Abstract
The aim of our research was to understand the dynamics and coexistence mechanisms of riparian forests with respect to natural disturbance and the life-history strategies of plant species and to contribute to the conservation and restoration of riparian ecosystems (see Chapter 1). There are many types of riparian vegetation in Japan (see Chapter 4). We have studied the vegetation of more than 20 riparian forests across Japan, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, and from headwater streams to lowland rivers. The studies were relatively broad, and included geography, vegetation science, population ecology, landscape ecology, and ecophysiology. In this chapter, I describe (1) the natural disturbance regime in riparian areas, (2) the life-history strategies of riparian trees, (3) the coexistence mechanisms of riparian trees, and (4) the conservation and management of riparian forests.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Allan JD (1995) Stream ecology. Chapman & Hall, London, 388p
Baker WL (1990) Species richness of Colorado riparian vegetation. J Veg Sci 1:119–124
Bellingham PJ, Sparrow AS (2000) Resprouting as a life history strategy in woody plant communities, Oikos 89(2):409–416
Brokaw N, Busing RT (2000) Niche versus chance and tree diversity in forest gaps. Trend Ecol Evol 5(5):183–188
Denslow JS (1980) Patterns of plant species diversity during succession under different disturbance regimes. Oecologia 46:18–21
Duncan RP (1993) Flood disturbance and the coexistence of species in a lowland podocarp forest, south Westland, New Zealand. J Ecol 81:403–416
Gregory S, Ashkenas L (1990) Riparian management guide (Willamette national Forest). Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, USA, 120p
Gregory SV, Swanson FJ, McKee WA, Cummins KW (1991) An ecosystem perspective of riparian zones: focus on links between land and water. BioScience 41(8):540–551
Holmquist JG, Schmidt-Gengenbach JM, Yoshioka BB (1998) High Dams and marinefreshwater linkages: effects on native and introduced fauna in the Caribbean. Conserv Biol 12:621–630
Hood WG, Naiman RJ (2000) Vulnerability of riparian zones to invasion by exotic vascular plants. Plant Ecol 148:105–114
Hoshizaki K, Suzuki W, Sasaki S (1997) Impacts of secondary seed dispersal and herbivory on seedling survival in Aesculus turbinata. J Veg Sci 8:735–742
Ishikawa S (1994) Seedling growth traits of three salicaceous species under different conditions of soil and water level. Ecol Rev 23:1–6
Ito S, Nakamura F (1994) Forest disturbance and regeneration in relation to earth surface movement. Jpn J For Environ 36(2):31–40 (in Japanese with English summary)
Jansson R, Nilsson C, Renöfält B (2000) Fragmentation of riparian floras in rivers with multiple dams. Ecology 81(4):899–903
Johansson ME, Nilsson C, Nilsson E (1996) Do rivers functions as corridors for plant dispersal? J Veg Sci 7:593–598
Johnson WC (1994) Woodland expansion in the Platte River, Nebraska: patterns and causes. Ecol Monogr 64(1):45–84
Kalliola R & Puhakka M (1988) River dynamics and vegetation mosaicism: a case study of the River Kamajohka, northernmost Finland. J Biogeogr 15:703–719
Kamada M, Okabe T, Kotera I (1997) Influencing factors on distribution changes in trees and land-use types in the Yoshino River, Shikoku, Japan. Environmental System Research 25:287–294 (in Japanese with English abstract)
Kawanishi M, Sakio H, Ohno K (2004) Forest floor vegetation of Fraxinus platypoda-Pterocarya rhoifolia forest along Ooyamazawa valley in Chichibu, Kanto District, Japan, with a special reference to ground disturbance. Veg Sci 21:15–26 (in Japanese with English summary)
Kawanishi M, Sakio H, Yonebayashi C (2007) A comparative study of buried seed assemblages in conifer plantation and secondary broad-leaved forest. Bull Geo-Env Sci Rissho Univ 9:31–41 (in Japanese with English summary)
Kovalchik BL & Chitwood LA (1990) Use of geomorphology in the classification of riparian plant associations in mountainous landscapes of central Oregon, USA. For Ecol Manage 33/34:405–418
Kubo M, Shimano K, Sakio H, Ohno K (2000) Germination sites and establishment conditions of Cercidiphyllum japonicum seedlings in the riparian forest. J Jpn For Soc 82(4):349–354 (in Japanese with English summary)
Kubo M, Kawanishi M, Shimano K, Sakio H, Ohno K (2008) The species composition of soil seed banks in the Ooyamazawa riparian forest, in the Chichibu Mountains, central Japan. J Jpn For Soc 90(2):121–124 (in Japanese with English summary)
Malanson GP (1993) Riparian landscapes. Cambridge Univ Press, Cambridge, 296p
Masaki T, Osumi K, Takahashi K, Hoshizaki K, Matsune K, Suzuki W (2007) Effects of microenvironmental heterogeneity on the seed-to-seedling process and tree coexistence in a riparian forest. Ecol Res 22:724–734
