacts on native biota. The mesquite, Prosopis juliflora, is a species that occurs naturally in some countries of the Americas, having been introduced deliberately in northeastern Brazil during the 40s, serving primarily as fodder for cattle and caprine. Despite the many possible uses of this plant (firewood, charcoal, home building and fences, human food), its introduction in the Caatinga causes serious harm to natural ecological processes, altering the native biota. The objective of this study is to understand the pattern of distribution of mesquite in the Caatinga under the influence of different factors (temperature, precipitation, water availability and disturbance indicators) and inferences about the consequences of the spread of this invasive to native flora. We reference points of presence and absence of P.juliflora Caatinga of the National Park Catimbau, Pernambuco, to generate models to explain the favorable conditions for the occurrence of mesquite. Moreover, choose 10 areas of Caatinga invaded and 10 native areas for comparative study of the composition and structure of these communities. The first results show that the mesquite prefers areas near the draining and homes and abiotic factors (temperature and precipitation) indicate semiarid regions with high susceptibility of occurrence of this invasive. Other results show the mesquite structuring Caatinga communities invaded by through interactive factors with subordinate native species. Moreover, this invasion reduction alpha and gamma diversities without however, affecting the diversity beta; some regenerating species can coexist with mesquite, maybe not become adults. Finally, the results suggest that the soil of the areas invaded requires more moisture and organic matter and higher concentration Na+. We recommend implementation emergency plans to control the P.juliflora Caatinga, encourage the continuation of this long-term research and the implementation of new projects of this nature in the Brazilian semiarid.

The mistletoe Phoradendron californicum is a common parasite on the mesquite plant Prosopis juliflora. Seeds of the parasite are deposited upon the host plant by birds and perhaps other agents. Normally seedlings of the parasite become established when the elongating radicle of the embryo comes into contact with a host branch and forms a holdfast. From the underside of the holdfast the primary haustorium enters the host tissue and establishes the parasitic union. Later the aerial portion of the parasite develops. Some seeds of P. californicum follow a different sequence; they stimulate the host to produce gum in the tissue beneath the seed by apparent dissolution of cells. The exuded gum elevates the developing seed from the host branch preventing establishment of the host-parasite union. The possible significance of this apparent defense mechanism is discussed.