Values of village fengshui forest patches in biodiversity conrvation in the Pearl River Delta,China
Liang Hu a ,Zhen Li a ,⇑,Wen-bo Liao b ,Qiang Fan b
a School of Geographical Science and Planning,Sun Yat-n University,Guangzhou 510275,China b
School of Life Sciences,Sun Yat-n University,Guangzhou 510275,China
a r t i c l e i n f o Article history:
Received 23July 2010
Received in revid form 5December 2010Accepted 29January 2011
Available online 19February 2011Keywords:
Forest community feature Culturally protected forest Fengshui forest Species richness
The Pearl River Delta
a b s t r a c t
Chine village fengshui forests (VFF)are small remnant forest patches that coexist with natural villages.The indigenous residents protect the forest patches under traditional Chine geomancy beliefs (namely fengshui ).However,the VFF community features and conrvation values and relationships with the indigenous people remain poorly understood.In this study,we evaluated tree species diversity conrva-tion of regional VFF patches by sampling a 1200m 2tranct within each patch.We also tested our hypothesis that patch size did not significantly impact interior forest community features of well-pro-tected VFF patches.Thirty-two well-protected VFF patches in the Pearl River Delta,China were investi-gated.The average coefficient of similarity between trancts (CS)was employed to evaluate community heterogeneity.Five forest community parameters (tree sp
ecies richness per 1200m 2,tree stem density,tree basal area density,Shannon–Wiener diversity index (SWI),and Simpson diversity index (SI))were measured and compared with regional well-developed evergreen broadleaved,conifer-ous and coniferous-broadleaved mixed forests.The relationships between the five parameters versus patch size and elevation were analyzed.A total of 266tree species comprid of 57families were recorded in 32trancts,of which 258(97%)species were indigenous and eight (3%)were exotic.Ten tree species were endangered,rare or nationally protected by the Chine government,and 57species were endemic to China.The average CS was 0.38;and the average five forest community parameter values were as follows:46.8for tree species richness;3403plants/ha for stem density,49.1m 2/ha for basal area,4.04for SWI and 0.90for SI.The values were consistent with well-developed evergreen broadleaved forests and greater than coniferous and coniferous-broadleaved forests.No significant correlation was detected between the five community parameters and patch area or elevation.We conclude that VFF patches prerve abundant tree species and heterogeneous habitats,which are important for maintaining regional biodiversity.The interior community features of VFF patches were not significantly affected by patch size.We recommend protection of both large and small VFF patches,which can be substantially enhanced by the prervation of associated traditional relic village cultures.
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1.Introduction
The establishment and maintenance of rerve systems and networks is a primary strategy for biodiversity conrvation (Byers et al.,2001;Heywood and Iriondo,2003).Island biogeography and metapopulation theories,and species-area relationships support that larger rerves are more effective in successful conrvation strategies (MacArthur and Wilson,1967;Patterson,1987;Hanski,1999).Smaller rerves are expected to retain fewer species than larger rerves (MacArthur and Wilson,1967;Debinski and Holt,2000;Fischer and Lindenmayer,2002).However,recent rearch has noted the value of small remnant forest patches in biodiversity
conrvation (Fischer and Lindenmayer,2002;Laguna et al.,2004;Arroyo-Rodríguez et al.,2008).Small rerves compri esntial supplemental habitat for many mammals (Tutin et al.,1997),birds (Fischer and Lindenmayer,2002),incts (Koh and Sodhi,2004)and plants (dos Santos et al.,2007).In addition,species diversity is generally affected by rerve patch area and shape (Yamaura et al.,2008).The conrvation values of plant communities in small remnant forest patches have been reported to depend on the level of deforestation in the surrounding landscape;tree species rich-ness per unit area in smaller patches is comparable to that of larger patc
hes in landscapes with lower deforestation levels,while signif-icantly lower in landscapes with higher deforestation levels (Ar-royo-Rodríguez et al.,2008).
