Responses of wetland vegetation in Poyang Lake, China to water-level fluctuations

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• 作者：Xue Dai ; Rongrong Wan ; Guishan Yang ; Xiaolong Wang ; Ligang Xu
• 刊名：Hydrobiologia
• 出版年：2016
• 出版时间：June 2016
• 年：2016
• 卷：773
• 期：1
• 页码：35-47
• 全文大小：3,494 KB
• 刊物类别：Biomedical and Life Sciences
• 刊物主题：Life Sciences
  Hydrobiology
  Ecology
  
• 出版者：Springer Netherlands
• ISSN：1573-5117
• 卷排序：773

文摘

The effect of water-level fluctuations (WLF) on vegetation distribution and the makeup of the wetland environment is of growing interest as hydrological regimes become even more profoundly modified by human actions and climate change. It is necessary to develop a scientifically defensible and empirically testable relationship between changes in WLF and the corresponding ecological responses on a regional scale. We utilized correlation analyses, curve-fitting methods, and the classification and regression tree model to quantify both the linear continuum responses and the discontinuous threshold responses of the distribution of spring sedges in the Poyang Lake wetland in relation to different indicators of WLF. Our results suggest that: (1) the sedges exposed to a rapidly fluctuating water regime adjust their distribution pattern approximately every 30 days in an attempt to adapt to the new and ever changing environment; (2) the continual presence of high water levels lasting up to 20 days during the spring or extremely low water levels during the previous retreating season could trigger substantial changes in the distribution of spring sedges. Results of this study will help water resource managers to make informed decisions about how to regulate water conservation projects and protect the degrading wetland ecosystems.KeywordsWater-level fluctuationsSedgesDelays in response timeContinuum responsesDiscontinuous responsesThreshold