Chin J Plant Ecol ›› 2005, Vol. 29 ›› Issue (2): 258-265.DOI: 10.17521/cjpe.2005.0033

• Original article • Previous Articles     Next Articles

COMMUNITY STUDIES ON THE STATUS OF THE ENDANGERED PLANT, BERCHEMIELLA WILSONII VAR. PUBIPETIOLATA, USING INTERSPECIFIC ASSOCIATION ANALYSIS

HU Li-Le, JIANG Ming-Xi*(), DANG Hai-Shan, HUANG Han-Dong   

  1. Wuhan Botanic Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430074, China
  • Received:2003-12-08 Accepted:2004-05-20 Online:2005-12-08 Published:2005-03-10
  • Contact: JIANG Ming-Xi

Abstract:

Berchemiella wilsonii var. pubipetiolata is a local endemic species distributed discontinuously throughout the Mt. Dabieshan region of the Anhui Province and Mt. Qingliangfeng region of Zhejiang Province, eastern China. Because of the human impacts on natural ecosystems, it is under the threat of extinction and has been ranked as an endangered species. In this study, we assessed the community status of B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata as a basis for its conservation. Based on 2×2 contingency tables, the interspecific correlation of B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata in the tree layers and shrub layers with other species analyzed in four different communities were studied by using χ 2 tests and association coefficients (AC). The results indicated that the interspecific correlations of B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata to other species were very similar in each of the four sites. The value of AC between most species and B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata ranged from -0.2 to 0.2, which indicated that there was no relationship between B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata and other species. The χ 2 analysis indicated that either no species or only one species in a community had a significant relationship with B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata. There were no significant relationships between the dominant species and B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata in any of the communities. All of the above results imply that B. wilsonii var. pubipetiolata was distributed independently or had random occurrence in the different communitiesindicating that it is an incidental or rare species. This case study highlights the importance of having a good understanding of the ecological characteristics of uncommon plants as a basis for making decisions regarding their conservation.

Key words: Endangered plant species, Berchemiella wilsonii var. pubipetiolata, Interspecies association, Association coefficient