Culturally protected forests (CPF)are small remnant forest patches widespread throughout the world.They have been pro-tected for centuries by indigenous communities for special cultural
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reasons,such as religious,taboos and/or traditional beliefs(Ander-son et al.,2005;Chun and Tak,2009;Yuan and Liu,2009).Gener-ally,hunting and logging are verely restricted in CPF patches (Gadgil and Vartak,1976;Anderson et al.,2005;Yuan and Liu, 2009).Some patches may even be regarded as sacred or holy with u being further limited or prohibited(Decher,1997;Jim, 2003a).Interests in CPF patch biodiversity and ecological function has incread over the last veral decades,and their importance in biodiversity conrvation has been widely discusd(Bhagw
at and Rutte,2006;Bodin et al.,2006;Croci et al.,2008),especially in Byers et al.,2001;Wassie et al.,2010)and Jim,2003a;Wadley and Colfer,2004;Anderson et al.,2005)under names such as sacred grove(Bhagwat and Rutte,2006),fengshui (Yuan and Liu,2009),songgye(Chun and Tak,2009),and church for-ests(Wassie et al.,2010).Most CPF patches have been maintained and protected for centuries and have been disturbed only by limited human activities.The sites have well-developed vegetation(Gadgil and Vartak,1976;Anderson et al.,2005),some of which have sur-vived vere deforestation events in regional scales(Liu et al., 2007;Yuan and Liu,2009).However,human ttlements have acutely affected local and regional natural environments through-out the centuries(Yip et al.,2004;Hahs et al.,2009).Excessive land u and alteration in combination with resource exploitation have led to the formation of fragmented landscapes(Croci et al.,2008; Hahs et al.,2009).Conquently,CPF patches are scattered in land-scapes exhibiting high deforestation and are considered isolated forest patches surrounded by a matrix of farmlands and ttlements with decread biodiversity(Jim,2003a).According to island bioge-ography theory,extinction rates increa and immigration rates de-crea with decrea of patch area(MacArthur and Wilson,1967). Therefore,if the original species richness per unit area were the same for the two patches differed in size,the incread extinction rates of smaller CPF patches would result in decread species rich-ness per unit area.However,recent rearch on the E
mp3批量下载thiopian church forests showed no trend between species richness per unit area and patch size(Wassie et al.,2010).Additional studies are re-quired to determine if a relationship between species richness per unit area and patch size are exhibited in CPF patches.
Fengshui forests are widespread in South China and are one of the most important CPF types.The forests are prerved under the traditional Chine geomancy beliefs(termed fengshui believe; literally‘feng’means wind and‘shui’means water),and their orien-tation,species composition,canopy density and other forest com-munity attributes are thought to have vital impacts on human health and wealth of indigenous communities(Guan,2002;Yip et al.,2004).Sometimes fengshui forests are also referred to the Earth God(Yip et al.,2004).Fengshui forests have been widely practiced in China for more than2200years(Yuan and Liu, 2009).There are three fengshui forest types bad on location:vil-lage fengshui forest(VFF),cemetery fengshui forest and temple fengshui forest(Guan,2002).The VFF is considered the most impor-tant and is typically located behind or on either side of a natural village(Guan,2002;Yip et al.,2004).In recent years,the attention paid to VFF from ecologists has incread,however most published work has focud on the species composition of one Liu et al.,2007;Zhang et al.,2007;Liao et al.,2008a,b;Lüet al.,2009).
A paucity of knowledge remains with respect to community fea-tures and VFF roles at larger ecologi
cal scales.VFF contributions to regional biodiversity conrvation have not been well validated, and in particular the differences between small and large VFF patches in biodiversity conrvation have never been reported.
