Date of Completion

Spring 5-1-2026

Thesis Advisor(s)

Chris S. Elphick

Honors Major

Environmental Science

Disciplines

Entomology | Environmental Monitoring | Natural Resources and Conservation | Plant Biology | Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology | Weed Science

Abstract

Invasive Phragmites australis (common reed) is widely distributed in New England wetlands, where it often outcompetes native plants and decreases biodiversity throughout the food web. Controlling its invasion is a priority, especially in salt marsh habitat, but current management techniques are inefficient. Leveraging natural processes may improve control strategies, but in order to do so, we must first better understand how abiotic and biotic stressors interact and affect Phragmites. This study focuses on herbivory and salinity, two factors limiting Phragmites’ fitness. I measured soil salinity and quantified the damage of three herbivore guilds (i.e. gall-formers and stem-borers, leaf-chewers, and sucking herbivores) on Phragmites shoots in five coastal and three inland wetlands in Connecticut. I found that a higher proportion of stems had galls in more saline stands, while sucking herbivores became less prevalent as salinity increased. Chewing damage appeared unrelated to salinity. Results suggest that Phragmites stems growing in saline soil suffer greater herbivory damage overall, so they may respond more readily to anthropogenic control efforts. Interactions between plants, their abiotic stressors, and their herbivores merit further investigation, especially for their potential to inform management of biological invasions.

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