The Joint Effects of Herbivory and Competition Upon         Plant Communities
{'Code': '08010208', 'Directorate': {'Abbreviation': 'BIO', 'LongName': 'Direct For Biological Sciences'}, 'Division': {'Abbreviation': 'DEB', 'LongName': 'Division Of Environmental Biology'}}
{'SignBlockName': 'Margaret Palmer', 'PO_EMAI': None, 'PO_PHON': None}
This proposal by Dr. Norma Fowler of the University of                  Texas,                                                                          Austin is to examine the combined influences of grazing and                     interplant competition on plant community structure.  The effects               of grazing upon plants are not limited to the effects of                        defoliation, but include the effects of trampling, and urine and                dung deposition.  Investigation of these secondary effects will                 not be done.  Initially, the investigation will concentrate upon                the effects of defoliation.  However, each of the field                         experiments will include both a (fenced) clipping treatment and                 an (unfenced) grazing treatment as well as a (fenced) control;                  differences between the clipping and grazing treatments may be                  due to these secondary effects, or perhaps to differentiate                     between mechanical clipping and the action of an animal's jaw.                  An absence of differences between the clipping and grazing                      treatments will support the null hypothesis that in this system                 the effects of grazing are largely limited to the direct effects                of tissue removal.  A clipping treatment will be included in                    these experiments, not only to test this hypothesis, but also                   because the effects of grazing are also a function of animal                    preferences for plants of different species, sizes, physiological               and developmental states, surrounding vegetation, and so on.  An                apparent interaction effect between competition and defoliation                 can arise from the effects of preference, when none is actually                 present.  Estimates of preference will be made and the results                  used to indicate appropriate additional experimental treatments.                        This work has much intrinsic, ecological interests, but its             immediate practical value is in its importance for understanding                plant community maintenance, especially in over-grazing                         situations in nutrient poor prairies, savannas, etc.
{'FirstName': 'Norma', 'LastName': 'Fowler', 'PI_MID_INIT': 'L', 'PI_SUFX_NAME': None, 'PI_FULL_NAME': 'Norma L Fowler', 'EmailAddress': 'nfowler@austin.utexas.edu', 'NSF_ID': '000396878', 'StartDate': '01/01/1988', 'EndDate': None, 'RoleCode': 'Principal Investigator'}
{'Name': 'University of Texas at Austin', 'CityName': 'AUSTIN', 'ZipCode': '787121139', 'PhoneNumber': '5124716424', 'StreetAddress': '110 INNER CAMPUS DR', 'StreetAddress2': None, 'CountryName': 'United States', 'StateName': 'Texas', 'StateCode': 'TX', 'CONGRESSDISTRICT': '25', 'CONGRESS_DISTRICT_ORG': 'TX25', 'ORG_UEI_NUM': 'V6AFQPN18437', 'ORG_LGL_BUS_NAME': 'UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN', 'ORG_PRNT_UEI_NUM': None}
{'Name': None, 'CityName': None, 'StateCode': None, 'ZipCode': None, 'StreetAddress': None, 'CountryCode': None, 'CountryName': None, 'StateName': None, 'CountryFlag': None, 'CONGRESSDISTRICT': None, 'CONGRESS_DISTRICT_PERF': '""'}
{'Code': '112800', 'Text': 'Population & Community Ecology'}
{'url': 'https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/download?DownloadFileName=1987&All=true', 'xml': '8704625.xml'}