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1.
The “Ewijkse Plaat” is a floodplain along the Waal River, NL. In 1988, the floodplain was excavated as part of a program for enlargement of the discharge capacity and was assigned as a nature rehabilitation area. This paper describes the combined geomorphological and vegetation evolution of the floodplain until 16 years after the initial excavation using elevation data and data on vegetation structure derived from detailed aerial stereographic imagery. The impact of these processes on flow velocity and water surface elevation was evaluated by using a hydraulic model. Within 16 years, the excavated amount of sediment was redeposited in the area. The dominant geomorphological process after excavation was vertical accretion of the floodplain which resulted in the formation of natural levees. The amount of sedimentation was correlated to the across-floodplain flow (R2 = 0.89). In the research period, 41% of the sedimentation took place during two single major flood events. The creation of pioneer stages by excavation promoted softwood forest establishment, which influenced the sedimentation pattern significantly. The landscape evolved toward structure-rich vegetation. Nine years after excavation the initial hydraulic gain was lost by the combined effect of sedimentation and vegetation succession. Implications for river and nature management are discussed.  相似文献   

2.
Restoration of palatable grasses on degraded rangelands dominated by unpalatable grasses in central Argentina is limited by low availability of seeds and safe sites for seedling establishment. The objective of our study was to determine how mechanical disturbance of unpalatable grasses (Stipa spp.) in combination with seeding of a palatable grass (Poa ligularis) influenced species composition in a degraded rangeland excluded from livestock grazing. In April 2001 10 blocks were uniformly distributed on a previously burned site dominated by unpalatable grasses, and treatments applied in 8 m×8 m experimental plots. Treatments were ‘disked and seeded’ and control (no disking, no seeding). Perennial plant cover and end-of-season standing crop, at species or species group level, were assessed in December 2002/2003 and in December 2004/2006, respectively. P. ligularis out-competed both tillers of unpalatable grasses that survived mechanical disturbance and seedlings of unpalatable grasses established after mechanical disturbance. The cover and end-of-season standing crop of unpalatable grasses was higher in the control than in the ‘disked and seeded’ treatment, whereas the cover and end-of-season standing crop of P. ligularis was higher in the latter than in the former treatment. Our results suggest that a rapid transition from a state dominated by unpalatable grasses to a state dominated by palatable grasses can be achieved by mechanical disturbance of unpalatable grasses in combination with seeding of palatable grasses in semiarid rangelands of central Argentina.  相似文献   

3.
Patterns of association of three columnar cactus species with potential nurse plants and rocks were examined in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Arizona. Close spatial associates of cacti are often called “nurses” because they provide a less extreme microclimate for cactus seedlings, which improves survival rates. Of the three cacti, Carnegiea gigantea had the greatest frequency of association with nurse plants. Stenocereus thurberi, which is common on steep hillslopes where rocks and crevices offer numerous protected microsites for seedling establishment, was associated with nurse rocks more frequently than were the other two species. Lophocereus schottii showed the lowest frequency of association with nurses. In the Monument, L. schottii reproduces primarily through vegetative propagation, which reduces the need of small cacti for protection from nurses. Species most frequently associated with the three cacti were among the dominant species where each cactus occurred except that sparsely foliated species were associated with cacti less frequently than expected. This pattern supports previous claims that structural characteristics are more important than species identification in providing cacti with enhanced chances for survival. It also suggests that at a landscape scale, population dynamics of columnar cacti are more closely linked to patterns of overall vegetation change than to population fluctuations of a particular species that acts as a nurse. [Key words: northern Sonoran Desert, cactus establishment, nurse plants.]  相似文献   

