PLANT DISTRIBUTION IN FRESHWATER LAKESHORE: RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF SPECIES POOL LIMITATION VS. NICHE LIMITATION

doi:10.3773/j.issn.1005-264x.2009.03.013

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims Much research has focused on the effects of competition and stress tolerance on plant zonation in wetlands, but few studies have explored the role of propagule availability. This study examined the relative importance of niche limitation and species pool limitation in structuring lakeshore plant communities.

Methods We sampled the soil seed banks from the hygrophyte, emergent-plant and submerged-plant zones in a subtropical lakeshore marsh, Longgan Lake, China and used the seedling germination method to examine the density and species composition of seed banks. To assess the effects of species pool and water depth on community establishment, we exposed seed bank samples to three water-level treatments (depths of 0, 25 and 50 cm) and, 45 and 90 days later, compared the species richness and functional groups of the communities that established.

Important findings Species of the seed banks were grouped according to their ability to tolerate or respond to water-depth gradients. The established vegetations varied significantly among sites and treatments. For all three sites, mud-flat and emergent communities established at the 0 water-level treatment, while submerged communities established at the 25 and 50 cm water-level treatments, show-ing that the species belonging to different functional group have different tolerances to water depths and that water depth (niche limitation) was important in shaping plant zonation in freshwater marsh. Only the simplest community developed when the seed bank of the emergent-plant zone was exposed to the 25 and 50 cm water-level treatments, as well as when the seed bank of submerged-plant zone was exposed to the 0 water-level treatment. This shows that community species richness depends primarily on the composition and viability of the seeds in the soil seed bank. These findings suggest that the structure and distribution pattern of the wetland community were determined by both niche limitation and species pool limitation. Their relative importance may depend on the stability of the water regime.

Key words: marsh vegetation, niche, seed bank, zonation distribution, water level

XU Yang, LIU Wen-Zhi, LIU Gui-Hua. PLANT DISTRIBUTION IN FRESHWATER LAKESHORE: RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF SPECIES POOL LIMITATION VS. NICHE LIMITATION[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2009, 33(3): 546-554.

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Figures/Tables 3

Table 1 Mean seed density of seed banks collected at three water level zones and germinated at 45 and 90 d under three water depth treatments (mean±SE)

Fig.1 Composition of functional group of seed banks or seedlings germinating in three water depth treatments at 90th day from soils collected at three water level zones

Table 2 Statistical results from the ANOVA testing the difference of water level treatment and sampling site in the number of seedlings and species at 45th day and 90th day

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