Vegetation dynamics of abandoned paddy fields and surrounding wetlands in the lower Tumen River Basin, Northeast China

• DOI: 10.7717/peerj.6704
• Publication Date: 2019-04-08T07:23:43Z
• Authors: Guanglan Cao; Kazuaki Tsuchiya; Weihong Zhu; Toshiya Okuro
• Keywords: Dominance (genetics); Chronosequence; Paddy field; Carex; Secondary succession; Phragmites

On the temperate lowland plain of lower Tumen River, agricultural development has converted most marshland into paddy fields. However, locations old fields in zone, where vegetation structure is dominated by herbs adapted to seasonally wet or waterlogged conditions, are poorly known, and impact land use history on diversity shifts plant functional groups been scantly researched. In this study, we used a chronosequence approach investigate herbaceous wetland communities different recovery phases (<5 years, 5–15 >15 years), as well natural reference. We assessed their ecological characteristics, species composition determine how they change during succession. Plant dominance abandoned changed markedly secondary Initially, annual weeds Echinochloa crus-galli Bidens tripartita were dominant. Later, gradually became first Polygonum thunbergii then tussock-forming Carex rostrata . Species was higher than wetlands decreased with time. The partition β-diversity components revealed that replacement prominent process structuring field at times since abandonment. Our results suggest could be restored effectively through succession, although there some differences group traits. Abandoned may good sites for restoration conservation habitat.