Effects of Drought on Plant Species Diversity and Productivity in the Oak Forests of Western Iran
Journal Title: Ecologia Balkanica - Year 2014, Vol 6, Issue 1
Abstract
A severe drought in 2008 extensively damaged a variety of economic, social, agricultural and natural resources in Iran. This study investigated the effects of the 2008 drought on plant species composition, diversity and productivity in Western Iran. To this end, plant species diversity in the drought year (2008) was compared to pre-drought (2007) and post-drought (2009) diversity. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index and Margalef richness index had significant differencesbetween years, decreasing significantly during drought and significantly increasing post-drought. In contrast, the Smith-Wilson evenness index did not significantly differ between years. Plant dry weight was significantly reduced by drought and increased significantly post-drought. The percent cover of sixteen species was significantly reduced in the drought year. Furthermore, nine species disappeared during drought, but reappeared after precipitation. The most sensitive species to drought were P[i]sathyrostachys fragili[/i], [i]Carex [/i]sp., [i]Falcaria[/i][i] falcarioide[/i], [i]Festuca ovina[/i] and [i]Scariola orientalis[/i]. Five species ([i]Cardaria draba[/i], [i]Echium amoenum[/i], [i]Polygonatum orientale[/i], [i]Medicago noeana[/i] and [i]Cirsium vulgare[/i]) not present before and during drought appeared the year after drought ended. Some of the effects of drought may be reduced by improved land management planning and water conservation to better provide for the water needs of Iran and other drought-prone countries.
Authors and Affiliations
Hassan Pourbabaei, Verya Rahimi, Mohammad Naghi Adel
Keywords
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