Table 1.
Physical and chemical characteristics of the five study macrophyte species.
| Macrophyte | Type | N | P | Phenolics | Cellulose | Lignin | Toughness |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ipomoea | AC | 4.28 ± 0.91 A | 0.70 ± 0.17 A | 0.22 ± 0.01 C | 8.60 ± 1.39 C | 1.75 ± 0.90 BC | 58.86 ± 16.63 D |
| Commelina | E | 3.72 ± 0.19 AB | 0.75 ± 0.03 A | 1.89 ± 1.26 B | 15.34 ± 1.27 B | 2.17 ± 0.07 B | 79.54 ± 11.35 C |
| Nymphoides | FL | 3.23 ± 0.34 B | 0.45 ± 0.04 B | 2.57 ± 0.05 AB | 21.13 ± 1.19 AB | 1.13 ± 0.39 C | 116.41 ± 20.57 B |
| Acorus | E | 2.18± 0.10 C | 0.36 ± 0.06 B | 3.08 ± 0.07 A | 22.11 ± 1.18 A | 1.11 ± 0.58 C | 176.65 ± 25.44 A |
| Phragmites | E | 2.38 ± 0.30 C | 0.34 ± 0.05 B | 0.30 ± 0.01 C | 24.85 ± 1.09 A | 6.64 ± 0.57 A | 237.69 ± 38.57 A |
Unit for N, P, phenolics, cellulose and lignin = percentage with respect to the dry weight of leaf sample; unit for toughness = g. All macrophyte traits were significantly different among the five species (one-way ANOVA; p < 0.01). The superscript A, B, C and D represented significant groupings under post hoc Tukey comparisons.