The first dataset of vascular plant species occurrences on kurgans in Southern Ukraine

The dataset contains the records of vascular plant species occurrences and distribution on Ukrainian kurgans (burial mounds, barrows), located in various zones of steppe vegetation: desert steppe, grass steppe, herb-rich grass steppe and forest steppe. Much of the studied kurgans belongs to the territory historically known as the “Wild Fields”. Besides the occurrence data, the publication presents a comparison of the floristic richness amongst five microhabitats distinguished on kurgans (top, northern slope, northern bottom, southern slope, and southern bottom) and amongst kurgans located in different steppe zones. The oOriginal publication includes 721 species of vascular plants) within four4 vegetation zone (desert steppe, grass steppe, herb-rich grass steppe and forest steppe). The report shows also sozological value of kurgans in southern Ukraine, as they play a role of steppe habitat islands in a landscape almost completely transformed to arable land. The obtained flora inventory was analyszed in various aspects. This occurrence dataset is the first public record of species from kurgans in Ukraine.This is the first occurrence dataset from kurgans in Ukraine. The dataset includes 28,456 occurrences of vascular plants recorded in the years 2004-2009 on Ukrainian kurgans. The dataset includes information about 1446 occurrences of rare species on kurgans (69 species). It contains information on the kurgan flora within four vegetation zone (desert steppe, grass steppe, herb-rich grass steppe and forest steppe) on the area ca. 32000 km2. Of the approximately 450 mounds visited, the ones with the best preserved vegetation cover were selected. For each of 106 investigated mounds, floristic lists from five microhabitats were compiled - 530 lists in total

Ancient settlements in Southern Ukraine : how do local and landscape factors shape vascular plant diversity patterns in the last remnants of grass steppe vegetation?

Agricultural intensification in the last century resulted in a significant loss and fragmentation of steppe habitats. As a result, steppes are scattered and rarely preserved in highly transformed landscapes. Steppe patches have often remained on sites with cultural importance, such as ancient burial mounds (kurgans), old cemeteries or ancient settlements (earthworks). Thus, not only natural but also cultural objects could show a high conservation value. We hypothesised that ancient settlements (3rd – 2nd century BC) may act as steppe habitat islands, equally important as e.g. burial mounds for steppe plant protection. The aim of this study was to examine the local and landscape factors affecting vascular plants’ richness patterns in ancient settlements and to check the importance of such ancient settlements for nature conservation. We asked the following questions: 1) How high is the species richness of vascular plants on ancient settlements? 2) Do ancient settlements have a nature conservation value comparable to other steppe enclaves of the studied zone? 3) Which factors are the most important for the species richness and species composition in ancient settlements? We analysed total richness and its separate categories as dependent variables in simple regressions against seven environmental variables such as ancient settlement’s area, microhabitat variety index, afforestation degree, steppe cover in 1 km buffer around an ancient settlement, distance to the closest settlements, area of settlements in 1 km buffer around an ancient settlement and mean annual precipitation. In 18 studied ancient settlements located in the Lower Dnipro basin (Southern Ukraine), we recorded a considerable number of native (396 species, 75.6%), steppe (239 species, 45.6%) and non-synanthropic plants (225 species, 42.9%), which indicated a good state of preservation of the steppe on these objects. The microhabitat variety index, as a measure of habitat heterogeneity, appeared to be the most significant positive predictor of total species richness, followed by ancient settlement’s area, afforestation degree and steppe cover around the ancient settlements. The same factors were significant for the richness of non-synanthropic plants. Distance to settlements was a significant negative predictor for established alien species richness. Our study confirmed that ancient settlements are valuable enclaves of steppe flora, surprisingly species-rich and of relatively high ratio of steppe and non-synanthropic plants compared to the flora of nature reserves and kurgans. Our results could help to better plan active protection of plant diversity on ancient settlements, e.g. through steppe restoration around the ancient settlements, maintenance of small-scale disturbance and microhabitat diversity (pastures, mown areas, burnt areas, loess or limestone extraction sites etc.) and limiting afforestation to a certain degree

On the trails of Josias Braun-Blanquet II : first results from the 12th EDGG Field Workshop studying the dry grasslands of the inneralpine dry valleys of Switzerland

