Characterization Of Plant Community Structure And Abiotic Conditions On Climbed And Unclimbed Cliff Faces In The Obed River Gorge

The Obed River Gorge in Tennessee boasts one of the richest floras in the southeastern United States and is also a popular rock climbing destination. Many rare or endemic species have been found on cliff faces around the world, but the majority of the world's cliff ecosystems remain unexplored by biologists and little is known about ecosystem processes on cliffs. There is a growing concern that biodiversity on cliffs may be threatened by impacts from recreational rock climbing, and several recent studies have validated this concern.