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Plant colonization of a bare peat surface: population changes and spatial patterns
Author(s) -
Salonen Veikko,
Penttinen Antti,
Särkkä Aila
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
journal of vegetation science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1654-1103
pISSN - 1100-9233
DOI - 10.2307/3236005
Subject(s) - biological dispersal , ecology , perennial plant , spatial distribution , carex , biology , peat , seed dispersal , ecological succession , population , colonization , geography , demography , remote sensing , sociology
. Changes in size and spatial arrangement of plant populations established on an initially bare peat surface were described over a period of 5 yr by following plant individuals on a 1‐cm grid in an area of 10 m x 25 m. The spatial pattern of populations and association between species was analyzed statistically. The study site was very slowly colonized by 14 perennial plant species. The early successional stage was dominated by Carex rostrata, with a clumped spatial distribution, and the homogeneously distributed Eriophorum vaginatum and Pinus sylvestris. Both the growth in size of populations and changes in their spatial distribution were interpreted as a result of species dispersal ability, tolerance to severity of the substrate and pattern of reproduction.