Succession of plant community composition and leaf functional traits in responding to karst rocky desertification in the Wushan County in Chongqing, China

D. Qi; X. Wieneke; X. Zhou; X. Jiang; P. Xue

doi:10.1556/168.2017.18.2.5

Community Ecology

Volume/Issue:: Volume 18: Issue 2

Succession of plant community composition and leaf functional traits in responding to karst rocky desertification in the Wushan County in Chongqing, China

Authors:

D. Qi

D. Qi Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, P. R. China

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X. Wieneke

X. Wieneke Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74074, USA

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X. Zhou

X. Zhou Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, P. R. China

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X. Jiang

X. Jiang The Forestry Academy of Chongqing, Chongqing, P. R. China

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P. Xue

P. Xue The Forestry Academy of Chongqing, Chongqing, P. R. China

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Pages:: 157–168

Online Publication Date:: Aug 2017

Publication Date:: 01 Aug 2017

Article Category:: Research Article

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1556/168.2017.18.2.5

Keywords:: Karst rocky desertification; Leaf functional traits; Plant-soil relationship; Raunkiaer’s life-form; Soil properties; Vegetation

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Karst rocky desertification (KRD) is a process of soil desertification, which leads to the decline of soil quality and biomass. We conducted a plant community survey in KRD areas in Chongqing, China. Our aims were to determine key soil properties that shape plant communities and to identify essential leaf functional traits (LFTs) in responding to the progression of KRD. The vegetation survey was carried in a total of twenty study sites (five replicates for four stages of KRD) in the Wushan County in Chongqing, China. Leaves were collected from all the species in every site and measured/calculated for five LFTs, namely, specific leaf area, leaf area, leaf thickness, leaf tissue density, and leaf dry matter content. Soil samples were collected in triplicates in each site to measure soil properties. We found that the overall richness and diversity of community decreased along with the progression of KRD. Phanerophytes predominated in all the KRD areas. Soil pH was the main determinant of vegetation structure. Leaves with lower area yet higher density had the optimal adaptability in KRD regions, which can be planted as pioneer vegetation to restore land in KRD regions.

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Community Ecology An Interdisciplinary Journal Reporting Progress in Community and Population Studies

Print ISSN:: 1585-8553

Online ISSN:: 1588-2756

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Community Ecology
Language	English
Size	A4
Year of Foundation	2000
Volumes per Year	1
Issues per Year	3
Founder	Akadémiai Kiadó
Founder's Address	H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245
Publisher	Akadémiai Kiadó Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Publisher's Address	H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245. CH-6330 Cham, Switzerland Gewerbestrasse 11.
Responsible Publisher	Chief Executive Officer, Akadémiai Kiadó
ISSN	1585-8553 (Print)
ISSN	1588-2756 (Online)