Forty two species were found to be present in P. paniculata (Forssk) Brumitt. - dominated stands in the campus of University of Karachi with mean number of species per stand, 12.45 ± 0.054. Poaceae was the dominant family (10 genera and 15 species) followed by Leguminosae (4 genera and 5 species). Species diversity of the stands was low and the Whittaker’s diversity-dominance curves were linear indicating geometric distribution of abundance among the species. Species diversity was more related to equitability than species richness. P. paniculata was the leading dominant in all the stands with average importance value of 88.70. All stands associated with non-saline, sandy to sandy loam type of soil basic in reaction. The variation in IVI of P. paniculata was found to be explained around 75% by the linear combination of CaCO3 and organic matter contents and pH of the soil. Diversity related with IVI of P. paniculata inversely. Population structure of P. paniculata and some of its associates suggested that pattern was contiguous and the primary pattern scale was of reproductive origin. Negative correlations were observed between P. paniculata and its associates in the pattern analysis. The larger patches of P. paniculata alternated with small patches of the associates. The survivorship curves of P. paniculata in its two populations resembled to Deevy type – I.
D. Khan, S. Shahid Shaukat, M. Javed Zaki. (2014) STRUCTURE, COMPOSITION AND PATTERN IN PERISTROPHE PANICULATA (FORSSK.) BRUMITT. DOMINATED RUDERAL VEGETATION EMERGING AFTER SUMMER RAINS IN KARACHI, , Volume 11, Issue 2, 3.
