Effects of land use disturbance on seed banks of riparian forests in southern Manitoba

Moffatt, S.F; McLachlan, Stéphane M.

doi:10.1080/11956860.2003.11682785

Cited by 14 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Reduced water quality, due to the increased amount and variety of pollutants in the run-off (Sliva & Williams, 2001), may affect plant communities. Altered seed banks result in changes in species composition, diversity and density, including the replacement of native species for exotic ones (Moffatt & McLachlan, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Urban Sprawl on Riparian Vegetation: Is Compact or Dispersed Urbanization Better for Biodiversity?

Guida‐Johnson

Faggi

Zuleta

2017

River Research & Apps

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Compact urbanization is the main strategy for sustainable urban development. However, it is yet unclear whether compact urban forms are ecologically more favourable than dispersed ones. In this paper, we studied the effects of urban sprawl on the riparian vegetation condition in one of the most degraded watersheds in the Buenos Aires metropolitan area, Argentina. We conducted random sampling of the riparian vegetation at sites along streams in the basin and assessed urban indicators at the reach and sub‐watershed scales for each of those sites in a geographic information system: urban area, impervious surface, population density and two landscape metrics of dispersion. The indicators assessed explained a high proportion of the variability of the vegetation response variables, thereby confirming the importance of urban sprawl pressure in shaping riparian communities in fluvial ecosystems. Dispersed urbanization had more positive than negative effects on the vegetation in the study area. Riverbanks associated with dispersed urbanization had more plant species, including exotics, when urban sprawl was assessed at the local scale. At the sub‐watershed scale, dispersed urbanized areas were richer in native plants and most of the functional groups, and poorer in exotic species. The model of the compact city, including bio‐corridors along watercourses, has been proposed for the Buenos Aires conurbation process for the next decades. Our results showed that the quality of existing river corridors across the compact matrix was not desirable and best practices for redesigning a more sustainable landscape structure are necessary, including the restoration of habitats for wetland species. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Urban Sprawl on Riparian Vegetation: Is Compact or Dispersed Urbanization Better for Biodiversity?

Guida‐Johnson

Faggi

Zuleta

2017

River Research & Apps

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“…However, whether or not fragmentation of continuous forests increases the richness and abundance of nonconstituent species in soil seed banks is unclear. There are some reports of exotic plants or weeds occurring in soil seed banks under forest fragments (Hopkins et al 1990;Peterson and Carson 1996;Kostel-Hughes and Young 1998;Leckie et al 2000;King and Buckney 2001;Moffatt and McLachlan 2003). Moffatt and McLachlan (2003) reported that seeds of weedy and exotic species were positively associated with fragmentation, high levels of disturbance, and dry alkaline soils in riparian forests.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There are some reports of exotic plants or weeds occurring in soil seed banks under forest fragments (Hopkins et al 1990;Peterson and Carson 1996;Kostel-Hughes and Young 1998;Leckie et al 2000;King and Buckney 2001;Moffatt and McLachlan 2003). Moffatt and McLachlan (2003) reported that seeds of weedy and exotic species were positively associated with fragmentation, high levels of disturbance, and dry alkaline soils in riparian forests. Our previous study of the seasonal rain forest in Xishuangbanna, southwestern China, suggests that the high abundance of weeds in soil seed banks could be a result of local forest fragmentation and disturbance (Cao et al 2000;Tang et al 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nonconstituent species in soil seed banks as indicators of anthropogenic disturbance in forest fragments

Lin¹,

Cao²,

He³

et al. 2006

Can. J. For. Res.

