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Harvard Forest REU Symposium Abstract 2008

  • Title: Measuring Niche Overlap Between Spiders and the Northern Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia purpurea) in Tom Swamp
  • Author: Jonathan Mejia (University of Vermont (UVM))
  • Abstract:

    Spiders and northern pitcher plants (Sarracenia purpurea) are both predators on invertebrates in Tom Swamp Massachusetts. Measuring the food preferences for these predators would help in understanding the amount of niche overlap and competition between them. The theory of niche partitioning predicts that for these predators to coexist in the same environment, they should be selectively preying on different types of invertebrates. Plots were set up where spiders were removed, or pitcher plants were plugged, and pitfall traps were used to sample invertebrate diversity in these plots. Initial observations suggest that spiders selectively prey on Hemipterans, which may indicate niche partitioning. However Odonate prey captures tend to indicate more complex interactions. Because some S. purpurea were found to prey on spiders and there were higher than expected densities of spiders in plots where pitchers were removed, there may be evidence for intraguild predation.

  • Research Category: Physiological Ecology, Population Dynamics, and Species Interactions