In the prent study,we evaluated the contribution of well-pro-tected VFF patches in regional tree species and habitat conrva-tion.We hypothesized that patch size does not significantly affect the interior community features of well-protected VFF patches.Thirty-two well-protected VFF patches in the Pearl River Delta region of South China were studied by sampling methods. Interior community features of the patches were examined and compared with regional well-developed evergreen broadleaved, coniferous and coniferous-broadleaved mixed forests.The relation-ships among interior forest community features,patch size and elevation were analyzed.VFF patch protection strategies and con-rvation were discusd.
2.Methods
2.1.Study area
The Pearl River Delta is located along the east coast of Guang-dong province in South China(Fig.1).It is one of the leading eco-nomic regions of the country.The regional landscape is highl
jump是什么y deforested and coverage of formerly widespread primary forest (subtropical evergreen broadleaved forest)is less than1.5%(Wen and Huang,2006).The mean annual temperature is21–23°C,and the mean annual rainfall exceeds1600mm(Lu and Ye,1988).VFF patches were once common in the Pearl River Delta(Zhuang and Corlett,1997).They are now considered to remnants of mature c-ondary evergreen broadleaved forests(Yip et al.,2004;Chen et al., 2009),exhibiting almost intact original habitats(Jim,2003b).
2.2.Data collection and vegetation sampling
The local history and VFF patches of over100traditional villages in the Pearl River Delta region were investigated from2007to2009. However,over two-thirds of them were destroyed by logging or in-vaded by cultivated fruit and economical Eucalyptus spp. and Pinus massoniana).Therefore,only32well-protected forest patches were lected for this study.The patches are distributed in ven districts of the Guangdong province,within latitude 22°090–23°200N and longitude112°180–114°260E(Fig.1).The patch size ranged from0.4to16ha and8to219m a.s.l.in elevation.Each VFF patch was located in the proximity of a village with a ttle-ment history exceeding300y(usually400–800y),which was established from the number of generations recorded in family trees and interviews with local residents.Ancient ancestral halls, where the villages comme
morate their ancestors,reprented the centuries-old histories of both the villages and VFF patches. Twenty-eight studied villages had at least one ancestral hall.
Fig.1.Approximate locations of the32village fengshui forest patches sampled the Pearl River Delta region of China.
1554L.Hu et al./Biological Conrvation144(2011)1553–1559
The minimum sampling area within the region of well-devel-oped evergreen forests was approximately 1200m 2,bad on pre-vious rearch (Wang et al.,1984;Zhang et al.,1989).A 20Â60m tranct was t up in the interior of each VFF patch.The minimum distance from the tranct to the forest patch edge was >5m to avoid edge effects.All tree stems (including tree ferns)with P 2cm dbh (diameter at breast height)and P 1.5m height were identified and measured.Species that were not identified in the field were collected for subquent identification and stored at the Biology Muum or the Soil and Plant Specimen Room of Sun Yat-n University.2.3.Data analys
Five community parameters were calculated bad on tranct investigation to characterize the forest community features of VFF patches:(a)tree species richness per 1200m 2;(b)tree stem density
(plant/ha);(c)tree basal area density (m 2/ha);(d)Shan-non–Wiener diversity index (SWI)calculated as SWI ¼ÀP n i ¼1p i log 2p i ;and (e)Simpson diversity index (SI)calculated as SI ¼1ÀP n
i ¼1p 2i where p was the stem proportion of a given species in the tranct.
The VFF values relative to regional biodiversity conrvation were confirmed by comparing our results with average values of regional well-developed evergreen broadleaved,coniferous,and coniferous-broadleaved mixed forests.Although we undertook a thorough survey of the related literature,the number of valid sam-ples was limited by the differences in sample area and survey cri-terion.The sample area of communities in the published literature ranged from 100to 20,000m 2,and the survey criterion varied con-siderably.In this study,only 27samples with a 1200m 2sample area each were chon to insure comparability of results,including 15broadleaved,five coniferous and ven coniferous-broadleaved mixed forests.The survey criterion for the samples ranged from 1.5to 3m in height and 1to 2cm in diameter.The samples were col-lected from regional natural rerves and forest parks,supporting well-developed condary evergreen forests,including 11samples in Dinghushan Natural Rerve (112°310E,23°100N),two in Heish-iding Natural Rerve (111°520E,23°310N),nine in Yangtaishan For-est Park (113°180E,22°540N),four in Weilingshan Forest Park (114°070E,22°350N)and one in Hong Kong Shing Mum Country Park (114°090E,22°240
N).
