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Managing Marginal Populations of the Rare Wetland Plant Trollius laxus Salisbury (Spreading Globeflower): Consideration of Light Levels, Herbivory, and Pollination

Abstract 
 To address the question of how succession in protected habitats might be managed to favor rare understory plants in the Northeast, this study examined whether reducing shade might have negative impacts via increased herbivory or reduced pollination. We studied marginal populations of Trollius laxus Salisbury (Spreading Globeflower), a rare herbaceous plant of calcareous wetlands, making observations of natural variation in one population, and experimentally cutting back herbaceous neighboring plants in another. In a Trollius population under a mixed canopy, we quantified natural light levels at each plant and tested for correlations with measures of reproduction and herbivory. Flowering and fruit production were positively correlated with light level in one of the two years measured, while herbivore damage and plant growth were uncorrelated with light level. In another study population, where the woody canopy had been removed previously, experimental clipping of herbaceous neighbors did not increase herbivore damage to T. laxus, nor did it decrease flowering or fruit production. Also, the few potential pollinators observed were all small insects unlikely to be negatively affected by increased light. Our results suggest that management to reduce shade in these marginal T. laxus populations is unlikely to have a negative impact on these rare plants via their herbivores and pollinators.