Plant Diversity Performance After Natural Restoration in Reclaimed Deyeuxia angustifolia Wetland

Deyeuxia angustifolia wetlands were widely distributed in the Sanjiang Plain in Northeast China. Due to strong demand for food production, large-area wetlands were reclaimed to farmlands, which threatened regional ecological security greatly. Since the 21 th century, returning farmlands to wetlands was widely adopted for natural restoration in the Sangjiang Plain. As the first reflection of wetland restoration, vegetation succession of restored D. angustifolia wetlands should be fully assessed. In this study, vegetation investigation was carried out in three restored D. angustifolia wetlands with 5, 8 and 12 yr restoration, respectively. Meanwhile, a natural D. angustifolia wetland was selected as reference wetland. Results showed that community composition changed greatly and there was visible community succession. Community dominant species changed from composite to gramineae as restoration time increasing.At first, weeds community appeared in the restored wetlands, especially the xerophytes developed to the pioneer species rapidly. And then, mesophytes and wetland species became the dominant species in the restored wetlands. Finally, wetland species, especially D. angustifolia, occupied the dominant position of restored community. Shannon-wiener index(H) and Simpson index(D) both decreased to close to natural D. angustifolia wetlands. Compared with natural D. angustifolia wetland, species composition and diversity in restored wetlands were more complex and higher. As restoration time increasing, there were not significant differences between community characteristics of restored wetlands and natural wetland. All these suggested that vegetation in reclaimed D. angustifolia wetland could be restored naturally, but its restored period is 10 yr at least. From another angle, it is important to protect current natural wetlands.     

A Macroinvertebrate Multimetric Index for the Bioassessment of Wetlands Adjacent to Agriculture Fields in the Sanjiang Plain,China

Adjacent intensive agriculture disturbs the natural condition of wetlands.However, to assess the effect of this agriculture on wetlands, few studies have used indices based on aquatic invertebrates.Multi-metric indices(MMIs) have been successfully used to assess freshwater ecosystems worldwide and are an important management tool, but little is known about their applicability in the Sanjiang Plain, Northeast China.In this study, we developed a MMIs for aquatic invertebrates to assess freshwater wetlands in this region.The aquatic invertebrate assemblages were sampled in 27 wetlands in the Sanjiang Plain that included those in natural reserves and those affected by adjacent, intensive agriculture.Twenty-four candidate metrics were initially reviewed and screened before four core metrics were selected: total number of taxa, number of Hemiptera taxa, proportion of Gastropoda, and proportion of predators.Mann-Whitney U tests, Box and Whisker plots, correlation analyses, and redundant metric tests were used to assess the ability of metrics to distinguish among reference and impaired wetlands.Four ordinal rating categories for wetland were defined: poor, fair, good, and excellent.Of the impaired freshwater wetlands, 76.2% were in poor or fair categories.The MMIs was robust in discriminating reference wetlands from impaired wetlands and therefore have potential as a biomonitoring tool to assess the condition and to guide the restoration efforts of freshwater wetlands in Northeast China.     

Simulation study on purification efficiency for nitrogen in different types of wetlands in Sanjiang Plain,China

The purification law of nitrogen in Deyeuxia angustifolia,Carex lasiocarpa and Deyeuxia angustifo-lia-Carex lasiocarpa combined wetland systems in the Sanjiang Plain,China was studied by field simulation experi-ment.The results indicate that the removal rates of TN,NH4+-N and NO3--N in above three types of wetlands present an obvious logarithm growth trend along with the time.There are evident removal effects for NH4+-N and NO3--N in water bodies of wetlands after the 30th day of experiment,with the removal rates over 80.0%,but the removal rate of TN is slightly low,being 63.1%-74.3%.NO3--N is most quickly removed by the combined wetland,and NH4+-N by Deyeuxia angustifolia wetland.The removal speeds of TN by the three wetland systems are comparatively slow,of which the Deyeuxia angustifolia wetland is the fastest.In consideration of plant growth season,Deyeuxia angustifolia wetland has much more practical application value in purifying nitrogen.These results can provide references for the study on the purification function of wetlands and the control of non-point source pollution in Northeast China.     

