[Species diversity and managed ecosystem stability].
Based on partial experimental data of the studies on managed communities over 40 years, various managed communities in terms of ecological structures, e.g., rubber or tea plantation in one species with one community layer, rubber-tea and rubber-coffee of two species with two community layers, rubber-luofumu-qiannianjian of three species with three community layers, and artificial rain forest with multiple species and layers (hundred species with five layers) were discussed. The differences in systematic functions among three structures of the community were discussed, mainly from the followint spects: Biomass, productivity, and economical productivity; capability of protection and improvement of community environment (microclimate, soil etc.); capability of resistant to natural disaster (chilling and storm). The biomass and productivity in the system were significantly increased, as there were more species and vertical layers in the community. As the community structure became complicated, the microclimatic factors inside the system were marked changed: relative humidity was higher, maximum temperature was lower, minimum temperature was higher, wind slowdown velocity was slowed down, soil erosion reduced, and the resistance to chilling and storm become stronger. It is concluded that the stability of the system could be greatly affected by an artificial ecosystem.
Feng
Yaozong
Y
Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China.
D018533:Biomass; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D017753:Ecosystem; D004777:Environment