The Baiyandian Lake lies at 115°56′ E. and 38°55′ N. It is about 8 m above
sea level, with an area about 312 square km. There are abundant aquatic plants here, inc-
luding flowering plants of 30 families, 46 genera, 66 species and 3 varieties besides one in-
troduced species. 32 species are erect ones covering about 48.5% of the total number of species
in this lake, 20 are submerged ones, about 30.3%, 9 are leaf-floating ones, about 13.6% and 5
are floating ones, 7.6%. The soil at the bed of the lake is very fertile and the depth is appro-
priate, favouring various plants. The coverage is large, sometimes it may reach 100%, for
example, in communities of Phragmites communis, Hydrilla verticillata, Hydrocharis dubis,
Trapa bicornis, etc. Although the Baiyandian Lake is located in the temperate zone, the floristic
elements are complex. There are tropic-subtropic elements and elements of high-frigid zone
as well. When compared respectively with the floras of the Lakes Jingbo Lake, Honghu Lake
and Lugu Lake, the flora of this lake is found more similar to that of subtropic Honghu Lake
than to those of the other lakes, which shows that it hase a character transitional between the
south and the north in China. Further studies of the floristic relationships are needed in order
to exploit and use the resources of the aquatic plants in this lake.
