Fire in North American Wetland Ecosystems and Fire-Wildlife Relations: An Annotated Bibliography

263.  Turner, M. M. G. 1985a.  Ecological effects of multiple perturbations on 
           a Georgia salt marsh.  Ph.D. Dissertation.  University of Georgia,
           Athens. 192 pp.

Clipping and trampling each reduced peak biomass by similar amounts, 20% in 1983 and 50%-55% in 1984; burning reduced peak biomass by 35% in 1984. Trampling and burning each reduced net aboveground primary productivity (NAPP) by about 35%; clipping did not reduce NAPP when known losses to clipping were accounted for. Perturbations reduced belowground standing stocks of live rhizomes which were correlated with aboveground biomass (r=0.43; p<0.001). Clipping and trampling, when combined, exhibited a proportional relationship. Combinations of perturbations which included burning had less than additive effects. Horses had a strong impact on the high marsh, reducing standing stocks of live smooth cordgrass from 360 g to 40 g dry weight per square meter, and reducing NA-PP by up to 50%. A simulation model suggested there is a threshold of tolerance for grazing in the marsh. [From author's abstract]

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