Changes of soil labile organic carbon in different land uses in Sanjiang Plain,Heilongjiang Province

In the Sanjiang Plain,Northeast China,the natural wetland is undergoing a rapid conversion into agricultural land,which has resulted in drastic ecological changes in the region. To investigate the effects of different land uses on soil labile organic carbon,soils of Calamagrostis angustifolia wetland,Carex lasiocarpa wetland,dry farmland,paddy field,forest land and abandoned cultivated land were collected for measuring the contents of soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC),dissolved organic carbon (DOC),readil...     

Study on the sustainable development of wetland resources in the Ussuri / Wusuli River basin

1 INTRODUCTION The Ussuri / Wusuli River watershed is located in the southeast part of Heilongjiang Province of China, which joins remote regions of Russia. The watershed consists of approximately 26 000 000 ha, which is about two thirds of the watershed ecosystem in Russia, one  third in China. The Ussuri River forms part of the border between Russia and China, the shared border stretches more than 1100 km. Khanka/Xingkai Lake lies within both China and Russia. Its total area …     

EFFECTS OF AGRICULTURE RECLAMATION ON THE HYDROLOGIC CHARACTERISTICS IN THE SANJIANG PLAIN, CHINA

1 THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS The Sanjiang Plain is located in the northeast of Heilongjiang Province, China. Russia borders this region in the north and east. Its total area is 1.088×107ha. The area of plain occupies 61.21％of the total land area and that of hill and mountain amounts to 38.79％of the total land area. It is not only one of the most important regions with large area of fresh water wetlands and with varieties of rare migratory waterfowls, but a…     

Land Surface Albedo Variations in Sanjiang Plain from 1982 to 2015: Assessing with GLASS Data

As a key parameter for indicating the fraction of surface-reflected solar incident radiation, land surface albedo plays an important role in the Earth's surface energy budget(SEB). Since the Sanjiang Plain has been severely affected by human activities(e.g., reclamation and shrinking of wetlands), it is important to assess the spatiotemporal variations of surface albedo in this region using a long-term remote sensing dataset. In order to investigate the surface albedo climatology, trends, and mechanisms of change, we evaluated the surface albedo variations in the Sanjiang Plain, China from 1982 to 2015 using the Global LAnd Surface Satellite(GLASS) broadband surface albedo product. The results showed that: 1) an increasing annual trend(+0.000 58/yr) of surface albedo was discovered in the Sanjiang Plain based on the GLASS albedo dataset, with a much stronger increasing trend(+0.001 26/yr) occurring during the winter. Most of the increasing trends occurred over the cultivated land, unused land, and land use conversion types located in the northeastern Sanjiang Plain. 2) The increasing trend of land surface albedo in Sanjiang Plain can be largely explained by the changes of both snow cover extent and land use. The surface albedo in winter is highly correlated with the snow cover extent in the Sanjiang Plain, and the increasing trend of surface albedo can be further enhanced by the land use changes.     

Response of Regeneration Diversity of Carex Lasiocarpa Community to Different Water Levels in Sanjiang Plain,China

The species diversity at the regeneration stage, inflenced by different water levels, is important for community composition in the later growing season.Regeneration diversity of Carex lasiocarpa community under different water levels was studied at two stages, recruitment and adult, in the Sanjiang Plain, Heilongjiang Province, China.The results showed that, at the two growing stages, important value of C.lasiocarpa population and species richness of the community decreased with the increasing water level, while the Simpson and Shannon-Wiener diversity indexes and Pielou evenness index increased.Under different water levels, community diversities were higher at the recruitment stage, while population important values of C.lasiocarpa were higher at the adult stage.Indexes in vegetation evaluation must be chosen prudentially for successful restoration and effective management of wetlands, and especially for wetland restoration, the optimal time should be selected according to the restoration objectives and costs.     

Response of regeneration diversity of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Carex Lasiocarpa</Emphasis> community to different water levels in Sanjiang Plain,China

The species diversity at the regeneration stage, inflenced by different water levels, is important for community composition in the later growing season. Regeneration diversity of Carex lasiocarpa community under different water levels was studied at two stages, recruitment and adult, in the Sanjiang Plain, Heilongjiang Province, China. The results showed that, at the two growing stages, important value of C. lasiocarpa population and species richness of the community decreased with the increasing water level, while the Simpson and Shannon-Wiener diversity indexes and Pielou evenness index increased. Under different water levels, community diversities were higher at the recruitment stage, while population important values of C. lasiocarpa were higher at the adult stage. Indexes in vegetation evaluation must be chosen prudentially for successful restoration and effective management of wetlands, and especially for wetland restoration, the optimal time should be selected according to the restoration objectives and costs.     

