39 research outputs found
The effects of stand characteristics on the understory vegetation in Quercus petraea and Q. cerris dominated forests
The shelterwood system used in Hungary has many effects on the composition and structure of the herb layer. The aim of our study was to identify the main variables that affect the occurence of herbs and seedlings in Turkey oak-sessile oak (Quercus cerris and Q. petraea) stands. The study was carried out in the Bükk mountains, Hungary. 122 sampling plots were established in 50-150 year old oak forests, where we studied the species composition and structure of the understorey and overstorey. The occurence of herbs was affected by canopy closure, the heterogenity and patchiness of the stand, the slope and the east-west component of the aspect. The composition of saplings was significantly explained by the ratio of the two major oak species in the stand and the proximity of the adult plants. An important result for forest management was that sessile oaks were able to regenerate almost only where they were dominant in the overstorey
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN POLLEN AND FLORISTIC DIVERSITY IN THE RECENT LAKE SEDIMENTS AND MOSS POLSTERS IN CENTRAL EUROPE
7-
A test on Ellenberg indicator values in the Mediterranean evergreen woods (Quercetea ilicis)
The consistency and reliability of Ellenberg’s indicator values (Eiv) as ecological descriptors of the Mediterranean evergreen vegetation ascribed to the phytosociological class Quercetea ilicis have been checked on a set of 859 phytosociological relevés × 699 species. Diagnostic species were identified through a Twinspan analysis and their Eiv analyzed and related to the following independent variables: (1) annual mean temperatures, (2) annual rainfall. The results provided interesting insights to disentangle the current syntaxonomical framework at the alliance level demonstrating the usefulness of ecological indicator values to test the efficiency and predictivity of the phytosociological classification
Habitat use at fine spatial scale: how does patch clustering criteria explain the use of meadows by red deer ?
Large mammalian herbivores are keystone species
in different ecosystems. To mediate the effects of large
mammalian herbivores on ecosystems, it is crucial to understand
their habitat selection pattern. At finer scales, herbivore
patch selection depends strongly on plant community
traits and therefore its understanding is constrained by patch
definition criteria. Our aim was to assess which criteria for
patch definition best explained use of meadows by wild,
free-ranging, red deer (Cervus elaphus) in a study area in
Northeast Portugal. We used two clustering criteria types
based on floristic composition and gross forage classes, respectively.
For the floristic criteria, phytosociological approach
was used to classify plant communities, and its
objectivity evaluated with a mathematical clustering of the
floristic relevés. Cover of dominant plant species was tested
as a proxy for the phytosociological method. For the gross
forage classes, the graminoids/forbs ratio and the percentage
cover of legumes were used. For assessing deer relative use of
meadows we used faecal accumulation rates. Patches clustered
according to floristic classification better explained selection of patches by deer. Plant community classifications based on
phytosociology, or proxies of this, used for characterizing
meadow patches resulted useful to understand herbivore selection
pattern at fine scales and thus potentially suitable to
assist wildlife management decisions
GrassPlot - a database of multi-scale plant diversity in Palaearctic grasslands
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). GrassPlot collects plot records (releves) from grasslands and other open habitats of the Palaearctic biogeographic realm. It focuses on precisely delimited plots of eight standard grain sizes (0.0001; 0.001;... 1,000 m(2)) and on nested-plot series with at least four different grain sizes. The usage of GrassPlot is regulated through Bylaws that intend to balance the interests of data contributors and data users. The current version (v. 1.00) contains data for approximately 170,000 plots of different sizes and 2,800 nested-plot series. The key components are richness data and metadata. However, most included datasets also encompass compositional data. About 14,000 plots have near-complete records of terricolous bryophytes and lichens in addition to vascular plants. At present, GrassPlot contains data from 36 countries throughout the Palaearctic, spread across elevational gradients and major grassland types. GrassPlot with its multi-scale and multi-taxon focus complements the larger international vegetationplot databases, such as the European Vegetation Archive (EVA) and the global database " sPlot". Its main aim is to facilitate studies on the scale-and taxon-dependency of biodiversity patterns and drivers along macroecological gradients. GrassPlot is a dynamic database and will expand through new data collection coordinated by the elected Governing Board. We invite researchers with suitable data to join GrassPlot. Researchers with project ideas addressable with GrassPlot data are welcome to submit proposals to the Governing Board
Holocene matters: Landscape history accounts for current species richness of vascular plants in forests and grasslands of eastern Central Europe
Relative pollen productivity estimates for vegetation reconstruction in central-eastern Europe inferred at local and regional scales
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN POLLEN AND FLORISTIC DIVERSITY IN THE RECENT LAKE SEDIMENTS AND MOSS POLSTERS IN CENTRAL EUROPE
7-