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Successional Trends (successional + trend)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Earth and Environmental Science	77%

Selected Abstracts

Restoration of a species-rich meadow on arable land by transferring meadow blocks

APPLIED VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 4 2010
Klime
Abstract Question: Does transplantation of small blocks of turfs contribute to restoration of species-rich meadows on fallow land? What is the role of vegetative spread and seedling establishment of meadow plants in the neighbourhood of the transplanted turfs? Location: Bílé Karpaty Mountains, SE Czech Republic. Methods: Twenty-five meadow blocks, 0.4 m × 0.4 m in size, were transplanted to fallow land (unfertile and dry) and species composition was monitored in the source area, in the transferred turfs and in their neighbourhood for 3 yr. Multivariate analyses were used to assess successional trends. Results: The transferred meadow blocks served as a source of diaspores for the seed-limited fallow land. Out of 80 transplanted species 17 species spread to adjacent plots within 3 yr. The frequency of plants expanding from the transferred turfs, either vegetatively or by seeds, was relatively low and from 2002 to 2004 a total of 22 species declined in the transferred turfs before expanding to the neighbourhood. Successional trends in species composition of the plots adjacent to the transferred blocks were strongly significant compared with the vegetation of the source area despite the short-term data used for the evaluation. The role of the seed bank in restoration was negligible. Conclusions: In infertile and dry environments, transplanted turfs may significantly speed up restoration, especially if natural sources of target plant seeds are not available in the neighbourhood. However, the restoration process is long-term and not all transferred plants can be expected to establish in the fallow land. [source]

Evaluation of a technical revegetation action performed on foredunes at Devesa de la Albufera, Valencia, Spain

LAND DEGRADATION AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 3 2010
F. J. Escaray
Abstract We have evaluated the level of restoration achieved by a technical revegetation action carried out on reconstructed foredunes at the Devesa de la Albufera and compared this level with that achieved by spontaneous succession. Foredunes 1, 3, 6 and 20,y old since revegetated (1, 3, 6 and 20,y, respectively) were considered as spatially separated stages representing a successional trend in the development of the restored plant community. Lower and similar levels of diversity (richness and H´ and Pielou´s indexes) and coverage, respectively, were found on dunes corresponding to the oldest stage of technical revegetation compared with that of the reference site. Diversity and coverage parameters increased during the first 6,y of the technical succession and decreased after 20,y of revegetation. Moreover, that increase was quite obvious as early as 3,y after the onset of revegetation. Results also showed that the Devesa de la Albufera has its own capacity for revegetation. According to the Jaccard and Sørensen indexes, these dunes were more similar to the reference than those from the 20,y old site. Beyond the current functionality of the revegetated sites, it is concluded that the natural and aesthetic values may be restored at the Valencian Devesa de la Albufera. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Temporal trends in species composition and plant traits in natural grasslands of Uruguay

JOURNAL OF VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 3 2003
Claudia Rodríguez
Cabrera (1970) Abstract. We report the successional trends of the major life-forms (graminoids and forbs) in natural grasslands of Uruguay over a 9-yr period after the removal of domestic herbivores. For the whole community, species richness and diversity decreased over the successional period. In graminoids we observed clear temporal trajectories in floristic composition; the rate of floristic change decreased with time and was associated with a shift in plant traits. The exclusion of large herbivores promoted erect and tall grasses with narrow leaves and greater seed length, vegetative growth constrained to the cool season and increased frequency of annual species. Forbs did not show a clear temporal trend in species composition, but there was, nevertheless, a plot-specific species turnover of this functional group that was reflected in their attributes. Species spreading by means of rhizomes, with vegetative growth restricted to the warm season. Species with larger seeds increased under grazing exclusion, as did annual and nitrogen-fixing forbs. The floristic changes induced by cattle exclusion occurred early in the succession. This early high rate of change has practical implications for management and conservation programs of the natural grasslands of Uruguay. Additionally, the shift in plant traits may be helpful in devising simple indicators of grazing impact. [source]

Differences in forest composition in two boreal forest ecoregions of Quebec

JOURNAL OF VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 6 2000
Sylvie Gauthier
Abstract. In order to describe and compare the post-fire succession patterns of the two ecological regions (mixed-wood and coniferous ecoregions) of northwestern Quebec, 260 forest stands were sampled with the point-centred plot method. The mixed-wood ecological region belongs to the Abies balsamea-Betula papyrifera bioclimatic domain whereas the coniferous ecological region belongs to the Picea mariana -moss bioclimatic domain. In each plot, tree composition was described, surficial deposits and drainage were recorded, and fire history was reconstructed using standard dendro-ecological methods. Ordination techniques (Correspondence Analysis and Canonical Correspondence Analysis) were used to describe the successional patterns of forest vegetation and to correlate them with the explanatory variables. The results showed the importance of surficial deposits, the time since fire and the ecoregion in explaining the variation of stand composition. Abies balsamea tends to increase in importance with an increase in time since fire, and this trend is more pronounced in the mixed-wood region. Even when controlling both for surficial deposits and time since fire, differences in successional trends were observed between the two ecoregions. As all the species are present in both ecoregions and as they are all observed further north, our results suggest that both the landscape configuration and fire regime parameters such as fire size and fire intensity are important factors involved in these differences. [source]

