Poster Details
REPETITIVE DISAPPEARANCE OF AQUATIC HABITAT IN A TEMPORARY WETLAND ECOSYSTEM: HOW DO ORGANISMS COPE?
As one of the most common temporary ecosystems, ephemeral wetlands are present in
landscapes across the world. Characterized by their repetitive cycling hydroperiod, ephemeral
wetlands are home to diverse communities of aquatic organisms. These communities are
subject to a constant state of change and have adapted to cope with the continuous assembly
and disassembly of ephemeral wetlands. Community disassembly is the non-random process of
progressive species declines and losses. This study seeks to examine how disassembly
proceeds in vegetated and clear areas of ephemeral wetlands. If such a difference does exist,
we hope to examine where the inhabitants of these temporary ecosystems go during
disassembly. To examine community disassembly, a variety of wetlands in Colorado’s Pawnee
National Grassland were sampled in the Summer of 2015 throughout their hydroperiods.
Vegetated areas were found to be more diverse than clear areas. Further analysis is required
on the last sampling date to further determine the patterns of community disassembly. These
findings contribute to a more complete understanding of temporary ecosystems, and shed light
onto the less explored topic of disassembly.
Chantelle Wernecke (Primary Presenter/Author), University of Wisconsin - Whitewater, WerneckeCM19@uww.edu;
Brian O'Neill (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, oneillb@uww.edu;