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Sandra Looman Talbot

Publications and source records attributed to Sandra Looman Talbot.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
USGS2018

Post-eruption legacy effects and their implications for long-term recovery of the vegetation on Kasatochi Island, Alaska

We studied the vegetation of Kasatochi Island, central Aleutian Islands, to provide a general field assessment regarding the survival of plants, lichens, and fungi following a destructive volcanic eruption that occurred in 2008. Plant community data were analyzed using multivariate methods to explore the relationship between pre- and post-eruption plant cover; 5 major vegetation types were identified: Honckenya peploides beach, Festuca rubra cliff shelf, Lupinus nootkatensisFestuca rubra meadow, Leymus mollis bluff ridge (and beach), and Aleuria aurantia lower slope barrens. Our study provided a very unusual glimpse into the early stages of plant primary succession on a remote island where most of the vegetation was destroyed. Plants that apparently survived the eruption dominated early plant communities. Not surprisingly, the most diverse post-eruption community most closely resembled a widespread pre-eruption type. Microhabitats where early plant communities were found were distinct and apparently crucial in determining plant survival. Comparison with volcanic events in related boreal regions indicated some post-eruption pattern similarities. ?? 2010 Regents of the University of Colorado.

Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research↗
USGS2006

Vascular flora of Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, westernmost Alaska Peninsula, Alaska

The vascular flora of Izembek National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), where few previous collections had been reported, was collected and recorded at sites selected to represent the totality of environmental variation. A total of 349 species (339 native and 10 introduced) was identified. To provide a comparative phytogeographic framework, we analyzed data from published reports that categorized vascular plant distribution patterns from a circumpolar, North American, and Alaskan perspective. The native flora of the Izembek NWR primarily includes species of circumpolar (38%), eastern Asian (23%), Eurasian (18%), and North American (13%) distribution. The most important longitudinal distributional classes in North America consist of transcontinental (62%) and extreme western species (31%). The annotated list of species in Izembek NWR expands the range of many species, filling a distributional gap in Hulte??n's Western Pacific Coast district. Forty notable range extensions are reported. The flora of Izembek NWR is primarily made up of boreal species and lacks many of the species considered to be Arctic. Comparison with the Raunkiaer life-form spectrum similarly points to the boreal.

Rhodora↗
USGS2001

Lichens from St. Matthew and St. Paul Islands, Bering Sea, Alaska

One hundred thirty-nine taxa of lichens including two lichen parasites are reported from St. Matthew and St. Paul Islands in the Bering Sea. Caloplaca lithophila is new to Alaska. Wide-ranging arctic-alpine and boreal species dominate the lichens; a coastal element is moderately represented, while amphi-Beringian species form a minor element. In comparison with St. Paul Island, St. Matthew Island is richer in arctic-alpine species.

Alaska↗
USGS2000

Lichens of Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, westernmost Alaska Peninsula

One hundred eighty-two taxa of lichens including two lichen parasites are reported from Izembek National Wildlife Refuge on the tip of the Alaska Peninsula. Metasphaeria tartarina is new to North America; Scoliciosporum umbrinum is new to Alaska. Wide-ranging, arctic-alpine, and boreal species dominate the lichen flora; a coastal element is moderately represented, while amphi-Beringian species form a minor element. Epigeic lichen abundance is described along a lowland to alpine mesotopographic gradient selected to represent major landscape variation in the refuge. Of six major community types identified, three had significant lichen components.

Alaska↗