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Spatial variation and drivers of vegetation structure and composition in coastal freshwater wetlands of subtropical Australia
Spatial variation and drivers of vegetation structure and composition in coastal freshwater wetlands of subtropical Australia
- Source :
- Marine and Freshwater Research. 72:1746-1759
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- CSIRO Publishing, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Coastal freshwater wetlands (CFWs) are among the most understudied wetlands globally and are highly vulnerable to projected climate changes. To address CFW knowledge gaps in south-east Queensland, Australia, we surveyed the floristic composition and structure of wooded CFWs and explored variation in vegetation patterns in relation to selected environmental drivers. Understorey and shrub assemblages were surveyed using a cover-class scale and stem counts for tree species abundance. Vegetation structure attributes (stem density, basal area) were calculated from survey data. Redundancy analysis was used to investigate drivers of vegetation structure and the species composition of each stratum. Vegetation structure patterns were associated with gradients of rainfall, soil moisture, salinity and pH. Understorey species composition was associated with wallum wetland species, native perennial grass and herb species, and vegetation patterns of the canopy. Common CFW species, namely Melaleuca quinquenervia and Eucalyptus tereticornis, dominated tree assemblage variation. Overall, CFW vegetation exhibited strong associations with gradients of salinity, rainfall, groundwater dependence and disturbance. Alterations to key drivers of vegetation pattern with future climate changes are likely to markedly influence the composition, structure and function of CFW vegetation communities. Action is therefore required to maintain CFW vegetation communities and ecological function in these diverse and unique wetland systems.
- Subjects :
- geography
Functional ecology
geography.geographical_feature_category
Ecology
ved/biology
ved/biology.organism_classification_rank.species
Wetland
Subtropics
Understory
Vegetation
Aquatic Science
Oceanography
Shrub
Basal area
Abundance (ecology)
Environmental science
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14486059 and 13231650
- Volume :
- 72
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Marine and Freshwater Research
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........3c50a67e061d01f76679326de9d59689
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1071/mf21023