This long-term project tests the hypothesis that insect herbivory is a major factor influencing recovery of natural communities following catastrophic disturbance, a process known as primary succession. Since Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, field surveys and experiments have been used to quantify the impacts of herbivores on two key community members - lupins, which facilitate soil development, and willows, which provide the main source of three dimensional vegetation structure required by many animals. Over the next five years, these approaches will be continued in order to determine how effects of herbivores on host plants are linked to community development, if these effects attenuate as communities become more complex, and the factors that cause herbivore effects to vary across space.
Results from this study have revealed previously unrecognized mechanisms that influence the recovery of natural communities from catastrophic disturbances such as volcanic eruptions. The project provides long-term data essential to management and restoration efforts. The project also enhances science education through student involvement and work with the National Volcanic Monument and its non-profit partner, the Mount St. Helens Institute. The researchers will assist the Mount St. Helens Institute in developing resources that enable high school science classes to participate in research at the site.
