Recent anthropogenic activity in south Florida has increased inputs of phosphorus being delivered to the historically oligotrophic Everglades. Consequently, understanding how phosphorus structures these wetlands is critical. I investigated this with both indirect, correlative techniques and direct, experimental manipulation in two community types: sawgrass and wet prairie. Composition, abundance and productivity in the sawgrass community is most likely controlled primarily by P-availability. In contrast, controls of structure in the wet prairie seem to vary among species and include both P-availability and hydrologic regime. These two communities also respond differently to nutrient enrichment. While the sawgrass community appears to store newly available P in the form of increased production, the wet prairie seems to rapidly recycle P through increases in aboveground turnover rates. As part of my research, a nondestructive technique which accurately estimates aboveground live standing crop in eight common Everglades species was developed.
