Nitrogen deposition is negatively related to species richness and species composition of vascular plants and bryophytes in Swiss mountain grassland

The conservation of biological diversity (biodiversity) is becoming an integral part of the sustainable management of forest- and agro-ecosystems. A vital part of these systems is weed control, or vegetation management, to enhance crop production. Because of its widespread use and environmental compatibility, this review was designed to evaluate glyphosate herbicide in terms of: (i) its role as a disturbance agent and (ii) a measure of its impact on species diversity of terrestrial plants and animals. Our analyses were based on 60 published studies of terrestrial plants and animals in temperate zone forest- and agro-ecosystems. Species richness and diversity of vascular plants was either unaffected or increased, particularly herbaceous species, in response to glyphosate. Responses of plant species in forest ecosystems differ from those in agro-ecosystems where glyphosate is used to repeatedly reduce non-crop vegetation in most situations. Richness and diversity of songbirds appeared little affected by glyphosate-induced habitat alteration. In studies on small mammal communities and glyphosate use, none found significant reductions in species richness or diversity. As for avian responses, some small mammal species declined temporarily whereas others increased in abundance. The impact of glyphosate on large mammalian herbivores was measured by abundance of animals and food plants and by habitat use. Hares (Lepus spp. L.) and deer (Odocoileus spp. Rafinesque and Capreolus capreolus L.) were little affected, whereas reductions in plant biomass and related moose (Alces alces L.) forage and habitat use generally occur for 15 years after treatment. Studies on terrestrial invertebrates covered a wide range of taxa with variable responses in abundance to glyphosate treatments. The magnitude of observed changes in mean species richness and diversity of vascular plants, birds, and small mammals, from the effects of herbicide treatment, were within the mean values of natural fluctuations of these variables. The biological significance of this impact is limited to shifts in species composition based on changes in floral composition and structure of habitats. Management for a mosaic of habitats within forest and agricultural landscapes, which provide a range of conditions for plant and animal species, should help ameliorate the short-term changes in species composition accompanying vegetation management with glyphosate.Key words: agro-ecosystems, forests, glyphosate, plants and animals, species richness and diversity, vegetation management.

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Mikroskopijne grzyby pasożytnicze w zbiorowiskach roślinnych Wyżyny Częstochowskiej [Phytoparasitic micromycetes in plant communities of the Wyżyna Częstochowska Upland]

Monographiae Botanicae ◽

10.5586/mb.2006.001 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 96 ◽

pp. 1-144

Author(s):

Małgorzata Ruszkiewicz-Michalska

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Species Composition ◽

Plant Communities ◽

Vascular Plants ◽

Host Plants ◽

Fungal Species ◽

Anamorphic Fungi ◽

Permanent Plots ◽

Biotic Factors ◽

Beech Forests

Mycosociological studies on microfungi parasitising vascular plants were carried out on 21 permanent observation plots in 5 phytocoenoses representing beech forests (Luzulo pilosae-Fagetum, Melico-Fagetum, Dentario enneaphyllidis-Fagetum, Carici-Fagetum) and xerothermic grassland (Origano-Brachypodietum pinnati) as well as using route method in other plant communities. The frequency of host plants and fungi occurring on permanent plots was estimated using 5-degree scale. The observations yielded in 478 fungal species belonging to Peronosporales (Oomycota), Dothideales, Erysiphales, Helotiales, Hypocreales, Mycosphaerellales, Phyllachorales, Pleosporales, Xylariales (Ascomycota), Uredinales, Microbotryales, Urocystales (Basidiomycota) and Hyphomycetes and Coelomycetes (anamorphic fungi), which were hosted by 301 species of vascular plants as well as by 19 taxa of Erysiphales and Uredinales. The predominanting group was anamorphic fungi (65% of species), especially members of Sphaeropsidales (39%). This group was however less dispersed on the study area than Uredinales and Erysiphales, which were represented by relatively small number of species. The results provided data on diversi- fied occurrence of fungi depending on abiotic (humidity, temperature, insolation) and biotic factors (e.g. density of host plant population) provided by plant communities. The differences concern species composition and richness of fungi, their distribution as well as frequency of hosts and parasites. In the case of members of Erysiphales, Moniliales and Peronosporales differences in phenology were also noted. The greatest species richness and distribution of the micromycetes was observed in Origano-Brachypodietum and the poorest were plots of Luzulo pilosae-Fagetum. Most frequently the parasites infected small percentage of the individuals in the population of the hosts (about 1%), which occurred with the lowest coverage (below 10%). This type of relationship between frequency of fungi and density of plants dominated in all of the studied phytocenoses. Sixty two species of fungi observed on Wyżyna Częstochowska Upland are new for Polish biota. They belong to anamorphic fungi, mainly to Phyllosticta (32 species) and Ascochyta (15).

