Abstract
The composition of seed banks of areas on the drained Kissimmee River floodplain (Florida, USA) that are currently pasture and formerly had been wet prairie, broadleaf marsh, and wetland shrub communities was compared to that of seed banks of areas that have extant stands of these communities. The species composition of the seed banks of existing wet prairie and former wet prairie sites were the most similar, with a Jaccard index of similarity of 55. Existing and former broadleaf marsh and wetland shrub communities had Jaccard indices of 38 and 19, respectively. Although existing and former wet prairie seed banks had nearly the same species richness, species richness at former broadleaf marsh and wetland shrub sites was higher than at existing sites. Mean total seed densities were similar in existing and former wet prairies (700 to 800 seeds m2). However, seed densities in former broadleaf marsh and wetland shrub sites were significantly greater than in comparable existing communities (>4,900 seeds m2 at former sites versus 200 to 300 in existing communities). The higher seed densities in former broadleaf marsh and wetland shrub sites was due to over 4,000 seeds m2 of Juncus effusus in their seed banks. Half of the species that characterize wet prairies were found in the seed banks at former and existing wet prairie sites. At existing broadleaf marsh and wetland shrub sites, most of the characteristic species were found in their seed banks. However, only one characteristic broadleaf species was found in the seed banks of the former broadleaf marsh sites, and no characteristic wetland shrub species were found in the seed banks of the former wetland shrub sites. The seeds of only two non-indigenous species were found in the seed banks of former wetland communities at very low densities. For all three vegetation types, but particularly for the broadleaf marsh and wetland shrub sites, re-establishment of the former vegetation on the restored floodplain will require propagule dispersal from off-site sources.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Bigwood, D. W. and D. W. Inouye. 1988. Spatial pattern analysis of seed banks: an improved method and optimized sampling. Ecology 69:497–507.
Brown, S. C. 1998. Remnant seed banks and vegetation as predictors of restored marsh vegetation. Canadian Journal of Botany 76:620–629.
Goodrich, R. L. and J. F. Milleson. 1974. Studies of floodplain vegetation and water level fluctuation in the Kissimmee River Valley. South Florida Water Management District, West Palm Beach, FL, USA. Technical Publication 74-2.
Gunther, P. P., D. J. Casagrande, and R. R. Cherney. 1984. The viability and fate of seeds as a function of depth in the peats of Okefenokee Swamp. p. 168–179. In A. D. Cohen, D. J. Casagrande, M. J. Andrejko, and G. R. Best (eds.) The Okefenokee Swamp: Its Natural History, Geology, and Geochemistry, Wetland Surveys, Los Alamos, NM, USA.
Jansson, R., C. Nilsson, M. Dynesius, and E. Andersson. 2000. Effects of river regulation on river-margin vegetation: a comparison of eight boreal rivers. Ecological Applications 10:203–224.
Koebel, J. W., Jr. 1995. An historical perspective on the Kissimmee River restoration project. Restoration Ecology 3:149–159.
Leck, M. A. 1989. Wetland seed banks. p. 283–305. In M. A. Leck, B. T. Parker, and R. L. Simpson (eds.) Ecology of Soil Seed Banks. Academic Press, New York, NY, USA.
McIntyre, S., P. Y. Ladiges, and G. Adams. 1988. Plant species-richness and invasion by exotics in relation to disturbance of wetland communities on the Riverine Plain. Australian Journal of Ecology 13:361–373.
Schneider, R. L. and R. R. Sharitz. 1986. Seed bank dynamics in a southeastern riverine swamp. American Journal of Botany 73: 1022–1030.
Siegley, C. E., R. E. J. Boerner, and J. M. Reutter. 1988. Role of the seed bank in the development of vegetation on a freshwater marsh created from dredge spoil. Journal of Great Lakes Research 14:267–276.
Smith, L. M. and J. A. Kadlec. 1983. Seed banks and their role during drawdown of a North American marsh. Journal of Applied Ecology 20:673–684.
Tobe, J. D., K. Craddock Burks, R. W. Cantrell, M. A. Garland, M. E. Sweeley, D. W. Hall, P. Wallace, G. Angin, G. Nelson, J. R. Cooper, D. Bickner, K. Gilbert, N. Aymond, K. Greenwood, and N. Raymond. 1998. Florida Wetland Plants: An Identification Manual. Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Tallahassee, FL, USA.
Toth, L. A. 1991. Environmental responses to the Kissimmee River Demonstration Project. South Florida Water Management District, West Palm Beach, FL, USA. Technical Publication 91-02.
Toth, L. A. 1993. The ecological basis of the Kissimmee River restoration plan. Florida Scientist 56:25–51.
Toth, L. A. 1996. Restoring the hydrogeomorphology of the channelized Kissimmee River. p. 369–383. In A. Brookes and F. D. Shields Jr. (eds.) River Channel Restoration: Guiding Principles for Sustainable Projects. John Wiley & Sons Ltd., New York, NY, USA.
Toth, L. A., D. A. Arrington, M. A. Brady, and D. A. Muszick. 1995. Conceptual evaluation of factors potentially affecting restoration of habitat structure within the channelized Kissimmee River ecosystem. Restoration Ecology 3:160–180.
United States Fish and Wildlife Service 1996. National list of vascular plant species that occur in wetlands: 1996 national survey. http://wetlands.fws.gov/bha/list96.htm.
van der Valk, A. G. 1981. Succession in wetlands: a Gleasonian approach. Ecology 62:688–696.
van der Valk, A. G. and C. B. Davis. 1978. The role of seed banks in the vegetation dynamics of prairie glacial marshes. Ecology 59: 322–325.
van der Valk, A. G. and R. L. Pederson. 1989. Seed banks and the management and restoration of natural vegetation. p. 329–346. In M. A. Leck, V. T. Parker, and R. L. Simpson (eds.) Ecology of Soil Seed Banks. Academic Press, New York, NY, USA.
van der Valk, A. G., R. L. Pederson, and C. B. Davis. 1992. Restoration and creation of freshwater wetlands using seed banks. Wetlands Ecology and Management 1:191–197.
van der Valk, A. G. and T. R. Rosburg. 1997. Seed bank composition along a phosphorus gradient in the northern Florida Everglades. Wetlands 17:228–236.
van der Valk, A. G. and J. T. A. Verhoeven. 1988. Potential role of seed banks and understory species in restoring quaking fens from floating forests. Vegetatio 76:3–13.
Welling, C. H., R. L. Pederson, and A. G. van der Valk. 1988. Recruitment from the seed bank and the development of emergent zonation during a drawdown in a prairie wetland. Journal of Ecology 76:483–496.
Weinhold, C. E. and A. G. van der Valk. 1989. The impact of duration of drainage on the seed banks of northern prairie wetlands. Canadian Journal of Botany 67:1878–1884.
Wunderlin, R. P. 1998. Guide to the Vascular Plants of Florida. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wetzel, P.R., van der Valk, A.G. & Toth, L.A. Restoration of wetland vegetation on the Kissimmee River Floodplain: Potential role of seed banks. Wetlands 21, 189–198 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1672/0277-5212(2001)021[0189:ROWVOT]2.0.CO;2
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1672/0277-5212(2001)021[0189:ROWVOT]2.0.CO;2