%0 Book Section %B Ecology and Conservation of Great Plains Vertebrates %D 1997 %T Landscape gradients and habitat structure in native grasslands of the central great plains %A Vinton, M.A. %A Scott. L. Collins %E Knopf, F.L. %E Samson, F.B. %X Habitat variables have a powerful influence on the distribution and abundance of organisms, and many organisms directly affect the physical structure of their local environment. These interactions produce a complex feedback system that drives community dynamics. This scenario is particularly true in grasslands where the effects of “keystone engineers,” such as the North American bison (Bison bison), have a tremendous influence on ecosystem structure and function (Collins and Benning 1996). This interplay between organisms and habitat structure in grasslands occurs within a climatic regime that varies dramatically from one year to the next. In addition, the relative influence of different habitat variables changes at different spatial and temporal scales. %B Ecology and Conservation of Great Plains Vertebrates %I Springer-Verlag %C New York %P 3 -19 %G eng %M KNZ00614 %R 10.1007/978-1-4757-2703-6_1