| Standard methods of vegetation classification and survey tend to be either too broad for management purposes or too reliant on local species to support inter-regional comparisons. A new approach to this problem uses species-independent plant functional types with a wide spectrum of environmental sensitivity. By means of a rule set, plant functional types can be constructed according to specific combinations from within a generic set of 35 adaptive, morphological plant functional attributes. Each combination assumes that a vascular plant individual can be described as a "coherent" functional unit. When used together with vegetation structure, plant functional types facilitate rapid vegetation assessment that complements species-based data and makes possible... |