To evaluate VFF patch community heterogeneity,the average coefficient of similarity between trancts (CS)was employed
and calculated as CS ¼P
n i ¼1½2c =ða þb Þ =n ,where a and b were the numbers of species in two compared patches,c was the num-ber of species shared by a and b ,and n was the pair of compared patches.CS of each patch was calculated.The frequency distribu-tion of all trees,national protected tree species of China (NPT)and endangered and rare tree species (ERT)in the China Species Red List (Wang and Xie,2004)were also analyzed.
The partial correlation coefficients between the five community parameters and two independent variables (patch area and eleva-tion)were analyzed (level of significance 0.05,two-tailed test)to test our hypothesis that patch size has no significant influence on interior community attributes of well-protected VFF patches.Data analys were performed using SPSS for Windows,relea 15.0,a product of SPSS Inc.2006.3.Results 3.1.Plant diversity
Results indicated the VFF patches in the Pearl River Delta region support abundant plant species.A total of 266tree species com-关于诚信的英语作文
prid of 57families were recorded in the 32studied VFF patches,of which 258(97%)species were indigenous and eight (3%)were exotic.Euphorbiaceae (27species),Lauraceae (25),Moraceae (20),Rubiaceae (14)and Myrtaceae (10)were the five most diver families and reprented 36%of the total tree species.There were other four families had P 5tree species each,including the Faga-ceae (7),Papilionaceae (7),Ulmaceae (6),and Aquifoliaceae (6).The VFF patches in the Pearl River Delta region also maintain many NPT and ERT species.The analys revealed a total of 57(21.4%)species endemic to China.Eight NPT from ven families were recorded,including a tree fern (Alsphila spinulosa )and ven dicots (Antiaris toxicaria ,Aquilaria sinensis ,Castanopsis kawakamii ,Cinnamomum camphora ,Erythrophleum fordii ,Machilus chekiangen-sis and Ixonanthes chinensis ).In addition,eight ERT species were identified,including Reevesia longipetiolata and Carallia diplopetala .Six of the eight are NPT species,with the exception of A.spinulosa and M.chekiangensis .multi
3.2.Community heterogeneity
The CS results and frequency distributions indicated that the VFF patches posss highly heterogeneous communities.First,CS values ranged from 0.21to 0.47,with 0.38(SD =±0.06)on average,suggesting a heterogeneous species composition among VFF patches.Second,the majority of tree species (71.8%)were distrib-uted in up to four of the 32patches (Fig.2),and 105(39.5%)species were found to occur in only one patch each and 3.3species per patch on average.Only 14(5.3%)tree species were distributed in over half the patches,one species (Aporosa chinens )was recorded in 31patches,and none of the species were recorded in all 32patches (Fig.2).Two (A.sinensis and C.camphora )of the 10NPT or ERT species were recorded in more than 10patches,while the other eight were recorded in less than four patches (Fig.2).Third,35subpopulations of NPT and ERT species occurred in VFF patches,and 21VFF patches support at least one NPT or ERT species (Ta-ble 1).In particular,the VFF patches associated with Bihu and Lian-tang villages had three NPT each,while the Jiangwan village in Jiangmen had four NPT (Table 1).
