Alex Brown Lab Report Due on 10/12/12

Difference in Plant Species Diversity between the North and South sides of A Mountain

Introduction: This study was done to determine the similarity or difference in the diversity of vegetation of the north and south sides of A mountain at ASU. Vegetation diversity was discussed in class and more specifically the vegetation diversity of A mountain was discussed. It was noted that the height of A mountain isnt significant enough to make a difference in the vegetation. Because A mountain isnt very big, there is little, if any, environmental differences that would make a difference in the diversity of vegetation. In other studies done there are differences in the vegetation diversity within a certain geographical area, but that is because of the differences in environmental factors (van der Merwe 2011). For example the difference in temperature within a certain geographical area would make a difference in the vegetation diversity like in the study done in Oaxaca, Mexico (Zacarias-Eslava 2010). The hypothesis for this study is, There will be no significant difference in the vegetation diversity between the north side and the south side of A mountain. The resulting prediction is that if this hypothesis is correct and the vegetation diversity of the north and south sides of A mountain are measured, then there wont be a significant difference in the vegetation diversity. Materials and Methods: Observations were first taken on the south side of the mountain. Two different transects of 25 meters each was measured out using a measuring tape. Each transect was divided into 3 different quadrats of 5 square meters. Each group took one of the quadrats and measured it out

using measuring tape and colored ribbon. Once the quadrat was identified and measured out the number of different plant species was counted and recorded. The same process was repeated on the north side of the mountain. Once the class got back to class all the results were shared with one another so that everyone had the results of each quadrat. The instructor then gathered the data and calculated the Shannon diversity index number for both the north and south sides of the mountain. In this study the independent variable was where the different quadrats were, on the south or north side of the mountain. The dependent variable was the different plant species identified within those quadrats and how many of each there were. Results: Table 1 Shannon Diversity Index North Side South Side H Value

0.08314 0.35661

This table shows the H value of the Shannon Diversity Index for both the north and south sides of A mountain.

Table 1 shows the Shannon Diversity Index number, or H value, for both the north and south sides of A mountain. The H values range from 0 to 1, the lower the number the less diversity and the higher the number the more diverse it is. The H value of the south side is significantly larger than the H value of the north side.

Figure 1

45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Brittlebush Creosote Teddy Bear Cholla Staghorn Cholla Prickly Pear North Side South Side

This graph represents the plant species with the frequency that each was observed in the observation, including both the north and south sides. This graph shows the frequency of each plant species for both the north and south sides. It shows that the species richness is 2 for the north side and 5 for the south side. Discussion: The original hypothesis was, There will be no significant difference in the vegetation diversity between the north side and the south side of A mountain. The species richness of the south side was more than double that of the north side and the H value from the Shannon Diversity Index was significantly greater for the south side than the north side. These results refute the original hypothesis. A study that was done showed that there is a difference between the vegetation diversity of the north and south sides of a mountain (Erdos 2012). That study showed that there is more diversity on the south side of the mountain. A question for a future experiment could be what causes the higher diversity on the south side of the mountain.

Works Cited Erdos, Laszlo, Meri, A, Batori, Z. 2012. North-South facing vegetation gradients in the Villany mountains:a case study on the population and the Community Level. Pakistan Journal of Botany. 44:927-932. Van der Merwe, H. 2011. Species-Area Relationships in the Hantam-Tanqua-Roggeveld, Succulent Karoo, South Africa. Biodiversity and Conservation. 20:1183-1201. Zacarias-Eslava, Yunuhe. 2010. Temperate plant communities in the Sierra Juarez, Oaxaca: altitudinal levels and possible implications associated with climate change. Boletin de la Sociedad Botanica de Mexico. 87:13-28.