4.
Soil salinity is a major abiotic stress influencing plant productivity worldwide. Schinopsis quebracho colorado is one of the most important woody species in the Gran Chaco, an arid and salt-prone subtropical biome of South America. To gain a better understanding of the physiological mechanisms that allow plant establishment under salt conditions, germination and seedling growth of S. quebracho colorado were examined under treatment with a range of NaCl solutions (germination: 0–300 mmol l−1 NaCl; seedling growth: 0–200 mmol l−1 NaCl). The aim was to test the hypothesis that S. quebracho colorado is a glycophite that shows different salt tolerance responses with development stage. Proline content, total soluble carbohydrates and Na+, K+ and Cl− concentrations in leaves and roots of seedlings, and the chlorophyll concentration and relative water content of leaves were measured. Germination was not affected by 100 mmol l−1 NaCl, but decreased at a concentration of 200 mmol l−1. At 300 mmol l−1 NaCl, germination did not occur. Seedling growth decreased drastically with increasing salinity. An increase in NaCl from 0 to 100 mmol l−1 also significantly reduced the leaf relative water content by 22% and increased the proline concentration by 60% in roots. In contrast, total soluble carbohydrates were not significantly affected by salinity. Seedlings showed a sodium exclusion capacity, and there was an inverse correlation between Cl− concentration and the total chlorophyll concentration. S. quebracho colorado was more tolerant to salinity during germination than in the seedling phase. The results suggest that this increased tolerance during germination might, in part, be the result of lower sensitivity to high tissue Na+ concentrations. The significant increment of proline in the roots suggests the positive role of this amino acid as a compatible solute in balancing the accumulation of Na+ and Cl− as a result of salinity. These results help clarify the physiological mechanisms that allow establishment of S. quebracho colorado on salt-affected soils in arid and semi-arid Gran Chaco.  相似文献   

5.
闫守刚  许清涛 《中国沙漠》2012,32(6):1611-1616
在半干旱沙区植物天然更新过程中,种子萌发、幼苗出土是植物种群维持和实现更新的关键阶段。通常认为,在这一阶段,土壤水分和土壤种子库是主要制约因素。分别对流动沙丘迎风坡与丘间低地过渡带的出土幼苗密度与土壤种子库密度和土壤水分进行二元相关分析。结果表明,生长季的出土幼苗密度与土壤种子库密度的相关性未达到显著水平（P>0.05）;出土幼苗密度与土壤水分呈显著正相关（P<0.05）,而且,幼苗密度随土壤水分呈对数增加。这说明,在植被入侵流动沙丘迎风坡与丘间低地过渡带裸沙的过程中,土壤水分是主要的制约因素,而土壤种子库的制约作用则没有表现出来,植被自然恢复更多地依赖于从沙丘附近植物群落传播来的种子。  相似文献   

6.

In Norway, on-site biological surveys precede the designation of nature reserves. Although many nature conservation areas have been affected by past human use (e.g. cattle grazing, timber harvesting), a typical biological survey may fail to portray the extent of human influence on biodiversity and vegetation dynamics. In 1984, Hystad forest (western Norway) was made a nature reserve after botanists interpreted the ecosystem 'close to untouched'. It was thought best to leave the forest alone, so no management plan was developed. It was later realized that the vegetation was changing, but the reason was not obvious. I gathered and analyzed further biological data plus information on land-use history from varied sources (e.g. cadastral maps, archive material and oral histories). The area has undergone a series of transformations since the 17th century. The present forest is no more than 100 years old, and extensive parts are much younger. The initial survey underestimated the extent of cultural impact and failed to predict vegetation change subsequent to reserve establishment, whereas a historical-geographical approach reveals that the vegetation is in a state of transition, driven primarily by a change from active farming to farm abandonment. Planning for conservation must recognize past as well as present human use of the landscape to anticipate consequent land cover responses.  相似文献   

7.
Recent extensive harvesting of large, often dead Acacia trees in arid savanna of southern Africa is cause for concern about the conservation status of the arid savanna and its animal community. We mapped vegetation and nests of the Black-tailed Tree Rat Thallomys nigricauda to assess the extent to which the rats depend on particular tree species and on the existence of dead, standing trees. The study was conducted in continuous Acacia woodland on the southern and eastern edge of the Kalahari, South Africa. Trees in which there were tree rat nests were compared with trees of similar size and vigour to identify the characteristics of nest sites. Spatial analysis of tree rat distribution was conducted using Ripley's-L function. We found that T. nigricauda was able to utilize all available tree species, as long as trees were large and old enough so that cavities were existing inside the stem. The spatial distribution of nest trees did not show clumping at the investigated scale, and we therefore reject the notion of the rats forming colonies when inhabiting continuous woodlands. The selection of a particular tree as a nest site was furthermore depending on the close proximity of the major food plant, Acacia mellifera. This may limit the choice of suitable nest sites, since A. mellifera was less likely to grow within a vegetation patch containing a large trees than in patches without large trees.  相似文献   

