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Associations between Lepanthes rupestris Orchids and Bryophyte Presence in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico
Juan G. García Cancel1, Elvia Meléndez-Ackerman2,3,*, Paola Olaya-Arenas4, Amelia Merced4, Nadia P. Flores4, and Raymond L. Tremblay3
1Biology Department, University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, PO Box 5000, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, 00681-50, USA. 2Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, PO Box 70377, San Juan, PR 00936-8377, USA. 3enter for Applied Tropical Ecology and Conservation, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus, PO Box 23341, San Juan, PR 00931-3341 USA. 4Biology Department, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras, PO Box 70377, San Juan, PR 00936-8377, USA. *Corresponding author.
Caribbean Naturalist, No. 6 (2014)
Abstract
The distribution of orchids in the epiphytic or lithophytic environment is likely to result from the interactions with other plant species. We tested for associations between bryophyte cover and diversity and the densities of different demographic stages (seedlings and juveniles vs adults) of Lepanthes rupestris (Rock Babyboot Orchid), a riparian tropical orchid. Given that this species is predominantly lithophytic and grows near streams, we considered whether or not the location of the densest orchid aggregate within a rock substrate was also related to the location of the “bryophyte line” across the rocky substrate (a potential indicator of maximum water levels for a stream). We found that substrates with thick bryophyte covers had lower densities of early demographic plant stages relative to ones with thin covers. In contrast, higher adult densities were recorded on substrates with thick bryophyte covers relative to substrates with thin bryophyte covers. Orchid density was positively associated with bryophyte species richness, but this association is driven mostly by diversity of mosses and not by diversity of liverworts. The location of the densest L. rupestris patch within a substrate was positively related to the recorded location for the bryophyte line forming across a rock substrate. Overall results suggest that the potential interactions between bryophytes and L. rupestris are likely to be dynamic throughout the life cycle of these orchids. We discuss the potential mechanisms of these interactions (negative ones acting during early stages and positive ones acting at later stages) and the role that natural disturbance regimes along streams (i.e., flash floods) may play in the population dynamics of this species.
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