Population Ecology of Ipomoea carnea in Egypt

Ipomoea carnea, a native of South America, grows in dense populations along river beds, banks, canals and other waterlogged (wetland) areas. It has become a naturalized species along canals, drains, road sides and field edges in the Nile Delta (Egypt). This plant propagates vegetatively either by stems which are capable of rooting within a few days or sexually by seeds. The rapid growth rate, spread, and adaptability from aquatic to xerophytic habitats indicate that this plant may potentially become another ecological disaster like water hyacinth. The present book aims at providing an overall review of the literature about this species, reporting ecological conditions in its habitats, evaluating its adaptability to different environmental conditions in the middle and north Nile Delta, assessing the variation in its population characteristics such as natality, mortality, propagation potentiality, morphogensis of the leaves, flowers, fruits, seed production, and standing crop phytomass in relation to habitat types, and evaluating the nature of correlation between these characteristics and the prevailing environmental variables.