8.
The proliferation of woody plant species on savanna rangelands (i.e. bush encroachment) degrades rangeland quality, thereby threatening the biodiversity conservation effort as well as pastoral farming. Hyperspectral remote sensing offers possibilities for discriminating encroaching bush species in support of management of semi-arid savanna rangelands. As a preliminary step towards establishing a spectral library of common encroaching species on savanna rangelands, the effect of canopy leaf cover, background dry soil and grass on the spectral profiles of the common encroaching species Acacia karroo, Acacia mellifera, Acacia tortilis and Dichrostachys cinerea was analysed. A sample of healthy mature plants in prime, full leaf condition was utilised at an encroached rangeland in Mokopane, South Africa. The spectral signatures were collected in-situ, using a field spectrometer pointed above the sample specimen canopies. The canopy and canopy background variables tended to modify the reflectance of the encroaching bush species in the near infrared (800–1300 nm) in which they were spectrally most separable. Canopy background dry grass tended to increase near infrared reflectance, while dry soil tended to reduce the spectral contrast among the species. These effects were reduced by high leaf content. In a thicket canopy structure, the overall reflectance tended towards the spectral profile of the more dominant species.  相似文献   

9.
Pinyon and juniper have been expanding into sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) ecosystems since settlement of the Great Basin around 1860. Herbaceous understory vegetation is eliminated as stand densities increase and the potential for catastrophic fires increases. Prescribed fire is increasingly used to remove trees and promote recovery of sagebrush ecosystems. We quantified the effects of prescribed fire, vegetation type, and time following fire on soil KCl extractable nitrogen and NaHCO3 extractable phosphorus in a pinyon–juniper woodland and its associated sagebrush ecosystem immediately before and for 4 years after a spring prescribed burn. Potassium chloride extractable NH4+ and total inorganic-N increased immediately following prescribed fire, and extractable NO3− decreased immediately after the burn. In the surface layer (top 8 cm), extractable NH4+ remained elevated compared to the control through year 2 after the burn. By the first fall post-burn extractable NO3− and total extractable inorganic-N increased and remained elevated over the control through year 3 after the burn in the surface layer. For the entire soil profile (52 cm), the burn had no effect on NH4+, and the effects on total extractable inorganic-N were no longer significant after year 1. However, NO3− remained elevated over the control through year 2 post-fire for the soil profile. Near surface NaHCO3 extractable ortho-P increased immediately following fire, and remained elevated through year 2 post-fire. No fire effects were observed for extractable ortho-P in deeper horizons. Our data show that plant available nitrogen can remain elevated for extended periods following prescribed fire. This can influence regrowth and seedling establishment of native plant species, invasion of exotic plant species and, ultimately, site recovery potential.  相似文献   

10.
Pollen and diatoms preserved in the radiocarbon dated sediments of Two Frog Lake in the Seymour-Belize Inlet Complex of the central mainland coast of British Columbia document postglacial climate change. Two Frog Lake was isolated from the sea prior to 11,040 ± 50 yr BP (13,030 cal. yr BP) when the climate was cool and dry, and open Pinus contorta woodlands covered the landscape. These woodlands were replaced by a mixed conifer forest ca. 10,200 yr BP (ca. 12,300 cal. yr BP) when the climate became moister. A relatively dry and warm early Holocene climate allowed Pseudotsuga menziesii to migrate northward to this site where it grew with Picea, Tsuga heterophylla and Alnus. The climate became cooler and moister at ca. 8,000 yr BP (ca. 9,200 cal. yr BP), approximately 500–1,000 years prior to sites located south of Two Frog Lake and on the Queen Charlotte Islands, but contemporary with sites on the northern mainland coast of British Columbia and south coastal Alaska. Climate heterogeneity in central coastal British Columbia appears to have occurred on a synoptic scale, suggesting that atmospheric dynamics linked to a variable Aleutian Low pressure system may have had an important influence on early Holocene climate change in the Seymour-Belize Inlet Complex. The transition to cooler and moister conditions facilitated the expansion of Cupressaceae and the establishment of a modern-type coastal temperate rainforest dominated by Cupressaceae and T. heterophylla. This was associated with progressive lake acidification. Diatom changes independent of vegetation change during the late Holocene are correlative with the mid-Neoglacial period, when cooler temperatures altered diatom communities.  相似文献   

