Interspecific Correlations among Bryophytes and among Bryophytes and Vascular Plants in Two Scales in Jinchuan Peatland

Two quadrat scales,1 m?1 m and 25 cm?25 cm,were established to investigate the vegetation of the Jinchuan Peatland.Interspecific correlations among 9 bryophytes and 30 main vascular plants were analyzed by X²-test,Pearson correlation,and Spearman rank correlation quantitatively.There were significantly negative associations among three main peatmosses: Sphagnum subsecundum,S.palustre,and S.capillifolium,each of which occupied different habitats.Accordingly,four ecological species groups were classified.Spearman rank correlation analysis showed that positive association amounted to 49.53% of the 741 species pairs in the large quadrats,and more than 41.14% of the 666 species pairs in the small quadrats.This study suggests that quadrat size played a crucial role in analyzing interspecific associations in peatlands,with great disparity in body size of different plant groups.It appears more suitable to analyze interspecific associations among bryophytes and among bryophytes and vascular plants with small and large quadrats, respectively.