Distribution of Spartina plantations along the China’s coast

Four Spartina plantations,S.anglica,S.alterniflora,S.patens and S.cynosuriodes,have been introduced to China since 1963.S.anglica and S.alterniflora have been widely planted along the China's coast and arousing hot discussions and arguments about their effects and characteristics of invasion since 2000.The survey shows that S.anglica has been greatly degraded and only 16 hm² are left along the China's coast.However,S.alterniflora has widely spread to Liaoning Province,Hebei Province,Tianjin Municipality,Shandong Province,Jiangsu Province,Shanghai Municipality,Zhejiang Province,Fujian Province,Guangdong Province,the Zhuangzu.Autonomous Region of Guangxi and HongKong with an area of 34 451 hm² till 2007.The distribution of S.alterniflora<、i> can be divided into three parts according to its ecological niche and the characteristics of the China's coast.One is the tidal flats to the south part of Fuding,Fujian Province,which shows potential competition with mangrove ecosystem.The other is estuaries,especially in the Changjiang Estuary,which shows obvious competition with native reeds and Scirpusmari queter.The third is coastal tidal flats in the China's coast,which shows ambiguous effects among its economic,environmental,ecological benefits and invasive threats against local ecosyst em.S.alterniflora has shown different colonization capacity and spreading capacity in different areas in China's coast according to its distribution.Therefore,further studies and assessments on the ecological effects caused by S.alterniflora in the China's coast should be scientifically evaluated.