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Introduction and Spread of an Exotic Plant, Spartina alterniflora, Along Coastal Marshes of China

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Abstract

Spartina alterniflora was introduced to China more than 30 years ago, and its arrival corresponded with negative effects on native ecosystems. To elucidate the spatial distribution pattern and spread of S. alterniflora in China, we obtained 400 Landsat image scenes that covered China’s coastal areas since S. alterniflora introduction, and surveyed 40 field sites between 2014 and 2015. A supervised classification method was used to generate the S. alterniflora distribution map along coastal marshes. The results showed that the total distribution of S. alterniflora along China’s coastal areas was 55,181 ha, and ranged between the latitudes19°46′N to 40°47′N. Spartina alterniflora rapidly spread from 1990 to 2003, with an annual expansion rate of 20.4%. However, its area decreased by 12.7% from 2003 to 2005;then the distribution stabilized, and the annual average diffusion rate from 2005 to 2014 was just 4.0%.Overall, S.alterniflora expansion from 1990 to 2014 can be described as a polynomial function. The distribution of S.alterniflora in all provinces except Guangdong Province showed a polynomial increase. At the current expansion rate, S. alterniflora in China could eventually become a dominant plant in most coastal marsh communities in China.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Associate Professor Yuehui Li and two anonymous reviewers for providing insightful comments on the paper. This study was supported by the Special Foundation for State Major Basic Research Program of China (Nos.2013FY111800 and2013FY111100-02).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Forest and Management, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, 110164, China

    Danhua Zhang, Yuanman Hu, Miao Liu, Yu Chang, Xiaolu Yan, Rencang Bu, Dandan Zhao & Zheming Li

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

    Danhua Zhang & Xiaolu Yan

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  1. Danhua Zhang
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  2. Yuanman Hu
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  3. Miao Liu
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  4. Yu Chang
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  7. Dandan Zhao
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  8. Zheming Li
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Correspondence to Yuanman Hu.

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Zhang, D., Hu, Y., Liu, M. et al. Introduction and Spread of an Exotic Plant, Spartina alterniflora, Along Coastal Marshes of China. Wetlands 37, 1181–1193 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-017-0950-0

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