Mentor/s
Emma M. Murphy1, Sarah C. Crosby2, and Torrance C. Hanley1 1Sacred Heart University, Department of Biology, Fairfield, CT 2The Maritime Aquarium, Norwalk, CT
Participation Type
Poster
Abstract
Globally, many plants are experiencing elevated temperatures as a result of climate change, which can affect survival, growth, and reproduction and have far-reaching impacts on populations and communities, particularly in plant-dominated ecosystems. In addition, these effects may vary depending on whether a system is composed mainly of a natural population that has existed for decades with minimal human interference versus a restored population that has been created or modified by human activity. Here, we focus on the effects of ambient versus elevated temperatures on the reproduction of Spartina alterniflora, a foundation species in natural versus restored salt marshes, to predict the effects of climate change on a key component of population dynamics – flower production and seed germination. We conducted a field mesocosm experiment exposing Spartina in 3-4 natural versus 3-4 restored marshes to ambient and elevated temperatures during the 2023 and 2024 growing seasons, collecting flowers in the fall of each year to compare flower quality and seed germination of Spartina. We found differences in flower quality (i.e., length and weight) depending on marsh status and temperature treatment, with larger flowers from restored versus natural marshes and larger flowers from ambient versus warmed treatments. In addition, seed germination rate varied depending on marsh status and temperature treatment. These results have important implications for salt marsh resilience under climate change, as Spartinareproduction is critical for maintaining genetic diversity and adaptive potential of populations of this foundation species.
College and Major available
Biology
Academic Level
Undergraduate student
Location
Digital Commons & West Campus West Building University Commons
Start Day/Time
4-25-2025 12:00 PM
End Day/Time
4-25-2025 2:00 PM
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Comparing the effects of elevated temperatures on flowering of a foundation species in natural versus restored marshes
Digital Commons & West Campus West Building University Commons
Globally, many plants are experiencing elevated temperatures as a result of climate change, which can affect survival, growth, and reproduction and have far-reaching impacts on populations and communities, particularly in plant-dominated ecosystems. In addition, these effects may vary depending on whether a system is composed mainly of a natural population that has existed for decades with minimal human interference versus a restored population that has been created or modified by human activity. Here, we focus on the effects of ambient versus elevated temperatures on the reproduction of Spartina alterniflora, a foundation species in natural versus restored salt marshes, to predict the effects of climate change on a key component of population dynamics – flower production and seed germination. We conducted a field mesocosm experiment exposing Spartina in 3-4 natural versus 3-4 restored marshes to ambient and elevated temperatures during the 2023 and 2024 growing seasons, collecting flowers in the fall of each year to compare flower quality and seed germination of Spartina. We found differences in flower quality (i.e., length and weight) depending on marsh status and temperature treatment, with larger flowers from restored versus natural marshes and larger flowers from ambient versus warmed treatments. In addition, seed germination rate varied depending on marsh status and temperature treatment. These results have important implications for salt marsh resilience under climate change, as Spartinareproduction is critical for maintaining genetic diversity and adaptive potential of populations of this foundation species.
Students' Information
Biology major with psychology, chemistry and honors minors and will graduate 2026