The effects of litter displacement on riverbank vegetation

The hypotheses that litter deposition on riverbanks would depend on riverbank features and that litter mass would affect riverbank vegetation were tested by sampling vegetation, litter, and soil along a seventh-order stretch of the unregulated Vindel River in northern Sweden. Sampling was carried out within a horizontal litter gradient at the top of the riverbank where most of the litter deposition occurs. The amount of leaf litter left on the riverbank after flooding was significantly correlated (P < 0.05) with soil organic matter. In contrast, wood litter mass and total litter mass were not correlated (P > 0.05) with riverbank features such as soil organic matter, riverbank slope, or stem density. Species richness, species diversity, and the proportions of stemmed and nonstemmed species showed quadratic relationships (P < 0.05) with leaf litter mass, whereas ground vegetation cover decreased monotonically (P < 0.05) with increasing leaf litter mass. Tall, stemmed species were most frequent at eroded sites with low amounts of leaf litter and at sites where leaf litter had accumulated. In contrast, the highest proportion of low-growing species was found at sites with intermediate leaf litter masses. Community characteristics such as species richness, species diversity, and the proportions of stemmed and nonstemmed species (but not ground vegetation cover) were less strongly correlated with wood litter mass and total litter mass. Linear equations explained about half of the variation in ground vegetation cover along gradients of wood and total litter masses. Density and richness of seeds increased with increasing litter mass. We discuss the litter effects in terms of productivity and disturbance and conclude that flooding in pristine rivers may exert a considerable influence on riverbank vegetation as a result of litter displacement.