Abstract
To assess the vegetation status and substrate condition on seedling survival and flowery of an endangered plant species Aster kantoensis, I carried out an in situ seed-sowing experiment in the gravelly/sandy floodplain of the Kinu River, central Japan. The coverage of plant species, especially that of an alien species Eragrostis curvula, increased, and the subsequent reduction in the relative photosynthetically active photon flux density (PPFD) (%) after the large-scale flood in 1998 caused a decline in the percentage of seedling survival and flowery of A. kantoensis. Performances of A. kantoensis were compared under four types of seminatural conditions, i.e., combinations of existence or absence of E. curvula combined with gravelly or sandy substrates. The highest percentage of survival and flowery were observed on the gravelly substrate under the E. curvula,-free conditions, but values were low in areas invaded by E. curvula. Aggressive invasion of E. curvula was the principal cause of loss of safe sites for colonization of river-endemic plants.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by a grant from the restoration project of the Kinu River with a collaboration of citizens mainly of Nature Conservation Group of Ujiie, scientists, and river-management officials; Shimodate River Office of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Japan. This paper owes much to the thoughtful and helpful comments by Prof. Washitani I, the University of Tokyo, and Ms. Furuki Y, Forest Instructor. This research was partly supported by Global Environmental Research Fund of Japan Ministry of the Environment.
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Muranaka, T. Influences of vegetation status on seedling survival of a river-endemic plant Aster kantoensis in the floodplain. Landscape Ecol Eng 8, 197–205 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11355-011-0166-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11355-011-0166-z