Date of Award

1978

Degree Name

Biological Sciences

College

College of Science

Type of Degree

M.S.

Document Type

Thesis

First Advisor

Dan K. Evans

Second Advisor

Stanley W. Ash

Third Advisor

Sam E. Clagg

Fourth Advisor

Donald C. Tarter

Abstract

A total of 246 species of vascular plants representing 75 families were recorded from six physiographically defined forest types in the Ohio River floodplain between the Greet Kanawha end Big Sandy Rivers, West Virginia. Distinct woodlands were those associated with the River flats, River front, bottoms of secondary streams, stream banks, the high floodplain end swamps. Only two species, Acer saccharinum and Platenus occidentalis representing 0.81 percent of the total species encountered, were present in all forest types; 105 species (42.7 percent) were restricted to one forest type. Fifty-five species were new additions to the flora of one or more of the counties included in the study area. Floristic similarity co-efficients of six forest types ranged from 0.73 to 0.10, with the Swamp Forest being least related. Trees, Saplings, shrubs, seedlings end herbs were quantified by quadrat analysis, the latter two in both spring and summer seasons. Among the canopy elements there were 27 species of trees while the sapling class included 24 species. All forests were comprised of secondary growth. Actual basal area of canopy species ranged from 14.6 feet 2/acre in the Swamp Forest to 129.7 feet 2/acre in the Stream Bank Forest. Actual density ranged from 60.5 trees per acre in the Swamp Forest to 174.4 trees per acre in the High Floodplain Forest. Disturbance indicting species Ligustrum vulgare, Lonicere japonice and Rosa multiflora were frequently encountered. Dominant canopy species were well represented in all size classes in those forest types occupying the lowest end frequently flooding elevations (flats, frontals, swamps and stream borders). However, at high, seldom flooding elevations (high floodplain, streambanks), the canopy dominants are poorly represented among the various size classes including seedlings. Species richness cannot be related to habitat age and degree of disturbance in all forest types.

Subject(s)

Flora -- West Virginia.

Plants -- West Virginia.

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