Vegetation composition and distribution pattern of Wangdongyang Subalpine Wetland in Jingning County, Zhejiang Province

Abstract

Field investigations in the core areas of Zhejiang Provincial Wangdongyang Subalpine Wetland Nature Reserve in Jingning County, China were carried out during November and December 2014 and July and August 2016. The life form functional groups of plants in research area were analyzed, and formation groups as the basic units of vegetation types were described. The distribution patterns were analyzed by establishing a vector model. The results showed that there were 182 species belonging to 122 genera and 61 families in the wetland, most of them being perennial herbs (51.10%) and woody plants also accounting for a large proportion (25.82%). The vegetation in the wetland could be divided into 2 vegetation types (mountain natural vegetation and swamp wetland vegetation), 4 vegetation types (evergreen needle-leaved forest, subtropical mountain scrub, forest swamp, and marsh grass)and 6 formation groups (Pinus taiwanensis, Camellia lucidissima, Alnus trabeculosa, Moliniopsis hui, Miscanthus sinensis, and Scirpus karuizawensis). The results indicated that the distribution of vegetation community in the wetland was characterized by small number of dominant species, high coverage, irregular appearance and stratified structures. Finally, the self-restoration process and pattern of vegetation distribution before and after manmade damages in the wetlands were analyzed, and the solutions to restoration and protection of wetland vegetation were suggested in this study.