Journal of Environmental Biology

Studies on taxonomic diversity of plant communities and modeling its potential distribution in Yazılı Canyon Nature Park, Turkey

A. Mert¹* and K. ?zkan²

¹Department of Wildlife Ecology and Managment, Faculty of Forestry, Suleyman Demirel University, 32260, Isparta, Turkey

²Department of Soil Science and Ecology, Faculty of Forestry, Suleyman Demirel University, 32260, Isparta, Turkey

*Corresponding Author E-mail: ahmetmert@sdu.edu.tr.

Key words

Diversity indices

Modeling

Plant community

Regression tree technique Taxonomic diversity

Publication Data

Paper received : 02.03.2016??????

Revised received : 30.08.2016??? ?

Re-revised received : 22.12.2016

Accepted : 10.05.2017

Abstract

Aim: The objective of the present study was to generate taxonomic diversity of plant communities and modeling its potential distribution in Yazılı Canyon Nature Park (Turkey).

Methodology: In the present study, taxonomic plant diversity were measured from the data obtained from 107 sampling plots and then modeled to visualize its' potential distribution by using regression tree technique (RTT) across the Yazılı Canyon Nature Park situated in the Mediterranean region, Turkey.?

Results: Taxonomic diversity values were between 3.427 and 4.459. The variables made up the regression tree model were slope (%), distance to stream, solar illumination, altitude and aspect. The explained variances of tree models were unexpectedly found low with the values of 31.05% and 24.21% for training and testing data. ?

Interpretation: Even though tree model does not have high explanation ability, it was visualized to see the potential distribution of the taxonomic diversity in the study area. The distribution map illustrated that the places immediate environment to Yazılı stream and highly very steep places of the canyon has more taxonomic diversity values than its' other parts. This result was found meaningful since those places are more humid and include the plant species having more taxonomic distances from each other compared to its' other parts.

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