Relationships between Plant Communities
and Environmental Factors in an Extremely
Arid Area: A Case Study in China

Wang, Xiyi; Ling, Hongbo; Xu, Hong‐Guang; Cun-de, Pan; Yuan, KaiYe

doi:10.15244/pjoes/83610

Cited by 5 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In the riparian forests of the upper reaches of the Tarim River, 2 trees, 7 shrubs and 13 herbaceous species were found during the survey. TWINSPAN successfully distinguished the riparian forests into five classes, which is greater than that recorded in the lower reaches of the Tarim River 38 . A partial overlap in species composition among the five classes was identified, indicating that some species exhibit broad environmental tolerance.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

“…The quadrats in classes 4 and 5 were mainly distributed at the edge of the desert; this area is characterized by a deep groundwater depth, high groundwater salinity, and low soil moisture. These environmental factors have negative effects on species diversity 10,38,43 . The seedlings of the dominant species, P. euphratica and Tamarix spp., were mainly established in a moist environment near the river channel 5 , while almost no seedlings had established at the edge of the desert 12 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This might indicate that the environmental factors of classes 1 and 2, such as groundwater depth, groundwater salinity, and soil moisture, were more suitable for plant growth than those of classes 4 and 5. Classes 1 and 2 were characterized as tree-shrub-herb structures, which are highly stable and have a stronger sand stabilization ability than that of classes 4 and 5 38 . However, classes 4 and 5 were characterized as shrub-herb and tree-herb structures, respectively.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Impact of groundwater depth and soil salinity on riparian plant diversity and distribution in an arid area of China

Zeng

Zhao

Shi

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Riparian plant diversity in arid regions is sensitive to changes in groundwater. Although it is well known that groundwater has a significant influence on plant diversity, there have been few studies on how groundwater and soil salinity impact plant community in desert riparian ecosystems. Therefore, we surveyed 77 quadrats (100 m × 100 m) to examine the relationship between groundwater depth, groundwater salinity, soil salinity and plant community in the upper reaches of the Tarim River. Data were analyzed with two-way indicator species analysis (TWINSPAN), detrended canonical correspondence analysis (DCCA) and principal component analysis (PCA). The results indicated that Populus euphratica, Tamarix ramosissima, and Phragmites australis were the dominant plants among trees, shrubs and herbs, respectively. Five plant community types were classified. There were significant differences in species diversity, soil moisture, soil salinity, groundwater depth and groundwater salinity across the community types. The composition and distribution of plant community are significantly influenced by groundwater depth, groundwater salinity, soil moisture, distances from the river to the quadrats, soil pH, electrical conductivity, total salt, CO 3 2− , Cl − , SO 4 2− , Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , Na + and K +. Shallow groundwater depth, low groundwater salinity, and high soil moisture and soil salinity were associated with higher plant diversity.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Impact of groundwater depth and soil salinity on riparian plant diversity and distribution in an arid area of China

Zeng

Zhao

Shi

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Ecological restoration of degraded riparian Tugai forests is a key driver to combat desertification [13]. In arid areas, the tree-shrub-herb structures is highly stable and have a stronger sand stabilization ability than tree structure [65]. In our study, the appropriate groundwater depths of P. euphratica was 5.3 m. This finding is supported by Fan et al [66] and Chen et al [67], who found that the suitable range of depths to the groundwater table to maintain the growth of P.euphratica was previously reported to range from 4 to 9m.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution pattern of Tugai forests species diversity and their relationship to environmental factors in an arid area of China

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Ecological restoration of degraded riparian Tugai forests is a key driver to combat desertification in arid regions. Previous studies have focused mainly on changes in groundwater as the underlying mechanisms of Tugai forest's decline. We evaluated species composition and diversity of Tugai forest and their relationship to groundwater, soil salinity, and soil nutrient. Using 73 quadrats (100 m × 100 m) from 13 transects located perpendicularly to river in the upper reaches of the Tarim River. Eighteen plant species belonging to sixteen genera and eight families were recorded, and the dominant species included Populus euphratica, Phragmites communis, and Tamarix ramosissima. Three P. euphratica stand ages were detected: young stand, mature stand, and old stand. There were significant differences in species diversity, groundwater depth, groundwater salinity, distance from the quadrat to the river channel, soil moisture content, pH, electrical conductivity, total salt, Cl − , SO 4 2− , Ca 2− , Mg 2+ , Na + , K + , soil organic carbon, and soil organic matter across the stand ages. Seven species were identified as indicators of the three stand ages. Redundancy analysis indicated that the Tugai forest diversity indices were negatively correlated with groundwater depth, groundwater salinity, and distance from the river, and positively associated with electrical conductivity, total salt, pH, Cl − , SO 4 2− , CO 3 2− , soil organic matter, soil organic carbon, and soil moisture content. Plant diversity was the highest at 3-6 m groundwater depth, followed by 0-3 m and then 6-9 m, with the lowest recorded at > 9 m. The appropriate groundwater depth for herbs was about 1-4 m, whereas the depth for trees and shrubs was about 3-6 m. The groundwater depth < 6 m was deemed suitable for the growth of desert riparian forests. This results provide a scientific reference for the ecological restoration and protection for Tugai forests in arid areas.

show abstract

“…Dominant species includes Populus euphratica, Tamarix chinensis, Alhagi sparsifolia, Phragmites australis, Apocynum venetum, and Karelinia caspia in the lower reaches of the Tarim River (Wang et al 2019). Therefore, these species were selected to discuss the changes of plant community structure.…”

Section: Changes Of Species Composition In Different Biotopesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Ecological Water Conveyance Project on the Structure, Species Diversity and Stability of Desert Riparian Forest in the Lower Reaches of Tarim River, Northwest China

Xiyi¹,

Ma²,

Ling³

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: The lower reaches of the Tarim River is an arid region of inland China. In this area, vegetation is sparse and the environment is fragile. Therefore, it is of great significance to study the structure and stability of the plant community and ecosystem in the lower reaches of the Tarim River. It is valuable to increase the understanding of ecological protection and restoration in arid areas. Methods: In this study, four sections, Yingsu, Karday, Alakan, and Yiganbjm, were selected as research sites, and 96 arbor and shrub quadrats and 288 herb quadrats were delimited in these sites. The ecological characteristics of all species in the quadrats were investigated. We selected the surveyed data from 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2019. Based on the data, we analyzed the variations in species composition. We also determined Shannon-Wiener indexes, Alatalo indexes, and ecological dominance to discuss the species diversity and uniformity of plant community. Plant community stability were also evaluated. Results: There were 17 species in 2000 and 31 species in 2019. The proportion of arbor and shrub species decreased, while the understory herbaceous species gradually increased; all of the species become balanced. The stability of the plant community gradually increased; however, it remained unstable. Conclusions: In general, water conveyance in an ecosystem plays a positive role in promoting the restoration of vegetation and ecological stability. This study provides a new method for the evaluation of ecological protection and restoration benefits in arid areas. Our findings can be a good reference for similar studies.

show abstract

Relationships between Plant Communities and Environmental Factors in an Extremely Arid Area: A Case Study in China

Cited by 5 publications

References 21 publications

Impact of groundwater depth and soil salinity on riparian plant diversity and distribution in an arid area of China

Impact of groundwater depth and soil salinity on riparian plant diversity and distribution in an arid area of China

Distribution pattern of Tugai forests species diversity and their relationship to environmental factors in an arid area of China

Effects of Ecological Water Conveyance Project on the Structure, Species Diversity and Stability of Desert Riparian Forest in the Lower Reaches of Tarim River, Northwest China

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About