The Sandhill Wetland (SW) and Nikanotee Fen (NF) are two wetland research projects designed to test the viability of peatland reclamation in the Alberta oil sands post-mining landscape. To identify effective approaches for establishing peat-forming vegetation in reclaimed wetlands, we evaluated how plant introduction approaches and water level gradients influence species distribution, plant community development, and the establishment of bryophyte and peatland species richness and cover. Plant introduction approaches included seeding with a Carex aquatilis-dominated seed mix, planting C. aquatilis and Juncus balticus seedlings, and spreading a harvested moss layer transfer. Establishment was assessed 6 years after the introduction at SW and 5 years after the introduction at NF. In total, 51 species were introduced to the reclaimed wetlands, and 122 species were observed after 5 and 6 years. The most abundant species in both reclaimed wetlands was C. aquatilis, which produced dense canopies and occupied the largest water level range of observed plants. Introducing C. aquatilis also helped to exclude marsh plants such as Typha latifolia that has little to no peat accumulation potential. Juncus balticus persisted where the water table was lower and encouraged the formation of a diverse peatland community and facilitated bryophyte establishment. Various bryophytes colonized suitable areas, but the moss layer transfer increased the cover of desirable peat-forming mosses. Communities with the highest bryophyte and peatland species richness and cover (averaging 9 and 14 species, and 50%–160% cover respectively) occurred where the summer water level was between −10 and −40 cm. Outside this water level range, a marsh community of Typha latifolia dominated in standing water and a wet meadow upland community of Calamagrostis canadensis and woody species established where the water table was deeper. Overall, the two wetland reclamation projects demonstrated that establishing peat-forming vascular plants and bryophytes is possible, and community formation is dependent upon water level and plant introduction approaches. Future projects should aim to create microtopography with water tables within 40 cm of the surface and introduce vascular plants such as J. balticus that facilitate bryophyte establishment and support the development of a diverse peatland plant community.

中文翻译：

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建立泥炭植物群落：艾伯塔省油砂地区湿地开垦方法的比较

Sandhill 湿地 (SW) 和 Nikanotee Fen (NF) 是两个湿地研究项目，旨在测试艾伯塔省油砂开采后景观中泥炭地复垦的可行性。为了确定在开垦湿地中建立泥炭形成植被的有效方法，我们评估了植物引入方法和水位梯度如何影响物种分布、植物群落发展以及苔藓植物和泥炭地物种丰富度和覆盖度的建立。植物引入方法包括用以水生苔草为主的种子混合物播种、种植水生苔草和灯心草幼苗，以及传播收获的苔藓层转移。在 SW 引入后 6 年和在 NF 引入后 5 年对建立情况进行了评估。总共有 51 个物种被引入到开垦的湿地，5 和 6 年后观察到 122 个物种。两个开垦湿地中最丰富的物种是C. aquatilis，它产生茂密的树冠并占据了观察到的植物的最大水位范围。引入C. aquatilis还有助于排除沼泽植物，例如宽叶香蒲，这些植物几乎没有泥炭积累潜力。灯心草在地下水位较低的地方持续存在，促进了多样化泥炭地群落的形成，并促进了苔藓植物的建立。各种苔藓植物在合适的区域定居，但苔藓层的转移增加了理想的泥炭形成苔藓的覆盖范围。苔藓植物和泥炭地物种丰富度和覆盖度最高的群落（平均有 9 种和 14 种，覆盖度分别为 50%–160%）出现在夏季水位在 -10 到 -40 厘米之间的地方。在该水位范围之外，在积水处以香蒲沼泽群落为主，在地下水位较深的地方则建立了加拿大茅草和木本植物的湿草甸高地群落。总体而言，这两个湿地开垦项目表明，建立泥炭形成的维管束植物和苔藓植物是可能的，群落的形成取决于水位和植物引入方法。未来的项目应致力于创造地下水位在地表 40 厘米以内的微地形，并引入维管植物（如波罗的海草），以促进苔藓植物的建立并支持多样化泥炭地植物群落的发展。