Restoration and rational use of degraded saline reed wetlands: A case study in western Songnen Plain, China

The protection, restoration and sustainable use are key issues of all the wetlands worldwide. Ecological, agronomic, and engineering techniques have been integrated in the development of a structurally sound, ecologically beneficial engineering restoration method for restoring and utilizing a degraded saline wetland in the western Songnen Plain of China. Hydrological restoration was performed by developing a system of biannual irrigation and drainage using civil engineering measures to bring wetlands into contact with river water and improve the irrigation and drainage system in the wetlands. Agronomic measures such as plowing the reed fields, reed rhizome transplantation, and fertilization were used to restore the reed vegetation. Biological measures, including the release of crab and fish fry and natural proliferation, were used to restore the aquatic communities. The results of the restoration were clear and positive. By the year 2009, the reed yield had increased by 20.9 times. Remarkable ecological benefits occurred simultaneously. Vegetation primary-production capacity increased, local climate regulation and water purification enhanced, and biodiversity increased. This demonstration of engineering techniques illustrates the basic route for the restoration of degraded wetlands, that the biodiversity should be reconstructed by the comprehensive application of engineering, biological, and agronomic measures based on habitat restoration under the guidance of process-oriented strategies. The complex ecological system including reeds, fish and crabs is based on the biological principles of coexistence and material recycling and provides a reasonable ecological engineering model suitable for the sustainable utilization of degraded saline reed wetlands.     

Multiple Time-scale Characteristics of Runoff Variations in Middle Reaches of Huolin River and Their Effects

The Huolin River is one of the most important water sources for Xianghai wetland, Horqin wetland, and Chaganhu wetland in the western Songnen Plain of Northeast China. The annual runoff series of 46 years at Baiyun- hushuo Hydrologic Station, which is located in the middle reaches of the Huolin River, were analyzed by using wavelet analysis. Main objective was to discuss the periodic characteristics of the runoff, and examine the temporal patterns of the Huolin River recharging to the floodplain wetlands in the lower reaches of the river, and the corresponding effects of recharging variation on the environmental evolution of the wetlands. The results show that the annual runoff varied mainly at three time scales. The intensities of periodical signals at different time scales were strongly characterized by local distribution in its time frequency domain. The interdecadal variation at a scale of more than 30yr played a leading role in the temporal pattern of runoff variation, and at this scale, the runoff at Baiyunhushuo Hydrologic Station varied in turn of flood, draught and flood. Accordingly, the landscape of the floodplain wetlands presented periodic features, es- pecially prominent before the 1990s. Compared with intense human activities, the runoff periodic pattern at middle (10-20yr) and small (1-10yr) scales, which has relatively low energy, exerted unobvious effects on the environmental evolution of the floodplain wetlands, especially after the 1990s.     

Scale issues of wetland classification and mapping using remote sensing images: A case of Honghe National Nature Reserve in Sanjiang Plain,Northeast China

Wetland research has become a hot spot linking multiple disciplines presently. Wetland classification and mapping is the basis for wetland research. It is difficult to generate wetland data sets using traditional methods because of the low accessibility of wetlands, hence remote sensing data have become one of the primary data sources in wetland research. This paper presents a case study conducted at the core area of Honghe National Nature Reserve in the Sanjiang Plain, Northeast China. In this study, three images generated by airship, from Thematic Mapper and from SPOT 5 were selected to produce wetland maps at three different wetland landscape levels. After assessing classification accuracies of the three maps, we compared the different wetland mapping results of 11 plant communities to the airship image, 6 plant ecotypes to the TM image and 9 landscape classifications to the SPOT 5 image. We discussed the different characteristics of the hierarchical ecosystem classifications based on the spatial scales of the different images. The results indicate that spatial scales of remote sensing data have an important link to the hierarchies of wetland plant ecosystems displayed on the wetland landscape maps. The richness of wetland landscape information derived from an image closely relates to its spatial resolution. This study can enrich the ecological classification methods and mapping techniques dealing with the spatial scales of different remote sensing images. With a better understanding of classification accuracies in mapping wetlands by using different scales of remote sensing data, we can make an appropriate approach for dealing with the scale issue of remote sensing images.     

