Diversity and classification of tall humid herb grasslands (Molinio-Holoschoenion) in Western Mediterranean Europe

Autor:	Ana S. García-Madrid, Paloma Cantó, Maria Pilar Rodríguez-Rojo, José Antonio Molina
Rok vydání:	2016
Předmět:	0106 biological sciences Mediterranean climate Ecology biology Species diversity Plant community Molinia caerulea Vegetation Management Monitoring Policy and Law biology.organism_classification 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Geography Vegetation type Species richness 010606 plant biology & botany Nature and Landscape Conservation Schoenus nigricans
Zdroj:	Applied Vegetation Science. 19:736-749
ISSN:	1402-2001
DOI:	10.1111/avsc.12249
Popis:	Questions What is the community diversity of tall, humid herb grasslands in Western Mediterranean Europe? What are the diagnostic species of the Molinio-Holoschoenion alliance? What underlying ecological patterns influence their diversity? Location Western Mediterranean Europe (France, Portugal and Spain). Methods We compiled a vegetation plot database of Molinio-Holoschoenion plant communities. The initial data set of 1056 plots was filtered according to physiognomic and floristic criteria, and geographically stratified. We used hierarchical agglomerative classification and semi-supervised classification techniques based on the k-means algorithm as a combination of methods to define vegetation types. A DCA analysis was performed to assess the main ecological drivers of diversity in the Molinio-Holoschoenion community. Results Seventeen vegetation types were defined, which can be classified in the following major vegetation groups: (1) tall humid grasslands on base-poor and sandy soils; (2) Scirpoides holoschoenus grasslands on base-rich soils; and (3) eastern Iberian and southwestern French Schoenus nigricans and/or Molinia caerulea grasslands. The water-logging gradient was recognized as a major underlying pattern influencing the diversity and distribution of Molinio-Holoschoenion, and at a second level, the soil factor. Conclusions We suggest a revision of the concept of the Molinio-Holoschoenion alliance to be considered for the interpretation of habitat type 6420 of the European Habitats Directive, which should include Mediterranean wet dune slacks and tall, humid inland grasslands. This vegetation type is largely distributed on the eastern Iberian Peninsula, where base-rich soils are predominant and Scirpoides holoschoenus grasslands comprise the main floristic composition of the alliance.
Databáze:	OpenAIRE
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