High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2026

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Course Code

PCB

Course Number

4301C

Faculty/Instructor

Dr. Lisa Chambers

Faculty/Instructor Email

lisa.chambers@ucf.edu

About the Author

We would like to acknowledge Cadie Barnes, our graduate student partner; Mercedes Pinzon-Delgado, our graduate student mentor; and Dr. Lisa Chambers, our course instructor and faculty mentor, for their research assistance. We would also like to acknowledge the UCF Arboretum for allowing us to research within their cypress dome, and our peer Madeline Rosso for plant ID guidance.

Abstract, Summary, or Creative Statement

Cypress domes are unique wetland ecosystems distinct in species biodiversity and hydrologic patterns which have become increasingly degraded from alteration of hydrology. These changes are made with little understanding about how this may affect plant communities and weaken a wetland’s resistance to invasive species, shifting its plant regimes. This study investigates how altered hydrology affects the presence of invasive species and may cause plant communities to shift by studying two cypress domes on UCF campus. Three 30 meter transects were established per wetland in random cardinal directions, with 70 cm quadrats placed every 6 meters for a total of 18 per site. Plants were identified per quadrat to the species level, then classified into native and wetland indicator status as defined by the FDEP. In a previous study, no invasive species were found in the unaltered dome, however, in our study one invasive species was detected. During our study, two invasive species were detected in the altered dome compared to five invasive species found in the earlier study. Although differences in invasive species richness were not statistically significant, the absence of standing water and more species of facultative (FAC) and facultative wetland (FACW) plants than obligate (OBL) plants at the impacted quadrats may indicate that hydrology changes shift community, which could make the system more vulnerable to opportunistic invaders. Understanding these patterns can help scientists understand the effects of wetland alteration on ecosystem services, plant communities, and how that shifts the composition of the fauna within an ecosystem.

Keywords

Cypress dome; Hydrology; Wetlands; Invasive species; Species richness; Human impacts; Succession; Urbanization impacts; Central Florida; Taxodium spp

Drained Defenses: How Altered Hydrology Influences Invasive Plant Species Richness in Cypress Domes


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