Naiman RJ, Décamps H (1997) The ecology on interfaces: riparian zones. Annu Rev Ecol Evol Syst 28:621–658
Nakai A, Kisanuki H (2007) Effects of evaluation above the waterline on the growth of current-year Salix gracilistyla seedlings on a gravel bar. J For Res 89:1–6
Nakamura F (1990) Analyses of the temporal and spatial distribution of floodplain deposits. J Jpn For Soc 72:99–108 (in Japanese with English summary)
Nakamura F, Shin N (2001) The downstream effects of dams on the the regeneration of riparian tree species in northern Japan. In: Dorava JM (ed) Geomorphic Processes and Riverine Habitat. American Geophysical Union, Washington DC, pp 173–181
Nakamura F, Shin N, Inahara S (2007) Shifting mosaic in maintaining diversity of floodplain tree species in the northern temperate zone of Japan. For Ecol Manage 241:28–38
Nakamura F, Swanson FJ (1994) Distribution of coarse woody debris in a mountain stream, western Cascade Range, Oregon. Can J For Res 24:2395–2403
Nakashizuka T (2001) Species coexistence in temperate, mixed deciduous forests. Trend Ecol Evol 16(4):205–210
Nakashizuka T, Matsumoto Y (eds) (2002) Diversity and interaction in a temperate forest community, Ogawa Forest Reserve of Japan. Springer-Verlag, Tokyo 319p
Niiyama K (1989) Distribution of Chosenia arbutifolia and soil texture of habitat along the Satsunai River. Jpn J Ecol 39:173–182 (in Japanese with English summary)
Niiyama K (1990) The role of seed dispersal and seedling traits in colonization and coexistence of Salix species in a seasonality flooded habitat. Ecol Res 5:317–331
Nilsson C, Ekblad A, Gardfjell M, Carlberg, B. (1991) Long-term effects of river regulation on river margin vegetation. J App Ecol 28:963–987
Sakai A, Ohsawa T, Ohsawa M (1995) Adaptive significance of sprouting of Euptelea polyandra, a deciduous tree growing on steep slopes with shallow soil. J Plant Res 108:377–386
Sakai A, Sato S, Sakai T, Kuramoto S, Tabuchi R (2005) A soil seed bank in a mature conifer plantation and establishment of seedlings after clearcutting in southwest Japan. J For Res 10:295–304
Sakai T, Tanaka H, Shibata M, Suzuki W, Nomiya H, Kanazashi T, Iida S, Nakashizuka T (1999) Riparian disturbance and community structure of a Quercus-Ulmus forest in central Japan. Plant Ecol 140:99–109
Sakio H (1997) Effects of natural disturbance on the regeneration of riparian forests in a Chichibu Mountains, central Japan. Plant Ecol 132:181–195
Sakio H (2002) What is a riparian forest? In: Sakio H, Yamamoto F (eds) Ecology of riparian forests. Univ Tokyo Press, Tokyo, pp 1–19 (in Japanese)
Sakio H, Kubo M, Shimano K, Ohno K (2002) Coexistence of three canopy tree species in a riparian forest in the Chichibu Mountains, central Japan. Folia Geobot 37:45–61
Sakio H (2003) Can an exotic plant, Robinia pseudoacacia L., be removed from riparian ecosystems in Japan? J Jpn For Soc 85(4):355–358 (in Japanese with English summary)
Sakio H (2005) Effects of flooding en growth of seedlings of woody riparian species. J For Res 10:341–346
Sato T, Isagi Y, Sakio H, Osumi K, Goto S (2006) Effect of gene flow on spatial genetic structure in the riparian canopy tree Cercidiphyllum japonicum revealed by microsatellite analysis. Heredity 96:79–84
Seiwa K, Kikuzawa K (1996) Importance of seed size for the establishment of seedlings of five deciduous broad-leaved tree species. Vegetatio 123:51–64
Shin N, Nakamura F (2005) Effects of fluvial geomorphology on riparian tree species in Rekifune River, northern Japan. Plant Ecol 178:15–28
Suzuki W, Osumi K, Masaki T, Takahashi K, Daimaru H, Hoshizaki K (2002) Disturbance regimes and community structures of a riparian and an adjacent terrace stand in the Kanumazawa Riparian Research Forest, northern Japan. For Ecol Manage 157:285–301
Tabacchi E, Planty-Tabacchi AM, Décamps O (1990) Continuity and discontinuity of the riparian vegetation along a fluvial corridor. Landscape Ecol 5:9–20
The Japanese riparian forest research group (2001) Guide-line for the management of riparian forests. Japan Forestry Investigation Committee, Tokyo, 214p
Vivian-Smith G (1997) Microtopographic heterogeneity and floristic diversity in experimental wetland communities. J Ecol 85:71–82
White PS (1979) Pattern, process and natural disturbance in vegetation. Bot Rev 45:229–299
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2008 Springer
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Sakio, H. (2008). General conclusions concerning riparian forest ecology and conservation. In: Sakio, H., Tamura, T. (eds) Ecology of Riparian Forests in Japan. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-76737-4_21
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-76737-4_21
Publisher Name: Springer, Tokyo
Print ISBN: 978-4-431-76736-7
Online ISBN: 978-4-431-76737-4
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)