Vegetation-Environmental Variable Relationships in Ponds of Various Origins along an Altitudinal Gradient

Abstract

Aquatic vegetation of the mountains and sub-alpine ponds in the Tatra Mountains and adjacent area (Slovakia) has been studied with the aim to provide information about the composition and species richness of macrophytes in relation to environmental factors. Macrophytes were studied in two pond groups: natural ponds of glacial origin and artificial ponds. Simultaneously, eight environmental variables were measured or estimated at each pond. The studied pond groups differed significantly (Mann-Whitney U-test, P<0.01) in almost all recorded environmental variables except for water temperature and pond area. Almost all environmental characteristics showed higher variability in the artificial ponds. In total, 70 macrophyte taxa were found at the study sites consisting of ca 90% of vascular plants and ca 10% of bryophytes. Artificial ponds were characterised by a multi-element vascular plant species group typical for marshy and aquatic habitats of lower altitudes, while Carex rostrata was the only species typical for natural ponds. Species richness differed significantly between the two pond groups, with artificial ponds hosting considerably more species. Species richness of all studied ponds was negatively correlated with altitude and precipitation;

Assessment of freshwater plant diversity and local difference in freshwater plant use knowledge in Punakha district, Bhutan

“…The species count had slight negative correlation with altitude (r = -0.12, p = 0.26) and slight positive correlation with temperature (r = 0.01, p = 0.273) and precipitation (r = 0.011, p = 0.373). The results are in accordance with the findings reported by Kochjarová et al (2017) that concluded that floral species richness increased with an increase in temperature and precipitation and decreased with increasing altitude. There was a significant negative correlation of altitude with temperature (r = -0.99, p = 0.001) and evapotranspiration (r = -0.99, p = 0.0001).…”

Principal Determinants of Aquatic Macrophyte Communities in Least-Impacted Small Shallow Lakes in France

“…Contrary to our second hypothesis, we did not establish a correlation between aquatic plant richness and climate (neither with mean annual temperature nor with elevation). Several studies have demonstrated a linear decrease or negative correlation of macrophyte species richness with altitude [67,74,75], probably depending on the strength of elevational gradient [76]. However, some other studies failed to demonstrate a clear pattern between floristic richness and altitude [34,77].…”

Exploring environmental predictors of aquatic macrophytes in water‐dependent Natura 2000 sites of high conservation value: Results from a long‐term study of macrophytes in Greek lakes

“…Nonetheless, macrophyte richness is related to a variety of environmental and other lake attributes that may be difficult to predict. For example, altitude (Chappuis et al, ; Fernández‐Aláez et al, ; Kochjarová et al, ; Lacoul & Freedman, ), surface area (Jones, Li, & Maberly, ), and land use within the catchment (Akasaka et al, ; La Toya et al, ; Lacoul & Freedman, ) are associated with the number of macrophyte taxa.…”

“…For example, altitude (Chappuis et al, 2014;Fernández-Aláez et al, 2016;Kochjarová et al, 2017;Lacoul & Freedman, 2006), surface area (Jones, Li, & Maberly, 2003), and land use within the catchment (Akasaka et al, 2009;La Toya et al, 2013;Lacoul & Freedman, 2006) are associated with the number of macrophyte taxa.…”