L.Hu et al./Biological Conrvation 144(2011)1553–15591555
3.3.Community features
The results shown in Table2suggest that VFF in the Pearl River Delta are well-developed remnant p
atches of regional lowland evergreen forests.The average tree species richness per1200m2 was38(SD=±8)for VFF patches,lower than broadleaved forests and higher than coniferous and coniferous-broadleaved mixed for-ests(Table2).A total of11,666plants were recorded in the32VFF patches.The average VFF patch plant density was3403plants/ha (SD=±980),lower than broadleaved and coniferous forests(Ta-ble2).The average VFF patch tree basal area density was 49.1m2/ha(SD=±16.2),higher than broadleaved and coniferous forests(Table2).The average values of VFF patch biodiversity indi-ces,SWI and SI,were 4.04(SD=±0.35)and0.90(SD=±0.03), respectively,both of which were comparable to broadleaved for-ests and higher than coniferous and coniferous-broadleaved mixed forests of the region(Table2).In summary,the community fea-tures of VFF patches in the Pearl River Delta were comparable to, tho of well-developed evergreen broadleaved forests of the re-gion,suggesting the VFF communities are likely remnant patches of regional well-developed lowland evergreen forest.
3.4.Effects of patch area on community features
A significant correlation was not detected between any of the five forest community parameters(tree species richness per 1200m2tranct,SWI,SI,tree stem density and basal area density) with respect to patch area or elevation(Table3).It is reasonable that VFF community attributes were not significant
ly affected by elevation considering the largest elevational difference between
Table1
tsa
Forest community characteristics of32village fengshui forest(VFF)patches in the Pearl River Delta region,China(sample area size=1200m2).CS:average coefficient of similarity between trancts;NPT:national protected tree species of China;ERT:endangered or rare tree species;SWI:Shannon–Wiener diversity index;SI:Simpson diversity index.
City Village Elevation(m)Patch area(ha)CS Tree species NPT or ERT SWI SI Stem density(plant/ha)Basal area(m2/ha)
Dongguan Bihu90 1.50.43453 4.260.92330052.5 Dasha37 2.70.42281 3.520.89236753.3
Huocaodong600.70.30310 3.90.9168345.8
Jichiling42 1.50.38302 3.870.9294260.0
Foshan Gongtian150 3.80.33462 4.40.93323351.7 Lunchong25 6.50.38310 4.190.92197534.2
Pingnan25 1.10.41250 3.870.91303325.0
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Shanbu150.70.38351 4.110.92355027.5
Xiancun18 6.60.41320 4.160.92231746.7
Yang’ao18 3.30.37250 3.530.87283341.7
Yuantou22 2.90.44300 4.090.93330832.5
sanbanYunlu2020.50.21310 3.860.89214252.5
Yunlu219 4.60.32421 4.540.94220834.2 Guangzhou Liantang400.80.32503 4.530.93644266.7
Jiangmen Jiangwan106 5.50.41504 4.890.95298335.8 Jiaotang16314.40.36592 4.360.92405038.3
Nanshe360.40.38270 3.250.82217545.0
Shalan260.60.40410 4.070.91472535.0
Tanglang33 3.80.33350 4.170.92310040.0
Shenzhen Shangdiefu25 2.10.32442 3.870.86339273.3 Xiaomeisha17 1.50.31451 4.020.88267558.3
Zhongshan Dahuan52 2.50.46412 4.510.94279235.8 Fuchong10 1.40.38371 4.040.91226791.7
Guhe529.60.40410 3.410.85265070.0
Heshuikou10 5.90.44351 4.030.91225073.3
Jiangweitou58 6.70.46381 3.480.83398366.7
Qishan289.30.42381 4.120.92301750.8
Shiyingqiao68 4.80.42392 4.260.93300050.8
Tanggan8 6.70.47381 3.920.91233340.0
Zhanchong1216.00.39422 3.990.89208370.8
Zhuhai Datuonan25 3.00.31491 4.210.92351723.3 Lishan31 2.10.43501 3.940.87489246.7
Total––133.5–26635––11,6661570.0
Table2
Forest community characteristics of well-developed village fengshui forests(VFF),regional evergreen broadleaved,coniferous and coniferous-broadleaved mixed forests in the Pearl River Delta region,China(sample area size=1200m2).SWI:Shannon–Wiener diversity index;SI:Simpson diversity index.Number in brackets indicates valid samples and superscripts are the bibliographic references a.
