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Restoration of floating mat bog vegetation after eutrophication damages by improving water quality in a small pond

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Abstract

We studied vegetation changes in a small floating mat bog in Mizorogaike Pond (Kyoto, Japan), which had experienced a severe decrease in the number and area of hummocks caused by nutrient loading in the 1960s and 1970s, to examine whether reducing the extent of nutrient loading can restore degraded wetland vegetation. However, nutrient loading in the region has been minimized since the 1980s. We examined the distributions of hummocks and Sphagnum cuspidatum mats in 1980, 1988, and 2006, as well as nine major vascular plants that dominated the hollows on the floating mat in 1980 and 2006. The total area of normal hummocks formed by Sphagnum palustre increased from 5865.3 m2 in 1980 to 5913.6 m2 in 1988 and 8485.2 m2 in 2006. The total area of the S. cuspidatum mats also changed, from 416.4 m2 in 1980 to 322.3 m2 in 1988 and 1012.5 m2 in 2006. Examination of the spatial distribution patterns of major plants revealed that emergent plants decreased in the northern part of the mat, but increased in the southern part. Thus, the improved pond water quality was effective at restoring hummocks, although nutrient loading may have caused some irreversible changes in the wetland vegetation.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Mr/Ms K. Abekura, Y. Chikawa, S. Deguchi, M. Fujita, S. Furuichi, K. Fuse, K. Suzuki, and H. Uchihashi and Drs. Imamura A, N. Sasaki, and Y. Takeuchi, and members of Aquatic Animal Research Group of Mizorogaike for their help during the fieldwork. We are also grateful for Preservation of Cultural Properties Section, City of Kyoto, for permission to undertake the research. This study is partly supported by the Research Project ‘A new cultural and historical exploration into human–nature relationships in the Japanese archipelago’ of the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, and a Research Fellowships of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science for Young Scientists for R. T.

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Author notes

  1. Daiju Kawase

    Present address: Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, Kyoto, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, 457-4 Motoyama, Kamigamo, Kita-ku, Kyoto, 603-8047, Japan

    Riyou Tsujino, Akihiro Seo & Takakazu Yumoto

  2. Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, 2-509-3 Hirano, Otsu, Shiga, 520-2113, Japan

    Noboru Fujita, Daiju Kawase & Nozomi Tsujimura

  3. Shukugawa Gakuin College, 6-58 Koshikiiwa, Nishinomiya, Hyogo, 662-8555, Japan

    Masao Katayama

  4. Nara University of Education, Takabatake-cho, Nara, 630-8528, Japan

    Kiyoshi Matsui

  5. Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto, 611-0011, Japan

    Tetsuya Shimamura & Yasuhiro Takemon

  6. Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, 3-11 Nada-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, 657-8501, Japan

    Atushi Ushimaru

  7. Faculty of Agriculture, Ehime University, Matsuyama, 790-8566, Japan

    Tetsuya Shimamura

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  1. Riyou Tsujino
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Correspondence to Riyou Tsujino.

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Tsujino, R., Fujita, N., Katayama, M. et al. Restoration of floating mat bog vegetation after eutrophication damages by improving water quality in a small pond. Limnology 11, 289–297 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10201-010-0312-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10201-010-0312-6

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