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Identifying conditions where reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) functions as a driver of forest loss in the Upper Mississippi River floodplain under different hydrological scenarios

February 5, 2024

Most of the world’s river-floodplain ecosystems are simultaneously undergoing modifications to their hydrological regimes and experiencing species invasions, making it unclear whether invasive species are the main drivers of ecosystem change or simply responding to changes in the hydrological regime. We simulated patterns of forest recruitment and succession in a 2200 ha portion of the Upper Mississippi River floodplain with and without removal of invasive Phalaris arundinacea and under two different future 100-year hydrological scenarios: a future maintaining the average flooding conditions of the past 40 years (random) and a future that projects an observed upward 40-year trend in flooding conditions forward (trending). By comparing mapped outputs between scenarios that included Phalaris removal and ones that did not, we were able to identify locations where Phalaris was the main driver of forest loss. We employed the Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD) framework to discuss potential management options to resist changes and maintain forest cover where Phalaris is likely to be the main driver of forest loss and to accept or direct changes in areas where forest loss is likely driven by hydrological change.

Publication Year 2024
Title Identifying conditions where reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) functions as a driver of forest loss in the Upper Mississippi River floodplain under different hydrological scenarios
DOI 10.5066/P971TC5G
Authors Nathan R DeJager, Jason Rohweder
Product Type Data Release
Record Source USGS Asset Identifier Service (AIS)
USGS Organization Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center
Rights This work is marked with CC0 1.0 Universal
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