Tree species SWI SI Stem density(plant/ha)Basal area(m2/ha)
Fengshui forest38(32) 4.04(32)0.90(32)3403(32)49.1(32) Broadleaved forests51(15)3,4,5,6,7,8 4.17(15)3,4,5,6,7,80.90(12)3,5,6,7,84325(3)3,837.2(2)3 Coniferous-broadleaved mixed forests34(7)4,5,6,7,9 3.28(7)4,5,6,7,8,90.86(6)5,6,7,9––
Coniferous forests32(5)1,2,7 3.29(4)2,70.77(4)2,74121(3)1,231.9(1)1
a References:1Liu et al.,2003a;2Liu and Wang,1987;3Liu et al.,2003b;4Peng and Chen,1983;5Peng and Wang,1983;6Wang and Peng,1986;7Wang et al.,2008;8 Zhang et al.,1989;9Zhou et al.,2004.
1556L.Hu et al./Biological Conrvation144(2011)1553–1559
patches was only211m,which is not sufficient to effectively exhi-bit altitudinal gradients in plant community structure(Table1). The uniform rejected results bad on community parameters and patch area confirmed our hypothesis that VFF patch interior community features were not significantly affected by patch size.
4.Discussion
The results of our study revealed that VFF patches rve an important role in regional biodiversity conrvation.Patch interior community attributes are comparable to regional well-developed evergreen broadleaved forests.The dominant families of VFF patches recorded in this study are congruent with former reports from Hong Kong(Zhuang and Corlett,1997;Yip et al.,2004)and the Pearl River Delta region(Cai et al.,1998;Zhuang et al.,2010). Therefore,it is reasonable to consider the well-protected VFF as remnant patches of well-developed lowland evergreen broad-leaved forests.Due to the long distance between large prerved forest patches and high deforestation rates at the regional level (Wen and Huang,2006),the small remnant VFF patches are ex-pected to improve regional landscape connectivity and increa lo-cal species and habitat diversity.VFF patches also provide clues to understand the structure and composition of native vegetation (Yip et al.,2004).Dominant tree species in VFF patches are now considered the best option in forest restorat
ion strategies,and the forest community structure provides standards to evaluate the effectiveness of restoration process(Chen,2008;Liao et al., 2008a).A number of widespread tree species recorded in this study (e.g. A.chinens,P.rubra phylla)have been recom-mended as ideal afforestation species(Chen,2008;Liao et al., 2008a).
VFF patch protection is a valuable and economical strategy for regional biodiversity conrvation.For example,the32VFF patches cover a total area of only133.5ha but support eight (38%)of the total NPT species previously recorded in the Pearl Riv-er Delta region(Liao and Zhu,2003).This value can increa to11 (52%)if combined our result with relative rearch(Li et al.,2006; Liao et al.,2008a),which is comparable to that of the Heishiding Natural Rerve(4000ha,11NPT species)and higher than the Dinghushan Natural Rerve(1155ha,9NPT species)(Dinghushan Arboretum,1987;Shi and Huang,1987).Similarly,subpopulations of endangered and rare species maintained in VFF patches are vital for regional metapopulation recovery,particularly for species such as E.fordii and Endospermum chinen,where subpopulations are diminishing in large rerves(Wang and Huang,1998).Further-more,protection of VFF patches is permeated by Chine tradi-tional fengshui beliefs.Conrvation of VFF patches remains prerved by village regulations and customary laws,and VFF pro-tection is a common consciousness of regional residents(Xian, 20
01;Yuan and Liu,2009).Conquently,costs for VFF patch pro-tection are expected to be lower than tho of non-culturally pro-tected remnant forest patches.
