Rhododendron ponticum (pictured in Fig.1 below) is a fast-growing, non-native, invasive species currently threatening biodiversity in the UK.
R. ponticum
Fig. 1
Originally introduced from Spain as a decorative plant for gardens, R. ponticum forms large thickets and outcompetes native plants such as bryophytes, other woody plants and wildflowers. Particularly severely affected are Atlantic oak woodland areas of coastal land in the western United Kingdom. Clearance programmes to remove R. ponticum have been in place for approximately 30 years in that region. Data was gathered on how the removal of R. ponitcum allows for affected sites to recover and for native species to be restored.
A quadrat study was carried out at three sites:
An area of dense R. ponticum thickets
An area of intermediate R. ponticum coverage
An area of uninvaded land as a control
In each study, the number of species in each area's understorey was counted, as well as the % vegetation cover. This data is shown in the graphs in Fig. 5.2 and Fig. 5.3 below, which have been plotted with a line of best fit.
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
(i) Calculate the range of species found at an R. ponticum density of 2 log arbitrary units.
[1]
(ii) Explain the decline in the number of species found as the density of R. ponticum increases, as found in this study.
[1]