Succession in Gulf of Mexico Cold Seep Vestimentiferan Aggregations: The Importance of Spatial Variability

MARINE ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2003
Derk C. Bergquist
Abstract. The slow rate of change in hydrocarbon seep communities on the upper Louisiana slope prevents the use of direct observation in studying successional trends. We used a chronosequence consisting of three presumed stages , juvenile, adult and senescent , to test a previous model which proposed that sulfide availability and vestimentiferan growth and physiological health decline over the lifespan of a vestimentiferan aggregation. We replicated the chronosequence at two sites to simultaneously explore the influence of spatial heterogeneity on the characteristics of these communities. We determined environmental sulfide concentrations and vestimentiferan growth and condition in at least two vestimentiferan aggregations representative of each stage at each of these two sites. Hydrogen sulfide concentrations were highly variable both above and below the sediment's surface, and sulfide was present in high concentrations to sediment depths of 70,cm. Vestimentiferan growth and condition varied significantly on multiple spatial scales from sites separated by tens of kilometers, to aggregations separated by tens to hundreds of meters within a site, to individual vestimentiferans separated by tens of centimeters within an aggregation. The striking variability in both environmental sulfide and vestimentiferan growth and condition within individual aggregations suggests a crucial role for microhabitat variability in the persistence of vestimentiferan aggregations at these sites. Few significant successional trends in environmental sulfide or vestimentiferan growth and condition were found over the three stages tested. [source]

Restoration of a species-rich meadow on arable land by transferring meadow blocks

Rate of succession in restored wetlands and the role of site context

APPLIED VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 3 2010
Jeffrey W. Matthews
Abstract Question: Are changes in plant species composition, functional group composition and rates of species turnover consistent among early successional wetlands, and what is the role of landscape context in determining the rate of succession? Location: Twenty-four restored wetlands in Illinois, USA. Methods: We use 4 years of vegetation sampling data from each site to describe successional trends and rates of species turnover in wetlands. We quantify: (1) the rate at which composition changes from early-successional to late-successional species and functional groups, as indicated by site movement in ordination space over time, and (2) the rate of change in the colonization and local extinction of individual species. We correlate the pace of succession to site area, isolation and surrounding land cover. Results: Some commonalities in successional trends were evident among sites. Annual species were replaced by clonal perennials, and colonization rates declined over time. However, differences among sites outweighed site age in determining species composition, and the pace of succession was influenced by a site's landscape setting. Rates of species turnover were higher in smaller wetlands. In addition, wetlands in agricultural landscapes underwent succession more rapidly, as indicated by a rapid increase in dominance by late-successional plants. Conclusions: Although the outcome of plant community succession in restored wetlands was somewhat predictable, species composition and the pace of succession varied among sites. The ability of restoration practitioners to accelerate succession through active manipulation may be contingent upon landscape context. [source]

Succession during the re-creation of a flood-meadow 1985-1999

APPLIED VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 2 2001
Alison W. McDonald
Rodwell (1993; 2000) for vascular plants Abstract. The study site, Somerford Mead, is located on the river Thames floodplain and was a species-rich flood-meadow in the 1950s. In the 1960s and 1970s it was subjected to intensive grassland management with regular NPK additions and occasional herbicide treatment. In 1981 Somerford Mead was ploughed for the first time and converted to arable land. Seeds of an Alopecuruspratensis-Sanguisorba officinalis flood-meadow community (MG4; Rodwell 1992) were sown onto prepared soil in the autumn of 1986, and botanical records were made from 1985 to 1999. From 1989 to 1999, three replicates of three treatments: cow-grazing, sheep-grazing and no-grazing were introduced after hay-cutting. Analysis successfully separated the establishment phase from the experimental phase and showed a significant difference between the grazed and ungrazed treatments. Abiotic and biotic factors which might contribute to successional trends are discussed. A convoluted pattern for each treatment could be attributed in part to intrinsic,cycles'of perennial hemicryptophytes behaving as short-lived species and in part to the percentage frequency of many species which was reduced in 1990 and 1995/1996, years of drought. After the initial inoculation of MG4 seed and the disappearance of arable therophytes, recruitment of new species was very slow. Coefficients for Somerford Mead matched against MG4 (Rodwell 1992) produced an equilibrium within three years. It subsequently fluctuated over a 10-yr period well below the level of Oxey Mead, the donor site. Land managers should ensure that their proposed site has the right soils and hydrology for MG4 grassland and that traditional management of hay-cutting and aftermath grazing is practised. Only one cut a year in July could lead to a reduction in percentage frequency of most species except Arrhenatherum elatius. [source]