11.
The climate of semi-arid Mediterranean areas is characterized by highly variable rainfall and seasonal droughts, which favor highly specialized flora, high biodiversity, and the emergence of a large number of endemic species. Such highly specialized complex ecosystems are expected to be more difficult to return to a previous state following perturbation than are more mild ecosystems and lead to dramatic transitions in vegetation. An understanding of the circumstances under which irreversible transition shifts occur is vital in an age of climate change and socio-economic globalization. This will have significant consequences for those highly specialized areas unless management practices, conservation, and preventive measures are increased. Within ecosystems, the interactions between multiple factors acting at multiple temporal and spatial scales, and the inertia of ecological processes, make the consequences of current management practices persist for a long time. To understand the relative importance of the underlying mechanisms that influence the resilience of drylands in southeastern Spain, we reviewed what is known about plant–soil interactions and the spatial distribution of vegetation to detect early warning signs of desertification. We analyzed the role of the self-organizing capacity of vegetation in the formation of vegetation spatial patterns at multiple spatial scales. In addition, we evaluated the importance of threshold indicators as early detectors of transition shifts in dryland ecosystems.  相似文献   

12.
Li  Wei  Li  Xiaoyan  Huang  Yongmei  Wang  Pei  Zhang  Cicheng 《地理学报(英文版)》2019,29(9):1507-1526

In many arid ecosystems, vegetation frequently occurs in high-cover patches interspersed in a matrix of low plant cover. However, theoretical explanations for shrub patch pattern dynamics along climate gradients remain unclear on a large scale. This context aimed to assess the variance of the Reaumuria soongorica patch structure along the precipitation gradient and the factors that affect patch structure formation in the middle and lower Heihe River Basin (HRB). Field investigations on vegetation patterns and heterogeneity in soil properties were conducted during 2014 and 2015. The results showed that patch height, size and plant-to-patch distance were smaller in high precipitation habitats than in low precipitation sites. Climate, soil and vegetation explained 82.5% of the variance in patch structure. Spatially, R. soongorica shifted from a clumped to a random pattern on the landscape towards the MAP gradient, and heterogeneity in the surface soil properties (the ratio of biological soil crust (BSC) to bare gravels (BG)) determined the R. soongorica population distribution pattern in the middle and lower HRB. A conceptual model, which integrated water availability and plant facilitation and competition effects, was revealed that R. soongorica changed from a flexible water use strategy in high precipitation regions to a consistent water use strategy in low precipitation areas. Our study provides a comprehensive quantification of the variance in shrub patch structure along a precipitation gradient and may improve our understanding of vegetation pattern dynamics in the Gobi Desert under future climate change.

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13.
Feedback in the establishment of vegetation has been shown to produce spatial patterns that differ from the geomorphological basis for resources. The dynamics of these spatial patterns have been characterized as self-organization because local processes produce them at landscape scales. Geomorphic patterns could, however, enhance or disrupt the processes that lead to patterns and the interpretation of self-organization. A simulation model that showed such indication of self-organization at alpine forest-tundra ecotones is modified to incorporate a geomorphic feature commonly seen in this environment – solifluction steps – as an exogenous condition in the model. Analyses linking spatial patterns and rates of advance of vegetation indicate that such geomorphic patterns do not alter the dynamics of vegetation until the size of the patterns is about double that of the dimension within which endogenous dynamics operate. The sizes of some geomorphic patterns incorporated in the model are probably larger than any realistic solifluction feature at such ecotones in western North America.  相似文献   

