The effects of mine disturbance and contamination on pollination of subalpine wildflowers

Abstract

Metals-rich soils can occur naturally or through human activity, such as mining. Plants growing in metal-rich soils often incorporate metals into their tissues; the concentration of these metals can vary among tissues within a plant, among plants of the same species, and among species. Accumulation of metals in plant tissues has mainly been studied in the context of phytoremediation, The effects of metals on plant pollination in these metal-contaminated sites is less well studied. I examined the effects mine spoils on natural systems in Gunnison County, Colorado. I examined concentrations of metals and other elements in plant tissue as well as conducting plant diversity surveys at 6 pairs of mine and control sites. I measured plant traits and reproductive success and observed pollinator visits on Draba aurea, Thlaspi montanum, and Lupinus argenteus at three site pairs. To examine within-site variation, I used GIS mapping techniques. I found no differences in the metal concentration of either soils or plant tissue from mine sites. However, plants growing on mines were generally shorter and had fewer flowers compared to those from control sites, including D. aurea, L. argenteus, and T. montanum, For D. aurea, pollination rates were lower at mine sites, which could be a result of changes in plant or pollinator community composition or of the shorter, less showy plants. In addition, plant communities growing on control sites were more diverse than those growing on mine sites, which could suggest that such sites were less attractive to pollinators. Although there was no evidence that these differences were driven by current soil metals concentrations, this study suggests that mining has long-lasting effects on native plant communities and the pollination services they receive; more work should be done to identify which aspects of mining disturbance are causing the changes. Chelsea Little, 3

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