INTRODUCTION TO THE FEATURED COLLECTION ON RIPARIAN ECOSYSTEMS & BUFFERS

摘要

Riparian ecosystems, located at the interface of terrestrial and aquatic systems, are often given special attention by scientists for their high biodiversity and biological activity (Naiman et al., 1993; Naiman and Decamps, 1997) and significant role in nutrient and energy flux (McClain et al., 2003). Riparian ecosystems are known to buffer environmental impacts and contribute to the maintenance of water quality (Low-rance et al., 1997). For example, riparian zones can intercept, filter, and process anthropogenic nitrogen inputs (Lowrance et al., 1984; Peterjohn and Correll, 1984; Mayer et al., 2007), attenuate phosphorus (Hoffmann et al., 2009), capture sediments (Liu et al., 2008), reduce urban noise (Harris, 1985), and moderate stream temperature (Wilkerson et al., 2006), functions that are especially important in the face of global climate change and continued land use development.