MULTIVARIATE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN FLORISTIC COMPOSITION AND STAND STRUCTURE IN VEGETATION OF KU-RING-GAI CHASE NATIONAL-PARK, NEW-SOUTH-WALES

The relationships between stand structure and floristic composition we re examined from data collected from 100 quadrats on two soil types: H awkesbury sandstone and Narrabeen group soils, occurring within Ku-rin g-gai Chase National Park, New South Wales. Floristic composition was determined using the frequency of species occurring within nine concen tric sub-quadrats of total area 500 m(2). Stand structure was determin ed by a multivariate classification scheme utilising the foliage proje ctive cover of eight strata within each quadrat. The patterns in flori stic composition and stand structure were examined through multivariat e analyses. Procrustes analysis of non-metric multidimensional scaling ordinations of both the stand structure and composition data showed f loristic composition gradients to be well recovered by the structure d ata. Similar gradients were evident in both vegetation attributes, bet ween and within the two soil types, with the rank order of community t ypes across the ordinations being the same. However, some important di fferences were evident between the ordinations of floristic compositio n and stand structure between and within soil types. A number of flori stically dissimilar communities exhibited very similar multivariate st ructural characteristics. In particular, two floristically distinct co mmunities on different soil types were indistinguishable in terms of t heir structural characteristics. The multivariate analyses suggest a p ossible convergence of some compositionally distinct communities towar ds a common structural formation.