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Investigating Riparian Margins for Vegetation Patterns and Plant–Environment Relationships in Northeast Scotland
Author(s) -
Stockan Jenni A.,
Langan Simon J.,
Young Mark R.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq2010.0518
Subject(s) - riparian zone , vegetation (pathology) , geography , environmental science , forestry , physical geography , ecology , habitat , biology , medicine , pathology
Buffer strips alongside watercourses are a widely accepted method of reducing nutrient and sediment run‐off from agricultural land thereby improving water quality. Little attention, however, has been paid to the ecological status of these areas despite the fact that riparian habitats in good condition can provide multiple benefits. We investigated vegetation patterns and plant–environment relationships within three categories of riparian margins in northeast Scotland. The margins were categorized as unbuffered, buffered, or reference (target), the latter representing the best sites available within the catchments. Vascular plant and soil data were collected from 41 sites along the tributaries of two rivers during 2008 and 2009. Ellenberg indicator values revealed trends of decreasing light availability ( P < 0.05) and decreasing pH ( P < 0.01) from unbuffered sites to buffered sites to reference sites. Multivariate analysis showed that soil parameters and channel morphology, together with canopy cover and bryophyte abundance, were discriminatory in separating species assemblages. The presence of a tree canopy layer appears to be the key instigator of change in soil conditions and corresponding plant species assemblages. An understanding of the underlying processes is important if vegetation characteristics are to be used effectively as indicators of riparian and water quality and to aid the restoration of riparian habitats.