Re-Establishment Techniques and Transplantations of Charophytes to Support Threatened Species

Abstract

Re-establishment of submerged macrophytes and especially charophyte vegetation is a common aim in lake management. If revegetation does not happen spontaneously, transplantations may be a suitable option. Only rarely have transplantations been used as a tool to support threatened submerged macrophytes and, to a much lesser extent, charophytes. Such actions have to consider species-specific life strategies. K-strategists mainly inhabit permanent habitats, are perennial, have low fertility and poor dispersal ability, but are strong competitors and often form dense vegetation. R-strategists are annual species, inhabit shallow water and/or temporary habitats, and are richly fertile. They disperse easily but are weak competitors. While K-strategists easily can be planted as green biomass taken from another site, rare R-strategists often must be reproduced in cultures before they can be planted on-site. In Sweden, several charophyte species are extremely rare and fail to (re)establish, though apparently suitable habitats are available. Limited dispersal and/or lack of diaspore reservoirs are probable explanations. Transplantations are planned to secure the occurrences of these species in the country. This contribution reviews the knowledge on life forms, dispersal, establishment, and transplantations of submerged macrophytes with focus on charophytes and gives recommendations for the Swedish project.