14.
The spatial distribution of riparian vegetation is closely allied to abiotic processes along streams and rivers. There are dynamic relations between physical process, fluvial forms, and biotic structures. Explanation of these associations is critical to scientific understanding and practical management of riverine environments. Therefore, this study determines what geophysical parameters lead to the spatial patterns found in species of warm interior and cold montane riparian deciduous forests in central Arizona. Five riparian vegetation populations were examined along five perennial streams in the transition zone of central Arizona. The populations included Populus angustifolia (narrowleaf cottonwood), two commonly associated species of willow Salix lasiandra (western black willow) and Salix lasiolepis (arroyo willow), Alnus oblongifolia (Arizona alder), and Platanus wrightii (Arizona sycamore). Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) with a forward selection was used to assess quantitatively the role of stream power in riparian vegetation patterns. Results indicated 40% of the spatial variability in the riparian populations was explained by channel morphology and several other variables related to changing channel geometry. Although floods are linked to the formation of geomorphic surfaces and the regeneration of riparian vegetation, changing fluvial landforms and channel patterns were closely related to the riparian species patterns in central Arizona. [Key words: Mogollon Rim, channel morphology, multivariate statistics.]  相似文献   

15.
Theoretical regime equations for mobile gravel-bed rivers with stable banks   总被引：2，自引：1，他引：2  
Robert G. Millar   《Geomorphology》2005,64(3-4):207-220
A system of rational regime equations is developed for gravel-bed rivers with stable banks using the optimality theory (OT). The optimality theory is based on the premise that equilibrium river geometry is characterised by an optimum configuration, defined here as maximum sediment-transport efficiency. Theoretical dimensionless equations are derived for width, depth, slope, width/depth ratio, and meandering–braiding transition. Independent dimensionless variables comprise discharge, sediment concentration, and relative bank strength, μ′, which is defined as the ratio of the critical shear stresses for the bank and bed sediments. Discharge exponents and general form of the equations agree well with previously developed empirical relations. Relative bank strength, μ′, is used to parameterise the influence of riparian vegetation on bank strength and is evaluated by calibrating against observed width/depth ratio. Once calibrated, the hydraulic geometry of natural gravel rivers is well described by the theoretical equations, including discrimination between meandering and braiding channels. The results provide strong support for the assumption that equilibrium or regime river behavior is equivalent to an optimal state and underline the importance of bank strength and sediment load as controls on hydraulic geometry.  相似文献   

16.
Diatoms, Cladocera, and chironomids preserved in the sediments of Lake Dalgoto were studied to reconstruct the history of the lake ecosystem in the context of the vegetation history as represented by the pollen stratigraphy. Younger Dryas silty sediments at the base of the core are characterized by low diversity of aquatic organisms. The transition to the Holocene is indicated by a sharp change from silt to clay-gyttja. The migration and expansion of trees at lower elevations between 10200 and 8500 14C-yr BP, along with higher diversities and concentrations of aquatic organisms and the decreased proportion of north-alpine diatoms, point to rapidly rising summer temperatures. After 6500 14C-yr BP the expansion of Pinus mugo in the catchment coincides with signs of natural eutrophication as recorded by an increase of planktonic diatoms. In the late Holocene (4000–0 14C-yr BP) Pinus peuce and Abies are reduced and Picea expands. Cereal grains and disturbance indicators suggest late-Holocene human modification of the vegetation.  相似文献   

17.
Studies on denudation rates can provide insight into the influence of climate change, tectonics, and human activities on landscape evolution. Research performed in Central Italy has shown considerable spatial variability of denudation rates in the major river basins. These studies have focused mainly on the Tyrrhenian side of the Italian peninsula, where Plio-Pleistocene marine deposits filling NW–SE elongated sedimentary basins have been uplifted during the Quaternary up to several hundreds of meters above present sea level. Small sub-catchments developed on clays are affected by sharp- and/or rounded-edged badlands (i.e. calanchi and biancane), representing denudation “hot spots” in the present-day morphoclimatic framework.In this paper, we analyze the relationships between indirectly estimated denudation rates at the catchment scale and field monitoring data at the hillslope scale. We attempt to better understand and quantify all hillslope processes that contribute to seasonal variability of denudation, to help with predicting the net input from “hot spots” to the overall estimated sediment yield at the basin outlets. At the hillslope scale, we discuss, in particular, the variability of denudation rates at calanchi and biancane badlands as a function of their different morphoevolution.  相似文献   

