Plant Species Dynamic Distribution in the Water-Level-Fluctuating Zone of the Main Stream and Bay of the Three Gorges Reservoir

A plant species distribution survey from the Water-Level-Fluctuating Zone(WLFZ) in the Three Gorges Reservoir(TGR) was carried out in the present field study.A total of 231 species,belong to 61 families and 169 genera,were found.Most vegetation were herbaceous plants including 105 annual herb species and 75 perennial herb species.Compared with the pre-dam riparian plant species(some 405 species of 240 genera belong to 83 families) in 2001,the decreased ratio of plant families,genera,and species of post-dam riparian vegetation in 2009 are 26.51%,29.58%,and 42.96%,respectively.Obvious differences in vegetation distribution were found between the Chuan-River area(from Chongqing to Fengjie) and the Gorge-River area(from Fengjie to Zigui).Human activities have had great impact on the vegetation distribution of the Water-Level-Fluctuating Zone.The structure of micro-topography and the construction of an experiment base may help protect the native vegetation.