VEGETATION CHANGES OVER TIME Is there Freeze Frame? • River Friend Series BOOK 8 • ISBN 978 1 9162096 6 4

Description

VEGETATION CHANGES OVER TIME Is there Freeze Frame? • River Friend Series BOOK 8 • ISBN 978 1 9162096 6 4 • By Sylvia M. Haslam & Tina Bone
A5 Paperback 52pp. (80 Illustrations)

This book is a demonstration, for students and naturalists alike, of changes and the sensitivity of river communities to their environment, and indeed of the speed of their response.

Water makes the river what and where it is. All life needs water. People often talk about the earth’s life being carbon-based (mostly). True, but even more it is water-based! Most life forms are composed of at least 80% water. In addition, aquatic plants and animals live part or all of their lives within, on, or by the water. Long-term, of course, there must be change with climate change, for example, when most of Britain was covered by ice some 10,000 years ago, the vegetation under that ice was not what is there today.

No vegetation is therefore, in the exact sense, stable. But what about lesser time periods—5, 15, 50, 150 years ago? For how long has the vegetation remained stable? Unfortunately there is a lack of recorded history so this small book will summarize some of what is available, but its main aim is to inform, encourage, and pave the way for new interest.

It is worth noting that THE HABITAT CHOOSES THE SPECIES. It is easy to think the plant chooses, in reality the plant’s choice is very limited.

Keywords:

RFS8; ABERDEEN; AQUATIC; AQUIFER; BARRINGTON; CHALKSTREAM; CLEAN WATER; CUMULATIVE POLLUTION; DIRTY WATER; FLUSH WATER; FREEZE FRAME; HABITAT; HARSTON; MILL STREAM; MIXED VEGETATION; MOSSES; NEWPORT PAGNELL; NUTRIENTS; PLANT COMMUNITIES; PLANTS CHANGE; POLLUTION; POTAMOGETON; RAINWATER; RANUNCULUS; RIVER; RIVER DON; RIVER FRIEND; RIVER GREAT OUSE; RIVER ITCHEN; RIVER LARK; RIVER MAPS; RIVER RHEE; RIVER STRUCTURE; RIVERBED; RUN-OFF; SEWAGE; SHORT FRINGING; HERBS; SILT; SOIL TYPE; SPARGANIUM EMERSUM; STAYING STABLE; STORM WATER; STREAM; SUBSTRATE; SYLVIA HASLAM; TEMPLE BRIDGE; TINA BONE; TOXIC; TUDDENHAM MILL; WATER CHEMICAL; WATER CROWFOOT; WATER PLANTS; WHAT IS IN WATER;

CONTENTS

Introduction 1

Plants Change 4

Changing Communities 7

River Lark, Temple Bridge, Suffolk 7

(a) Short fringing herbs 9

(b) Ranunculus fluitans (Water crowfoot) 10

(c) Potamogetons (Pondweeds) 12

(d) Sparganium emersum 16

(e) Mixed Vegetation 18

(f) Discussion 18

River Rhee (Barrington and Harston), Cambridgeshire 20

Barrington 23

Harston 24

Tuddenham Mill Stream, Tuddenham, Suffolk 29

River Great Ouse SW of Newport Pagnell 33

The (Aberdeen) River Don, 1969–1991 35

Staying Stable 45

Conclusion 45

Tables 46

List of Stand-alone Titles in the River Friend Series 48

About the Authors 48