18.
The Cactaceae are prominent members of national and international endangered species lists. This is true for even those that have not been studied in any significant detail, and given the need to assess these species there is still a general lack of information. Demographic studies in the Cactaceae have highlighted several threats some of which are clearly human induced (disturbance), and others that have a biological component (e.g. low survival rates of seedlings). We modelled the population dynamics of Astrophytum ornatum (the southernmost representative of Astrophytum) in one population in central Mexico, during a three year period. We constructed two size classified transition matrices and determined the growth rate (λ), as well as the stochastic log growth rate. We simulated changes in the matrix elements that correspond to the seed bank and the seed-seedling transition as these were the most important bottlenecks to population growth. In both years, the growth rate indicates a declining population, which will face serious problems in the next 2 to 3 decades. The simulations show that the seed bank is not as important as the seed-seedling transition. Any program that aims to restore A. ornatum populations needs to enhance seedling establishment.  相似文献   

19.
The characteristics of foredunes created in a municipal management program on a developed barrier island are evaluated to identify how landforms used as protection structures can be natural in appearance and function yet compatible with human values. Shoreline management zones include a naturally evolving, undeveloped segment; a noneroding, developed segment; eroding and noneroding segments of an “improved beach” where dunes have been built by artificial nourishment; and a privately built, artificially nourished dune on the shoreline of an inlet.A disastrous storm in 1962 resulted in an aggressive program for building dunes using sand fences, vegetation plantings, purchase of undeveloped lots, and sediment backpassing to maintain beach widths and dune elevations. The present nourished and shaped foredune in the improved beach is higher, wider, and closer to the berm crest than the natural dune. Restricted inputs of aeolian sand keep the surface flat and poorly vegetated. A stable section of this engineered shore has a wider beach, and sand fences have created a higher foredune with greater topographic diversity. The cross shore zonation of vegetation here is more typical of natural dunes, but the environmental gradient is much narrower. The privately built dune is low, narrow, and located where it could not be created naturally. Foreshore and aeolian sediments in the undeveloped segment and the improved beach are similar in mean grain size (0.16–0.21 mm) and sorting (0.31–0.39φ), but sediment on the surface of the nourished dune is coarser (28.1% gravel) with a more poorly sorted sand fraction (1.30φ) representing lag elements on the deflation surface.Willingness to enhance beaches and dunes for protection has reduced insurance premiums and allowed the municipality to qualify for funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to replace lost sediment, thus placing an economic value on dunes. Success of the management program is attributed to: (i) timing property-purchase and dune-building programs to periods immediately after storms (causing residents to accept high dunes that restrict access or views); (ii) instituting a vigorous education program (reminding residents of hazards during nonstorm periods); (iii) maintaining control over local sediment supplies (to keep pace with erosion and create new shoreline environments); (iv) investing private and municipal economic resources in landforms (qualifying them for external funds for replacement); and (v) maintaining, augmenting, or simply tolerating biodiversity and natural processes (retaining a natural heritage).  相似文献   

20.
Charophytes are very common in Australian modern and Quaternary waterbodies, and are quite commonly incorrectly reported as “Chara” sp. or Lamprothamnium papulosum (Wallroth) Groves. This paper is the first attempt at the identification of the widespread euryhaline genus Lamprothamnium in Australia, and its use as a paleoenvironmental indicator. Lamprothamnium is distributed worldwide in all continents, except north and central America. The Australian environment, characterized by increasing aridity during the last 500 ka, has an abundance of saline lakes. We sampled 30 modern lakes and identified extant Lamprothamnium macropogon (A. Braun) Ophel and Lamprothamnium succinctum (A. Braun in Ascherson) Wood. Fossil gyrogonites, from lacustrine sediments ∼65 ka old from Madigan Gulf, Lake Eyre, were identified as Lamprothamnium williamsii sp. nov. We applied statistical analysis (analysis of variance, ANOVA) to the morphometry of the gyrogonites from one fossil and three living Lamprothamnium populations. The ANOVA test suggests all the populations are different, including two separate populations of extant L. macropogon, interpreted in this case as the expression of ecophenotypic variability. Lamprothamnium is a useful paleoenvironmental indicator because it indicates a non-marine environment with varying salinity ranging from fresh (usually 2–3 g l−1) to 70 g l−1, and water bodies holding water for at least 70 consecutive days. Collectively, these parameters provide important information in the study of ephemeral habitats.  相似文献   

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