However,effective management and support from governmen-tal institutions are still esntial for long-term VFF protection. Although preliminary VFF patch protection has been attempted at a local Yip et al.,2004),large-scale efforts are still lack-ing.Many VFF patches have not been afforded official governmen-tal protection(Yip et al.,2004;Guo et al.,2007;Yuan and Liu, 2009).Local residents have effectively protected the VFF patches investigated in this study,yet they remain threatened by urbaniza-tion and commercial plantations.The decline of indigenous resi-dent proportion in population and abnce of understanding by immigrants weakens the decision-making power by indigenous people,which increas the difficulties of VFF protection(Byers et al.,2001).In the ca of urbanization and abandonment of nat-ural villages,the fengshui forests that coexisted with the villages will be rapidly destroyed(Yip et al.,2004).Therefore,in support of Byers et al.(2001)and Bhagwat and Rutte(2006),we recom-mend that VFF patch conrvation be ensured by protection of nat-ural village cultures.VFF patches will benefit from protection of associated cultural relics,including historical buildings,ancestral halls,Hakka enclod hous(Yang and Lai,2008)and village watchtowers(Zhang and You,2009).Overall,additional efforts and support from governmental
agencies are necessary to unite the solely protected highly diver habitat patches into a more effective conrvation network.
In general,caution should be taken in using patch size as the only factor to evaluate VFF patches.Arroyo-Rodríguez et al. (2008)reported that remnant patch conrvation values were sig-nificantly lower in higher deforestation landscapes(11–24%rain-forest cover)than in lower deforestation landscapes(4% rainforest cover)and declined significantly with decreasing patch size.Our study indicated that smaller VFF patches were compara-ble to large patches with respect to interior forest community attri-butes and species richness per unit area.Wassie et al.(2010) reported similar results for Ethiopian church forest.Small VFF patches are also precious remnant treasures of well-developed evergreen broadleaved forests,considering the extremely low cov-erage of regional primary forests(Wen and Huang,2006;Guo et al., 2007).Small VFF patches are also important ecologically in endan-gered and rare species conrvation,as well as relatively stable for-est communities.Therefore,we suggest rious consideration to protect both large and small VFF patches.
电子商务英语词汇Although our rearch revealed the values of VFF patches in re-gional tree species diversity and conrvation,investigations into levels of diversity and ecological process of many other taxa (e.g.i
ncts,birds and invertebrates)in VFF patches remain to be evaluated.For example,VFF patches have been considered a poten-tial supply of ed resources and dispersal agents for surrounding artificial plantations(Zhuang and Corlett,1997;Yip et al.,2004). Although study in Wuyuan,Jiangxi revealed that village fengshui forest supplied important habitats for60.2%regional breeding bird species(Liao et al.,2007),experimental evidence has not yet been reported to connect bird with ed dispersal.Similarly,although our rearch confirmed the hypothesis that interior forest features of well-protected VFF patches are not significantly affected by patch size,the affects of other patch shape and artifi-cial disturbance)and regeneration of the interior forest community should be assd.Additional rearch is necessary to evaluate VFF in regional biodiversity conrvation and differences between larger and smaller VFF patches.
5.Conclusions
Fengshui forest patches are natural treasures for both cultural and natural conrvation.Our study suggested that VFF patches in the Pearl River Delta region prerve abundant species and het-
Table3
Partial correlation analysis results onfive forest community features from32village fengshui forests(V
FF)(sample area size=1200m2)versus patch area and elevation in the Pearl River Delta region,China.SWI:Shannon–Wiener diversity index;SI: Simpson diversity index.
Parameter Controlled
parameter Tree
species
SWI SI Stem
density
(plant/ha)
Basal
area
(m2/ha)
Area Elevation R20.0960.0260.0810.0230.024
P0.0890.3900.1220.4210.406
Elevation Area R20.0890.0200.1760.0010.025
P0.1020.4480.1090.8450.395
L.Hu et al./Biological Conrvation144(2011)1553–15591557
