The Long-term Development of Wetland Plant Communities with Water Deliveries in a Created Wetland in the Desert Southwest

In the middle Rio Grande, valuable wetlands and riparian areas have been lost due to the expansion of urban and agricultural land. Additionally, the channelization of the river along the US–Mexico border has altered hydrological dynamics, contributing to the degradation of these ecosystems. The Rio Bosque wetlands were constructed in El Paso, Texas, USA, to mitigate the loss of these habitats. Unfortunately, these wetlands faced issues with water availability until 2016, when they began to receive the resource more frequently. Vegetation was allowed to establish naturally over time in response to winter water deliveries (2005–2014) and summer water deliveries (2016–2017). This study investigated how changes in water delivery influenced the plant community development over more than a decade of restoration activities. We observed that water depth was an important predictor of increasing the relative frequency and cover of wetland plants, as well as macrophyte diversity. A non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) ordination showed a transition of the vegetation community from limited water years to more regular water availability. The plant community changed from one dominated by upland plants, including invasive tumbleweed (Salsola tragus), to one dominated by flood-tolerant, competitive wetland plants (Lemna spp. and Polygonum lapathifolium). Deeper areas had a greater proportion of wetland plants, while facultative wetland plants occurred on the edges of ponds. In general, this 12-year study has helped to understand how the Rio Bosque ecosystem has changed after more regular water availability and will assist managers in tracking the future recovery and restoration of this valuable desert wetland. This dataset contains vegetation surveys, bathymetric measurements, and sediment data from 2005-2017 used to assess vegetation patterns and hydrologic conditions at Rio Bosque Wetlands Park in El Paso, TX. Garcia, E., Lee, L., & Lougheed, V. (2025). The Long-term Development of Wetland Plant Communities with Water Deliveries in a Created Wetland in the Desert Southwest. Wetlands, 45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-025-02000-z格兰德河中游河段的珍贵湿地与河岸带生境因城市与农业用地扩张而持续丧失。此外，美墨边境沿线的河道渠化工程改变了河段水文动态，进一步加剧了这些生态系统的退化。为弥补上述生境损失，美国得克萨斯州埃尔帕索市修建了里奥博斯克湿地（Rio Bosque Wetlands）。遗憾的是，该湿地长期面临供水不足的问题，直至2016年才开始获得更为稳定的补水。2005至2014年实施冬季补水、2016至2017年实施夏季补水，湿地植被借此逐步自然定植。本研究聚焦十余年生态修复历程中补水模式变化对植物群落发育的影响。研究发现，水深是影响湿地植物相对频度、盖度以及大型水生植物（macrophyte）多样性提升的关键预测因子。非度量多维标度（non-metric multidimensional scaling, NMDS）排序分析显示，植物群落随补水频次从稀缺转向常态化发生了显著演替：群落结构从以旱生植物（包括入侵性杂草俄罗斯蓟Salsola tragus）为主，转变为以耐淹、竞争力强的湿地植物（浮萍属Lemna spp.和酸模叶蓼Polygonum lapathifolium）为主。水深较深的区域湿地植物占比更高，而兼性湿地植物则分布于池塘岸带。总体而言，这项为期12年的研究阐明了补水常态化后里奥博斯克湿地生态系统的演替轨迹，可为管理者监测该珍贵荒漠湿地的后续恢复与修复工作提供参考。 本数据集涵盖2005至2017年的植被调查、水深测量与沉积物数据，用于评估得克萨斯州埃尔帕索市里奥博斯克湿地公园的植被格局与水文状况。 Garcia, E., Lee, L., & Lougheed, V. (2025). 《荒漠西南人工湿地补水后湿地植物群落的长期发育》。Wetlands, 45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-025-02000-z