TABLE 4.

Results of discriminant analyses of the 16S rRNA and the narG, nirK, nirS, and nosZ genes

Parameter (unit)	Discriminant functiona
	DF 1	DF 2	DF 3	DF 4
Wilks' lambda	0.147	0.617	0.849	0.994
Eigenvalue	3.184	0.377	0.171	0.006
Degrees of freedom	20	12	6	2
Cumulative variance (%)	85.2	95.3	99.8	100
Canonical correlation coefficient	0.87	0.52	0.38	0.08
Correlation coefficientb
16S rRNA	0.74**	0.38*	0.30*	0.05
narG	−0.54**	0.11	0.62**	0.56**
nirK	0.81**	0.04	0.22	0.36*
nirS	0.07	0.70**	−0.13	0.68**
nosZ	0.75**	−0.07	0.62**	0.15

^aAugust and September measurements were pooled; 10 measurements were taken for each successional age. Significance in the model is accepted at a P value of ≤0.05. *, P < 0.05; **, P < 0.01.

^bDenotes the correlation between the discriminating variables and the scores of each discriminant function.