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Forest fragmentation is prevalent in regions with high human population density, but also with high biological diversity, such as southwestern China. Predicting potential changes in species composition in native forest ecosystems resulting from forest fragmentation is an important approach in assessing forest ecosystems and sustainable management of forests. The term nonconstituent species is proposed for plant species that occur in a natural landscape but are not native to it. We hypothesized that fragmentation of continuous forests significantly increases both the richness and the size of soil seed banks of nonconstituent species. To test our hypothesis we compared soil seed banks in three small fragments and one large tract of subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest in Yunnan Province, southwestern China. In total, 249 species were identified in all soil samples from the four sites. Nonconstituent species represented 36.4%-61.5% of the total taxa and 33.8%-59.6% of total germinants from soil samples in the three forest fragments, but only 3.7%-7.9% of total taxa and 7.5%-9.4% of total germinants from soil samples in the continuous forest tract. Both richness and size of soil seed banks of nonconstituent species were greater under forest fragments than under continuous forest. A majority of nonconstituent species were native weeds and annual herbs with wind-dispersed seeds; most were present in soil seed banks but not in aboveground vegetation. We suggest that nonconstituent species in soil seed banks could be used as an indicator species group for assessing human disturbance. If so, the richness and size of soil seed banks of nonconstituent species could play an important role in quantifying disturbance in forests.Résumé : La fragmentation de la forêt est courante dans les régions à forte densité de population humaine, telles que le sud-ouest de la Chine où il y a une grande diversité biologique. Dans l'évaluation des écosystèmes forestiers et dans le contexte de l'aménagement durable des forêts, il est important d'anticiper les changements que la fragmentation de la forêt pourrait entraîner dans la composition en espèces des écosystèmes forestiers indigènes. L'expression « espèce non constituante » est proposée pour désigner les espèces de plantes qui se retrouvent dans un paysage naturel mais qui ne sont pas originaires de cet endroit. Nous avons fait l'hypothèse que la fragmentation des forêts continues devrait significativement augmenter tant la richesse que la taille des banques de graines des espèces non constituantes présen-tes dans le sol. Pour tester notre hypothèse, nous avons comparé les banques de graines de trois petits fragments et d'une grande étendue de forêt subtropicale de feuillus à feuillage persistant dans la Province de Yunnan, dans le sudouest de la Chine. Au total, 249 espèces ont été identifiées dans les échantillons de sol provenant de quatre stations. Les espèces non constituantes représentaient 36,4 % à 61,5 % de tous les taxons et 33,8 % à 59,6 % de toutes les graines ...

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“…As in studies of existing vegetation, seed banks in urban sites often have more exotic seeds and fewer native seeds than similar rural sites (Moffatt and McLachlan 2003;Baldwin 2004). Previous studies in a variety of habitats have shown that there is often little congruence between seed banks and the current vegetation, especially in mature forests (Pickett and McDonnell 1989;Beatty 1991;Leck and Simpson 1995;Leck and Leck 1998;Hopfensperger 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

The influence of urban land use on seed dispersal and wetland invasibility

Cutway

Ehrenfeld

2010

Plant Ecol

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Urban habitats are generally considered highly invaded by exotic species due to the frequency and extent of disturbance caused by human activities and development. Our previous study had demonstrated that forested wetlands within residential areas are more extensively invaded than wetlands within industrial-commercial areas. In this study, we investigate whether the structure of the forest edge and seed dispersal can explain the differential in the invasion of wetlands surrounded by industrial and residential land use. Our results indicate that edges of industrially bordered wetlands are denser, with vegetation concentrated at the boundary of tree growth, whereas the edges of residentially bordered wetlands are more open and diffuse. This difference influences the number of seeds and species capable of dispersing into the wetland. Less dense edges resulted in a higher number of seeds entering residential wetlands; however, there were no differences in the numbers of exotic seeds or exotic species in the seed rain residential and industrial wetlands. Although seed dispersal could not directly explain differences in the current extent of invasion of these sites, seed dispersal did follow corridor pathways, including ditches and trails that breach the edges and extend through the wetlands. These disturbances act as corridors for seed dispersal into both types wetlands and may play a role in introducing new species to the interior of the wetland, an outcome supported by a higher number of exotic species in the seed banks of residential sites. Our results suggest that both the type of adjoining land use and the provision of access to people on trails in urban wetlands can affect the composition of these communities.

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Effects of land use disturbance on seed banks of riparian forests in southern Manitoba

Cited by 14 publications

References 26 publications

Effects of Urban Sprawl on Riparian Vegetation: Is Compact or Dispersed Urbanization Better for Biodiversity?

Effects of Urban Sprawl on Riparian Vegetation: Is Compact or Dispersed Urbanization Better for Biodiversity?

Nonconstituent species in soil seed banks as indicators of anthropogenic disturbance in forest fragments

The influence of urban land use on seed dispersal and wetland invasibility

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