Environmental Factors as Predictors of Aquatic Macrophyte Richness and Composition in Wetlands of Southern Brazil

Abstract

The main goal of this study was to determine how much variation in macrophyte richness and composition is explained by wetland area, altitude, water conductivity, and nitrate and total phosphorus concentrations in wetlands in southern Brazil, and to compare these variations in two wetland subsystems (palustrine and lacustrine). A total of 126 wetlands were sampled distributed in two subsystems: 87 palustrine and 39 lacustrine wetlands. A total of 153 species of aquatic macrophytes was found in wetlands of southern Brazil and the mean number of macrophyte species per site was 8.7 (range 1-23). From the variables tested, the altitude and area were the only predictor of macrophyte richness and explained 23.1% of variation in richness. The two first axes generated by CCA explained only 4.4% of the variation in the aquatic macrophytes distribution. The macrophyte richness was similar across lacustrine and palustrine subsystems. While altitude, area and conductivity explained 33.2% of variation in macrophyte richness in the palustrine subsystem, none of the variables were associated with macrophyte richness in the studied lacustrine wetlands.

Aquatic macrophyte and macroinvertebrate diversity and conservation in wetlands of the Sinos River basin

“…Several studies have already highlighted the importance of small wetlands for the conservation of biodiversity (Semlitsch and Bodie, 1998;Russel et al, 2002). The positive relationship between area and macrophyte and macroinvertebrate richness has been found in Southern Brazil wetlands (Rolon and Maltchik, 2006;Stenert and Maltchik, 2007;Rolon et al, 2008). However, for the macroinvertebrate community, the influence of the area is controversial (Panatta et al, 2007;Stenert et al, 2008).…”

“…In wetlands, a positive relationship between macrophyte and macroinvertebrate richness and area has been found (Heino, 2000;Oertli et al, 2002;Rolon and Maltchik, 2006;Stenert and Maltchik, 2007;Studinski and Grubbs, 2007;Rolon et al, 2008). Consequently, this study had as aims: (1) to analyse the diversity of macrophytes and macroinvertebrates in the fragmented wetlands of the Sinos River basin; and (2) to investigate whether the influence of the area on the richness and on the composition of macrophyte and aquatic macroinvertebrates could work as a tool for selecting the important habitats for the conservation of aquatic biodiversity.…”

“…The principle that a large area supports more species (Rosenzweig, 1995) has been put into practice in conservation planning. The species-area relationships have also been applied to wetland conservation programs in Southern Brazil, mainly for wetlands fragmented by rice cultivation expansion (Guadagnin et al, 2005;Rolon and Maltchik, 2006;Guadagnin and Maltchik, 2007;Panatta et al, 2007;Stenert and Maltchik, 2007;Rolon et al, 2008;Stenert et al, 2008). However, little has been done for wetlands drained by the urban expansion in basins of high demographic density.…”

Seasonal and multi-annual patterns ofPhragmites australisdecomposition in a wetland of the Adriatic area (Northeast Italy): a three-years analysis

“…Wetlands are one of the most biologically productive ecosystems (Dixon and Wood, 2003;Rolon and Maltchik, 2006;Mereta et al, 2012), performing many ecological functions, such as nutrient cycling (Bunn et al, 1999) and carbon storage (Adhikari et al, 2009). These environments are often dominated by macrophytes such as Phragmites, Typha, and Juncus (Kuehn and Suberkropp, 1998) which produce a considerable part of the organic material in these areas, and play an important role in the detritus food chain supplying an important nutrient source (van Dokkum et al, 2002;Eid et al, 2014).…”

Relationships between environmental variables and vegetation across mountain wetland sites, N. Iran

“…Similar ecosystems have also been studied in other mountainous areas in both the Irano-Turanian and EuroSiberian regions. Studies relating to altitude and other ecological factors for example slope inclination, soil properties and vegetation have been carried out in many mountain wetland habitats (Miserere et al 2003;Rolon & Maltchik 2006;Hájek et al 2008). The effects of environmental variables such as soil on different plant communities have been the subject of many ecological studies in recent years (Bowles et al 2005;Bragazza et al 2005;Lyon & Gross 2005;Pinto et al 2006).…”