Abstract
This chapter illustrates the procedure of developing a vegetation-based index of biotic integrity (V-IBI) to assess the health status of lake wetlands. Five steps are generally included: (1) field surveys and measurement of environmental variables, (2) reference site selection, (3) establishing disturbance gradients, (4) metric selection, and (5) metric scoring and V-IBI calculation. Seven metrics are selected to construct the V-IBI for Poyang Lake wetland in China. The metrics include numbers of invasive, sensitive, tolerant, and perennial species; percentages of obligate wetland species, and species with both sexual and vegetative propagation; and cover of Phalaris arundinacea L. The assessment provides an indication about the overall health condition of Poyang Lake wetland in corresponding categories.
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