Responses of Alpine Wetlands to Climate Changes on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau Based on Remote Sensing

The alpine wetlands in QTP(Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau) have been profoundly impacted along with global climate changes. We employ satellite datasets and climate data to explore the relationships between alpine wetlands and climate changes based on remote sensing data. Results show that: 1) the wetland NDVI(Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) and GPP(Gross Primary Production) were more sensitive to air temperature than to precipitation rate. The wetland ET(evapotranspiration) across alpine wetlands was greatly correlated with precipitation rate. 2) Alpine wetlands responses to climate changes varied spatially and temporally due to different geographic environments, variety of wetland formation and human disturbances. 3) The vegetation responses of the Zoige wetland was the most noticeable and related to the temperature, while the GPP and NDVI of the Qiangtang Plateau and Gyaring-Ngoring Lake were significantly correlated with both temperature and precipitation. 4) ET in the Zoige wetland showed a significantly positive trend, while ET in Maidika wetland and the Qiangtang plateau showed a negative trend, implying wetland degradation in those two wetland regions. The complexities of the impacts of climate changes on alpine wetlands indicate the necessity of further study to understand and conserve alpine wetland ecosystems.     

Shrinking and Drying up of Baiyangdian Lake Wetland： A Natural or Human Cause？

1 Introduction The sensitivity of ecosystems to global climate change is one of important issues for research. Many studies have indicated that wetland ecosystem is one of the most vulnerable systems (Brock and Van, 1992; Vourltis and Oechel, 1997; Burkeet, 2000; Lahmer et al., 2001; Zhang et al., 2001; Deng et al., 2003). The shrinking and drying up of wetlands in arid and semiarid areas of China have been widely observed in the recent years (Wang, 1990; Wang and Zhang, 1991; Jin, 1993; …     

A study on wetland classification model of remote sensing in the Sangjiang plain

1　ＩＮＴＯＤＵＣＴＩＯＮＷｅｔｌａｎｄｃａｎｐｅｒｆｏｒｍｅｎｏｒｍｏｕｓｆｕｎｃｔｉｏｎｓｉｎｒｅ ｓｏｕｒｃｅａｎｄｅｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔａｄｊｕｓｔｍｅｎｔ ,ａｎｄｉｔｉｓｏｎｅｏｆｔｈｅｉｍｐｏｒｔａｎｔｅｃｏｌｏｇｉｃａｌｅｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔｓｔｈａｔｈｕｍａｎｂｅ ｉｎｇｓｒｅｌｙｏｎ .Ｉｎｔｅｒｎａｔｉｏｎａｌｃｏｍｍｕｎｉｔｉｅｓｈａｖｅａｌｒｅａｄｙｐａｉｄ ｇｒｅａｔａｔｔｅｎｔｉｏｎｔｏｔｈｅｗｅｔｌａｎｄｒｅｓｅａｒｃｈ ,ａｎｄｓｏｍｅｆｏｒｅｉｇｎｅｒｓｈａｖｅｄｏｎｅ…     

Is There Any Correlation Between Landscape Characteristics and Total Nitrogen in Wetlands Receiving Agricultural Drainages?

In the case of increasing fragmentation of wetlands, the study of the relationship between wetland landscape characteristics and total nitrogen(TN) in water is of great significance to reveal the mechanism of wetland water purification. Taking the Naoli River(NR) wetlands in Northeast China as the research object, 10 uniformly distributed sampling sites in the study area were sampled in August 2015 to test the TN concentration and interpret the images of NR wetlands in the same period. Taking the sampling site as the control point, the whole wetlands were divided into 10 regions, and the landscape index of each region was extracted. In order to reveal whether the landscape characteristics are related to the TN concentration in the wetlands water body, the landscape index and the TN concentration in the control point water body were analyzed by correlation analysis, step-by-step elimination analysis and path analysis to reveal whether the landscape characteristics are related to the TN concentration under wetlands receiving agricultural drainages. The results showed that the correlation coefficients between four area indexes or eight shape indexes and TN concentration did not reach a significant correlation level(P > 0.05), indicating that TN removal was not only determined by a single landscape index. The path coefficient of edge density(ED) index is –0.41, indicating that wetland patch connectivity is the primary factor of TN removal, and there is no relationship between the larger patch area and the higher TN removal. The removal of TN in wetlands is restricted by the synergistic effect of landscape area and shape characteristics.     

