Abstract: Based on the data measured with thermal dissipation probes in 2005 and2006, and by the method of phase space reconstruction, the chaotic and fractal characteristics of transpiration rate (T_r) of Cornus officinalis plantation in the mountainous region of North China were analyzed. The results showed that the plantation transpiration was a chaotic motion, and characterized by fractal pattern. At the lag time (τ) of 10 min, the fractal dimension (D), Renyi entropy (K₂), embedding dimension (m), and average predictability time scale (T) in main growth seasons were 1.054, 0.0082, 10, and 122.0 min in 2005 and 1.041, 0.0086, 10, and 116.3 min in 2006, and the least and most limit amount of the independent variables for describing or simulating the dynamics of the plantation transpiration were 2 and 10, respectively. Despite the significant difference in the amount or external appearance of T_r between the two years, less difference in D and K₂ was observed at same τ, suggesting that there were no differences in the natural characteristics or internal patterns of T_r in different years.

Key words: Phytoplankton, Species composition, Community diversity, Coastal area of Pearl River estuary