Cyclones influence native plant diversity on 22 remote high islands of French Polynesia and Pitcairn (eastern Polynesia)

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)



Description :
The A. examined the relative influence of 8 spatial characteristics on native plant diversity in 22 volcanic high islands of eastern Polynesia : island area, highest elevation, distance to the nearest continent, distance to the nearest archipelago, distance to the nearest similar island, index of isolation, distance to the largest and highest island of Tahiti, and distance to the cyclonic alley. Among characteristics studied, native plant diversity (indigenous and endemic species) was primarily linked with the island area and highest elevation of the islands. Contemporary cyclones were an important predictor of indigenous plant diversity in the remote islands surveyed. In the high islands surveyed, isolation did not appear as a significant predictor of native plant diversity, possibly due to a stepping-stone-island effect and the proximity of the cyclonic alley. These findings suggest that isolation could be tempered by a cyclonic-transport-flow effect in the study area.


Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Physical geography, issn : 0272-3646, 2014, vol. 35, n°. 6, p. 497-513, nombre de pages : 17, Références bibliographiques : 3 p.

Date :
2014

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, Abingdon, Taylor and Francis