Macrophyte colonization in a freshwater tidal wetland (Lyme, CT, USA)

Seed bank sampling and creation of plots cleared of standing vegetation showed that aboveground vegetative propagules were more important than seeds in colonization of a freshwater tidal wetland but that the relative importance of sexual reproduction varied among species. Nine submerged species established in colonization plots. Of these colonization events, 60% were achieved by plant fragments, either in the sediment or floating in the water, and 16% resulted from vegetative growth. Only 4 of 16 submerged species in the community were represented in the seed bank. The collection of vegetative propagules in nets demonstrated that drifting propagules were very abundant and that the relative abundance of species in the propagule stream corresponded most closely with the standing community. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved.