Tree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka

Fragmented and degraded ecosystems should be restored to ensure the biological connectivity among fragmented forest landscapes. The tropical rainforests of Southwestern Sri Lanka are highly degraded and fragmented due to plantation agriculture and human settlements. However, the high spatial variati...

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Autores principales: Nalaka Geekiyanage, Srimal Rathnayaka, Sriyani Gamage, Adikari Appuhamilage Dulanjala Sandamali, Shamodi Nanayakkara, Don Menige Sudesh Duminda, Savitri Gunatilleke, Nimal Gunatilleke
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Publicado: MDPI AG 2021
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Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/b783851775834a308e773259dd79d701
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spelling oai:doaj.org-article:b783851775834a308e773259dd79d7012021-11-25T17:38:03ZTree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka10.3390/f121115061999-4907https://doaj.org/article/b783851775834a308e773259dd79d7012021-10-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/12/11/1506https://doaj.org/toc/1999-4907Fragmented and degraded ecosystems should be restored to ensure the biological connectivity among fragmented forest landscapes. The tropical rainforests of Southwestern Sri Lanka are highly degraded and fragmented due to plantation agriculture and human settlements. However, the high spatial variation in environmental factors and ecosystem functions challenge the success rate of restoration interventions. The aim of this study was to assess the vegetation composition and stand structure in relation to the spatial variation in key soil physicochemical parameters in the Endane Biodiversity Corridor that links peripheral forest reserve to the Sinharaja Rainforest Complex (SRC). The site that extends over 24 ha was classified into five land-use categories (productive tea lands, marginal tea lands, scrub—abandoned three years ago, and two woodlands—abandoned 15 years ago) in which the vegetation composition, stand structure, and physicochemical parameters of soil were assessed and mapped. Results revealed that the Shannon diversity index in the scrub and the woodlands were higher than in the tea lands. The diversity among the secondary forest patches was similar. However, with a mean record of 14 species, the species richness was high in sites close to the SRC. In comparison to the SRC (358 Mg ha<sup>−1</sup>), there was a substantial potential to sequester more carbon in the restoration sites (12–108 Mg ha<sup>−1</sup>). While explaining 31% of abundance and species distribution, the ordination results revealed a close relationship of the soil parameters to vegetation composition and species abundance. The calculated coefficient variation values for soil parameters (TN, EC, Av.P, Ex.K, OC, and BD) were beyond 12%, indicating high or moderate soil spatial variability among the land use categories. Coefficient of variation for soil pH was estimated to be 9%, revealing low soil spatial variability among the land use categories. The maps of these soil parameters corresponded with the type of land use and fertilizer application to tea fields. The highest and the lowest total N contents were observed in the scrub and woodlands, respectively, which appears to be mediated by the relative composition of N-fixing trees between the two groups. Our results facilitate effective matching of sites to species for restoration of the Endane Biodiversity Corridor that may be replicated in similar restoration contexts in tropical Asia.Nalaka GeekiyanageSrimal RathnayakaSriyani GamageAdikari Appuhamilage Dulanjala SandamaliShamodi NanayakkaraDon Menige Sudesh DumindaSavitri GunatillekeNimal GunatillekeMDPI AGarticleforest corridorland-use mappingrestorationSinharaja World Heritage rainforestsoil physicochemical propertiessuccessional chrono-sequencePlant ecologyQK900-989ENForests, Vol 12, Iss 1506, p 1506 (2021)
institution DOAJ
collection DOAJ
language EN
topic forest corridor
land-use mapping
restoration
Sinharaja World Heritage rainforest
soil physicochemical properties
successional chrono-sequence
Plant ecology
QK900-989
spellingShingle forest corridor
land-use mapping
restoration
Sinharaja World Heritage rainforest
soil physicochemical properties
successional chrono-sequence
Plant ecology
QK900-989
Nalaka Geekiyanage
Srimal Rathnayaka
Sriyani Gamage
Adikari Appuhamilage Dulanjala Sandamali
Shamodi Nanayakkara
Don Menige Sudesh Duminda
Savitri Gunatilleke
Nimal Gunatilleke
Tree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka
description Fragmented and degraded ecosystems should be restored to ensure the biological connectivity among fragmented forest landscapes. The tropical rainforests of Southwestern Sri Lanka are highly degraded and fragmented due to plantation agriculture and human settlements. However, the high spatial variation in environmental factors and ecosystem functions challenge the success rate of restoration interventions. The aim of this study was to assess the vegetation composition and stand structure in relation to the spatial variation in key soil physicochemical parameters in the Endane Biodiversity Corridor that links peripheral forest reserve to the Sinharaja Rainforest Complex (SRC). The site that extends over 24 ha was classified into five land-use categories (productive tea lands, marginal tea lands, scrub—abandoned three years ago, and two woodlands—abandoned 15 years ago) in which the vegetation composition, stand structure, and physicochemical parameters of soil were assessed and mapped. Results revealed that the Shannon diversity index in the scrub and the woodlands were higher than in the tea lands. The diversity among the secondary forest patches was similar. However, with a mean record of 14 species, the species richness was high in sites close to the SRC. In comparison to the SRC (358 Mg ha<sup>−1</sup>), there was a substantial potential to sequester more carbon in the restoration sites (12–108 Mg ha<sup>−1</sup>). While explaining 31% of abundance and species distribution, the ordination results revealed a close relationship of the soil parameters to vegetation composition and species abundance. The calculated coefficient variation values for soil parameters (TN, EC, Av.P, Ex.K, OC, and BD) were beyond 12%, indicating high or moderate soil spatial variability among the land use categories. Coefficient of variation for soil pH was estimated to be 9%, revealing low soil spatial variability among the land use categories. The maps of these soil parameters corresponded with the type of land use and fertilizer application to tea fields. The highest and the lowest total N contents were observed in the scrub and woodlands, respectively, which appears to be mediated by the relative composition of N-fixing trees between the two groups. Our results facilitate effective matching of sites to species for restoration of the Endane Biodiversity Corridor that may be replicated in similar restoration contexts in tropical Asia.
format article
author Nalaka Geekiyanage
Srimal Rathnayaka
Sriyani Gamage
Adikari Appuhamilage Dulanjala Sandamali
Shamodi Nanayakkara
Don Menige Sudesh Duminda
Savitri Gunatilleke
Nimal Gunatilleke
author_facet Nalaka Geekiyanage
Srimal Rathnayaka
Sriyani Gamage
Adikari Appuhamilage Dulanjala Sandamali
Shamodi Nanayakkara
Don Menige Sudesh Duminda
Savitri Gunatilleke
Nimal Gunatilleke
author_sort Nalaka Geekiyanage
title Tree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka
title_short Tree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka
title_full Tree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka
title_fullStr Tree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka
title_full_unstemmed Tree Diversity and Soil Characteristics in a Tea–Forest Interface in Southwest Sri Lanka
title_sort tree diversity and soil characteristics in a tea–forest interface in southwest sri lanka
publisher MDPI AG
publishDate 2021
url https://doaj.org/article/b783851775834a308e773259dd79d701
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