The 12th EDGG Field Workshop took place from 11 to 19 May 2019, organised by the Vegetation Ecology Group of the Institute of Natural Resource Sciences (IUNR) of the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW). Like in the 11th Field Workshop in Austria, the main target was the "Inneralpine Trockenvegetation" (Festuco-Brometea and Sedo-Scleranthetea), which was first extensively sampled by Josias Braun-Blanquet and collaborators during the 1950s. We visited the Rhône valley in the cantons of Vaud and Valais, one of the most ex-treme xerothermic islands of the Alps and the Rhine and Inn valleys in the canton of Grison. In total, 30 nested-plot series (EDGG biodi-versity plots) of 0.0001 to 100 m² and 82 plots of 10 m² were sampled in meso-xeric, xeric and rocky grasslands of 25 different sites, rang-ing from 500 to 1,656 m a.s.l., under different topographic, bedrock and landuse conditions. All vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens were recorded in each plot, along with their cover values. We found on average 28.9 vascular plants on 10 m²; which was the lowest mean species richness of any previous EDGG Field Workshop. These values are comparable to the average species richness values of dry grasslands of the Aosta valley in Italy. The data sampled will be used to understand the biodiversity patterns regionally and in the Palae-arctic context as well as to place the Swiss dry grasslands in the modern European syntaxonomic system

Ancient settlements as natural heritage sites: the first occurrence dataset on vascular plant species from ancient settlements in the Lower Dnipro region (Ukraine)

This work is a long-term outcome of an international Ukrainian-Polish teamwork, aiming to assess the role of ancient settlements for steppe conservation and protection. The dataset contains georeferenced occurrences of vascular plant species on 18 ancient settlements (Lower Dnipro, southern Ukraine), collected during the 2015-2020 period. Additionally, to the total species list, the publication presents the taxonomic coverage (according to GBIF Backbone Taxonomy), the frequency classes of occurrences of the total taxa and the floristic differences amongst studied sites. The report also shows the high sozological value of the studied ancient settlements, the high levels of vascular plant species richness and the various means of the plant species protection (according to the Bern Convention, the Red Data Book of Ukraine and regional Red Lists).This work provides the first occurrence dataset from ancient settlements in Ukraine. The dataset includes 3,210 occurrences of vascular plants recorded during the study period of 2015-2020 conducted in the Lower Dnipro region. As ancient settlements were generally considered as steppe refuges, great attention was paid to the native steppe species, as well as to the rare components of the flora. The dataset includes 1,525 occurrences of steppe species and 87 occurrences of rare species, respectively. The dataset could be useful for further research of ancient settlements` floristic richness, but also analyses and comparison with other objects of cultural origin (e.g. kurgans, hillforts, old cemeteries, forgotten parks, sacred groves etc.)

Grasslands and coastal habitats of Southern Ukraine : first results from the 15th EDGG Field Workshop

The 15th EDGG Field Workshop took place from 24 May to 3 June 2021 in Southern Ukraine (Kherson and Mykolaiv adminis-trative regions). Over 10 days, we sampled different types of grasslands, mainly focusing on dry grasslands of the classes Festuco-Brometea, Koelerio-Corynephoretea canescentis, and Festuco-Puccinellietea (steppic, sandy and saline, respectively) but also taking into account other open habitats, such as mesic grasslands and dunes. In total, we sampled 50 nested-plot series with 7–8 grain sizes from 1 cm2 to 100 m2 and, in some cases, up to 1000 m2 (“EDGG Biodiversity Plots”), plus 74 additional normal plots of 10 m2 . We comprehen-sively sampled vascular plants as well as terricolous bryophytes and lichens, and, for the first time also Sciaridae (Diptera, Insecta). One vascular plant species (Torilis pseudonodosa), as well as two lichen species (Cladonia conista and Endocarpon loscosii), were recorded for the first time from Ukraine. Two species of moss (Rhynchostegium megapolitanum and Ptychostomum torquescens) and three species of lichen (Cladonia cervicornis, C. symphycarpa, and Involucropyrenium breussi) were reported for the first time for the Kherson region. We summarize the scale-dependent richness values and compare them with those from other studies. The report concludes with a photo diary with impressions from the Field Workshop