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Effects of the environment on species richness and composition of vascular plants in Manaslu Conservation Area and Sagarmatha region of Nepalese Himalaya

Banko Janakari ◽

10.3126/banko.v26i1.15496 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 26 (1) ◽

pp. 3-16 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

S. K. Rai ◽

S. Sharma ◽

K. K. Shrestha ◽

J. P. Gajurel ◽

S. Devkota ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Species Richness ◽

Species Composition ◽

Vascular Plants ◽

Vascular Plant ◽

Slope Angle ◽

Conservation Area ◽

Temperature And Precipitation ◽

Land Use Types ◽

River Valleys

This study analyzed how the environmental conditions constrained the species richness and composition in the four river valleys of Central Nepal i.e. two from Manaslu Conservation Area (MCA) and two from Sagarmatha region. Topographical, bioclimatic and measured variables were used to analyze their effects on the vascular plant diversity along elevation and land use gradients. Altogether, 148 plots were established at five elevation levels between 2,200 m and 3,800 m above the mean sea level. Four land use types namely crop field, meadow, exploited forest and natural forest were sampled at each elevation level. Altogether, 790 species of vascular plants belonging to 114 families were recorded; Asteraceae had the highest number of species (84) followed by Rosaceae (52) and Poaceae (50). Explorative data analysis of species composition by canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) showed that the topographical variables explained the composition better than both the bioclimatic set of variables and the logger data. However, all groups of variables revealed significant effects on species composition. Generalized Linear Model (GLM) also revealed significant effects of elevation, land-use types, slope angle, aspect, temperature and precipitation on species richness. Banko JanakariA Journal of Forestry Information for NepalVol. 26, No. 1, Page: 3-16, 2016

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Altitudinal gradients of species richness and range size of vascular plants in Taiwan: a test of Rapoport's rule

Biodiversity Science ◽

10.3724/sp.j.1003.2010.312 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 18 (3) ◽

pp. 312 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Zhang Wanjun ◽

Lu Qiyan ◽

Liang Jun ◽

Shen Zehao

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Vascular Plants ◽

Range Size ◽

Altitudinal Gradients ◽

Rapoport’S Rule

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Distribution Patterns and Climatic Explanations of Species Richness of Vascular Plants in Xinjiang, China

Arid Zone Research ◽

10.3724/sp.j.1148.2011.00025 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 25-30 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Li-ping LI ◽

Nurbay Abdusalih ◽

Shao-peng WANG ◽

Zhi-heng WANG ◽

Zhi-yao TANG

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Vascular Plants ◽

Distribution Patterns

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Disentangling the Ecological Determinants of Species and Functional Trait Diversity in Herb-Layer Plant Communities in European Temperate Forests

Forests ◽

10.3390/f12050552 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (5) ◽

pp. 552

Author(s):

Janez Kermavnar ◽

Lado Kutnar ◽

Aleksander Marinšek

Keyword(s):

Species Richness ◽

Species Composition ◽

Plant Communities ◽

Functional Trait ◽

Forest Stand ◽

Relative Importance ◽

Herb Layer ◽

Bud Bank ◽

Tree Species Composition ◽

Stand Characteristics

Forest herb-layer vegetation responds sensitively to environmental conditions. This paper compares drivers of both taxonomic, i.e., species richness, cover and evenness, and functional herb-layer diversity, i.e., the diversity of clonal, bud bank and leaf-height-seed plant traits. We investigated the dependence of herb-layer diversity on ecological determinants related to soil properties, climatic parameters, forest stand characteristics, and topographic and abiotic and biotic factors associated with forest floor structure. The study was conducted in different forest types in Slovenia, using vegetation and environmental data from 50 monitoring plots (400 m2 each) belonging to the ICP Forests Level I and II network. The main objective was to first identify significant ecological predictors and then quantify their relative importance. Species richness was strongly determined by forest stand characteristics, such as richness of the shrub layer, tree layer shade-casting ability as a proxy for light availability and tree species composition. It showed a clear positive relation to soil pH. Variation in herb-layer cover was also best explained by forest stand characteristics and, to a lesser extent, by structural factors such as moss cover. Species evenness was associated with tree species composition, shrub layer cover and soil pH. Various ecological determinants were decisive for the diversity of below-ground traits, i.e., clonal and bud bank traits. For these two trait groups we observed a substantial climatic signal that was completely absent for taxonomy-based measures of diversity. In contrast, above-ground leaf-height-seed (LHS) traits were driven exclusively by soil reaction and nitrogen availability. In synthesis, local stand characteristics and soil properties acted as the main controlling factors for both species and trait diversity in herb-layer communities across Slovenia, confirming many previous studies. Our findings suggest that the taxonomic and functional facets of herb-layer vegetation are mainly influenced by a similar set of ecological determinants. However, their relative importance varies among individual taxonomy- and functional trait-based diversity measures. Integrating multi-faceted approaches can provide complementary information on patterns of herb-layer diversity in European forest plant communities.

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