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Plant functional traits and species ability for sediment retention during concentrated flow erosion

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Abstract

Background and aims

Plant species can have a major effect on erosion dynamics and soil losses by retaining sediment transported during concentrated runoff. Identifying plant functional traits that influence and predict a species ability for sediment trapping is therefore of great interest, especially to improve management and restoration of degraded lands.

Methods

Sediment trapping ability of four morphologically contrasted species, the broadleaf species Buxus sempervirens and Lavandula angustifolia, and the coniferous species Juniperus communis and Pinus nigra, were investigated with flume experiments. Six functional traits describing stem, leaf and the overall plant morphology, were measured on seedlings. Analyses were performed to compare species efficiency in sediment trapping and to identify traits related to the amount of sediment trapped.

Results

Sediment trapping (RTS) was the highest upslope of Lavandula and the lowest upslope of Juniperus. Principal component analysis showed that RTS was best correlated (positively) with canopy density, described by plant biomass and leaf area per unit volume of plant. Leaf area and plant roundness were also positively related to RTS but to a lesser extent.

Conclusions

The results of this experimental study suggest that canopy completeness, leaf morphology and plant shape influence sediment retention by plants. Such knowledge may improve the diagnosis of land vulnerability to erosion and the prediction of ecosystem functioning after ecological restoration by the construction of bioengineering works in gully floors.

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Acknowledgments

We thank F. Cottard and S. Meistermann for perfect assistance in the lab and help in collecting and analysing the data. Thanks also to A. Bédécarrats for valuable comments on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UR EMGR, Cemagref, 2 rue de la papeterie, BP 76, F-38402, Saint Martin d’Hères Cedex, France

    M. Burylo & F. Rey

  2. Centro de Investigaciones sobre Desertificación, Carretera de Moncada a Náquera Km 4.5, Apdo Oficial, 46113, Moncada, Valencia, Spain

    E. Bochet

  3. Institut Méditerranéen d’Ecologie et de Paléoécologie (IMEP, UMR CNRS/IRD), IUT, Université d’Avignon, Agroparc, BP 61207, 84911, Avignon Cedex 9, France

    T. Dutoit

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  1. M. Burylo
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Correspondence to M. Burylo.

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Responsible Editor: Alexia Stokes.

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Burylo, M., Rey, F., Bochet, E. et al. Plant functional traits and species ability for sediment retention during concentrated flow erosion. Plant Soil 353, 135–144 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-011-1017-2

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