Torilis pseudonodosa Bianca (Apiaceae) : new species for the flora of Ukraine

We report the first record of Torilis pseudonodosa Bianca (Apiaceae) from Ukraine. It was found on 28th of May 2021 in the “Potiivska” section of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve near the village of Zaliznyi Port (Southern Ukraine). Torilis pseudonodosa previously was known from various countries in the Mediterranean Basin and Western Asia, but not from Ukraine nor elsewhere in Eastern Europe. We discovered a hitherto unknown population of Torilis pseudonodosa during the 15th EDGG Field Workshop, an international expedition of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) taking place in Southern Ukraine, from 23 May to 2 June 2021. We present the taxon, its morphology and general distribution, describe its first Ukrainian site ecologically and coenologically and provide photos of the site and the species. The species occurred in a saline steppe, close to the Black Sea coast. The vegetation was dominated by Agropyron pectinatum and Halimione verrucifera, with Artemisia santonica, Festuca callieri agg., Milium vernale and Vicia hirsuta as subdominants. The classification of the saline steppe of the “Potiivska” section of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve near is problematic, because species composition represents a mixture of steppic and halophytic plants. A definitive decision would require comprehensive phytosociological analyses. Since there was no indication of anthropogenic influence at the site, we assume that Torilis pseudonodosa reached it as a result of natural migration of its propagules (e.g. with birds). Thus, the species can be considered as nonsynathropic in the flora of Ukraine

Rapid functional but slow species diversity recovery of steppe vegetation on former arable fields in southern Ukraine

Questions: European steppes are among the most threatened ecosystems in the Palaearctic region, mainly because of conversion to arable land. Abandonment may allow for the passive recovery of steppes. We made use of an exceptional old-field succession chronosequence of nearly 100 years to answer the following questions: (a) Are the plant species composition, species richness and functional characteristics typical of virgin grass steppes able to self-restore during ca. 100 years after abandonment? (b) Do the rates of recovery of the above vegetation characteristics differ over the studied chronosequence? (c) Do topsoil carbon and nitrogen content change over the succession chronosequence, leading to concentrations similar to that of virgin steppes? Location: Southern Ukraine. Methods: We sampled vegetation and soil in a virgin grass steppe and in old fields abandoned for 6, 15, 31, 50 and ca. 97 years. We subjected the composition data to multivariate analysis. To test whether species richness, functional and soil characteristics of the old fields diverge from those of the virgin steppe, we used one-way analysis of variance with Tukey's honestly significant difference (HSD) statistic to create 90% confidence intervals. Results: The vegetation composition of the three most recently abandoned old fields differed significantly from that of the virgin steppe. The species richness of vascular plants was lower in old fields than in the virgin steppe. The share of steppe habitat specialists was similar to the virgin steppe only in the field abandoned for ca. 97 years. Functional characteristics were significantly different from the virgin steppe only in the most recently abandoned old field. Contents of Corg and Ntot in fields abandoned for ≤50 years were lower compared with the virgin steppe. Conclusions: The functional characteristics of steppe vegetation seem to recover much faster than its biodiversity. However, based on our results, 100 years can be enough time for the spontaneous re-establishment of typical steppe vegetation

GrassPlot v. 2.00 – first update on the database of multi-scale plant diversity in Palaearctic grasslands

Abstract: GrassPlot is a collaborative vegetation-plot database organised by the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) and listed in the Global Index of Vegetation-Plot Databases (GIVD ID EU-00-003). Following a previous Long Database Report (Dengler et al. 2018, Phyto- coenologia 48, 331–347), we provide here the first update on content and functionality of GrassPlot. The current version (GrassPlot v. 2.00) contains a total of 190,673 plots of different grain sizes across 28,171 independent plots, with 4,654 nested-plot series including at least four grain sizes. The database has improved its content as well as its functionality, including addition and harmonization of header data (land use, information on nestedness, structure and ecology) and preparation of species composition data. Currently, GrassPlot data are intensively used for broad-scale analyses of different aspects of alpha and beta diversity in grassland ecosystems