Mercury distribution and accumulation in typical wetland ecosystems of Sanjiang Plain, Northeast China

Total mercury in soil,water,plant,insects,fishes and bird feathers were determined to study mercury distribution and accumulation in typical wetland ecosystems in the Sanjiang Plain,Northeast China.Results show that total mercury concentrations in soils of Deyeuxia angustifolia wetland and Carex lascarpa wetland are 0.046 mg/kg and 0.063 mg/kg,respectively.Total mercury concentration in water bodies is 0.053 μg/L on average.Of four plants studied,total mercury in moss is the highest with the mean of 0.132 mg/kg.Of 10 terrestrial insect species studied,total mercury in centipede(Scolopendra spp.) is the highest with the mean of 0.515 mg/kg while total mercury in grasshopper(Oxya spp.) bodies is the lowest.Total mercury concentrations in the herbivorous,omnivorous and predatory insects are 10.18 ng/g,16.47 ng/g and 213.35 ng/g on average,respectively.Total mercury concentrations of the adult feather(549.88 ± 63.04 ng/g),nestling feather(55.15 ± 23.53 ng/g),and eggshell(22.05 ± 5.96 ng/g) of the Grey heron(Ardea cinerea) are higher than those of the Great egret(Egretta alba)(adult feather:446.57 ± 90.89 ng/g;nestling feather:32.99 ± 17.15 ng/g;eggshell:21.02 ± 3.17 ng/g) in the wetlands of the Sanjiang Plain.The bioconcentration factors decrease in the order of piscivorous fish muscle > omnivorous fish muscle > herbivorous fish > insect.     

Seasonal Dynamics of Nitrogen and Phosphorus in Water and Sediment of A Multi-level Ditch System in Sanjiang Plain,Northeast China

The multi-level ditch system developed in the Sanjiang Plain,Northeast China has sped up water drainage process hence transferred more pollutants from farmlands into the rivers of this region.Understanding the seasonal dynamics of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) transportation in the ditch system and the role of different ditch size is thus crucial for water pollution control of the rivers in the Sanjiang Plain.In this study,an investigation was conducted in the Nongjiang watershed of the Sanjiang Plain to ...     

STUDY ON WETLAND LOSS AND ITS REASONS IN CHINA

１ＩＮＴＲＯＤＵＣＴＩＯＮＷｅｔｌａｎｄｓａｒｅｔｈｅｅｃｏｓｙｓｔｅｍｓｗｉｔｈｍａｎｙｆｕｎｃｔｉｏｎｓａｎｄｈａｖｅｂｅｅｎｐｒｏｖｉｄｉｎｇｕｓｗｉｔｈａｒａｎｇｅｏｆｆｕｎｃｔｉｏｎｓａｎｄｂｅｎｅｆｉｔｓｓｕｃｈａｓｗａｔｅｒｓｕｐｐｌｙｆｌｏｗｒｅｇｕｌａｔｉｏｎｓｅｎｄｉｍｅｎｔｒｅｔｅｎｔｉｏｎｍｏｄｅｒａｔｉｏｎｏｆｃｌｉｍａｔｅｐｒｅｖｅｎｔｉｏｎｏｆｓａｌｉｎｅｗａｔｅｒｉｎｔｒｕｓｉｏｎｅｔｃ．Ａｌｔｈｏｕｇｈｗｅｔｌａｎｄｏｃｃｕｐｙｏｎｌｙａｂｏｕｔ６％…     

Wetland resource protection and rational utilization in China

Wetlands of China cover an area of 63 million ha, among which, natural wetlands 25 million ha, including mires, shallow lakes, etc., artificial wetlands 38 million ha. Besides these, there are a lot of rivers and islands, stretching 18,000 km of coastal line and coastal zone below the tidal within the water depth of 6 m. Based on the climatic regional differences, biota similarity and biodiversity abundance, China’s wetlands can be divided into 9 main regions. Wetlands not only have huge functions to regulate mankind’s living environment, but also are the important and precious natural resources. For a long period, since the contradiction between population and resources, energy, grain is getting more and more obvious, China’s wetlands are facing to serious disturbances, such as large-scale reclamation, overhunting, industrial waste water pollution and species introducing. They have brought about the wetland quantity reducing and quality falling, furthermore have effects on sustainable development. For the special national conditions of China, higher population pressure, China should carry out wetland resource protection and rational utilization, not only protection.