trophic interactions

This paper reviews current knowledge of dynamic processes in New Zealand land-water ecotones drawing on published quantitative data wherever possible. Basic ecosystem processes in forested and natural unforested land-water ecotones are compared, and dynamic processes are discussed under the following headings: time scales of change; water movement; sediment trapping and transport; dissolved nutrient dynamics; dissolved oxygen; trophic interactions.

Once widespread, Cook’s scurvy grass (or nau, Lepidium oleraceum) is now confined to a few offshore populations. Classed as nationally endangered by the New Zealand Department of Conservation, populations of Cook’s scurvy grass are threatened by a number of factors, including introduced herbivorous insect species such as the white butterfly (Pieris rapae) and white rust infection caused by the oomycete Albugo candida.