HeLM: a macrophyte-based method for monitoring and assessment of Greek lakes

Zervas, D., Tsiaoussi, V. & Tsiripidis, I. HeLM: a macrophyte-based method for monitoring and assessment of Greek lakes. Environ Monit Assess 190, 326 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-018-6708-

Phytosociological study of submontane genistoid scrub communities from the Southeastern Balkans

Genista lydia Boiss. is an endemic Balkan-Anatolian species which forms rare communities in the territory of south Bulgaria and northeast Greece. They are spread exclusively on acidic, siliceous substrates. This study presents new data on their distribution, floristic and ecological structure and phytosociological affinities. The research is based on 156 phytosociological relevés. Unweighted pair–group method with arithmetic averages (UPGMA) was employed and a detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) was performed prior to the syntaxonomical decision. Three new associations and the new alliance Genistion lydiae have been described and classified within the order Lavandulo stoechadis-Hypericetalia olympici Mucina in Mucina et al. 2016 of the class Cisto-Lavanduletea stoechadis Br.-Bl. in Br.-Bl. et al. 1940. The study has also emphazised the potential threats concerning a decline of the habitat area and proposed some conservation measures

Stepi podobna traviška vegetacija na hribih okoli jezer Vegoritida in Petron v severno centralni Grčiji

The present paper describes the floristic composition and synecology of steppe-like dry grasslands occurring in a Natura 2000 site in North-Central Greece around the two karstic lakes of Vegoritida and Petron. In total, 245 relevés of vascular plant species composition and abundance were sampled and subjected to cluster analysis and ordination analysis. Passive explanatory variables, including environmental parameters as well as indicator values, were used to support the ecological interpretation. Four plant communities were distinguished in the area, namely Artemisia campestris-Dasypyrum villosum, Chrysopogon gryllus-Bothriochloa ischaemum, Satureja montana-Artemisia alba and Stipa capillata-Koeleria macrantha. All communities were classified within the Festuco-Brometea class and the Astragalo-Potentilletalia order. Soil properties (soil reaction, moisture and nutrient content) and meso-climate factors (temperature variation along topographic gradients) were identified as the main factors determining the floristic differentiation among the four communities. The dry grasslands harbor a number of species associated with steppic habitats. We discuss the relict character of the steppe-like vegetation.V članku opisujemo floristično sestavo in sinekologijo stepi podobnih suhih travišč, ki se pojavljajo v Natura 2000 območju v severni centralni Grčiji okoli dveh kraških jezer Vegoritida in Petron. Vzorčili smo 245 vegetacijskih popisov in jih analizirali s klastrsko in ordinacijsko analizo. Rastišče smo interpretirali s pasivnimi pojasnjevalnimi spremenljivkami, kamor smo vključili okoljske spremenljivke in indikatorske vrednosti. Na raziskovanem območju smo ločili štiri rastlinske združbe: Artemisia campestris-Dasypyrum villosum, Chrysopogon gryllus-Bothriochloa ischaemum, Satureja montana-Artemisia alba in Stipa capillata-Koeleria macrantha. Vse združbe smo uvrstili v razred Festuco-Brometea in red Astragalo-Potentilletalia. Lastnosti tal (reakcija tal) in mezo klimatski dejavniki (spreminjanje temperature vzdolž topografskih gradientov) so glavni dejavniki, ki vplivajo na floristične razlike med štirimi rastlinskimi združbami. V suhih traviščih najdemo številne vrste stepskih habitatov. V članku razpravljamo o reliktnem značaju stepi podobne vegetacije

Report on the development of the national assessment method for the ecological status of natural lakes in Greece, using the Biological Quality Element “Macrophytes” (Hellenic Lake Macrophytes-HeLM assessment method)

This report discusses the development of the national ecological assessment method for Greek natural lakes, based on the Biological Quality Element (BQE) “macrophytes”. Due to lack of a common natural lake type within the Mediterranean Lake Geographical intercalibration Group, there has not been a Med GIG Intercalibration Exercise for macrophytes in natural lakes. As a result, there are neither proposed assessment methods with common boundaries within the Med GIG, nor proposed metrics for the assessment of lakes based on macrophytes. It is noted that at the Mediterranean Lake Phytoplankton GIG Intercalibration Report, Member States defined two common water body types (L-M5/7 and L-M8) for reservoirs but none for natural lakes. The operation of the Greek water monitoring network started in 2012, following the publication of a Joint Ministerial Decision in 2011. The development of the current assessment method, as described in this report, is based on the data from this national water monitoring network. In particular, 50 lake water bodies (including 26 reservoirs) have been included in the monitoring network, out of which 16 have been monitored for macrophytes during the 3-year period of 2013-2015. Eight of them are warm monomictic, deep natural lakes with mean depth >9m (GR-DNL), when the other eight are polymictic, shallow natural lakes with mean depth 3-9m (GR-SNL). In these 16 lakes, a total of 272 monitoring sites were established for sampling macrophytes, which resulted in an equal number of macrophytic sampling transects, the data of which have been added in the national dataset. Thirty six of these sites were revisited during the 3-year period, and a total of 308 measurements of maximum macrophytic colonization depth were made. On this national dataset, the most suitable lake macrophyte based assessment components proposed by WISER deliverables D3.2-1 (Kolada et al., 2009), D3.2-2 (Dudley et al., 2011) and D3.2-3 (Kolada et al., 2011) were tested, in various combinations, so as to reach a final form that can be used as a national assessment method for Greece. As already mentioned, this is the first effort to establish a national method, which may need additions and improvements in the future, as well as intercalibration exercises among Member States in the Mediterranean GIG

Phytosociological study of submontane genistoid scrub communities from the Southeastern Balkans

Genista lydia Boiss. is an endemic Balkan-Anatolian species which forms rare communities in the territory of south Bulgaria and northeast Greece. They are spread exclusively on acidic, siliceous substrates. This study presents new data on their distribution, floristic and ecological structure and phytosociological affinities. The research is based on 156 phytosociological relevés. Unweighted pair–group method with arithmetic averages (UPGMA) was employed and a detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) was performed prior to the syntaxonomical decision. Three new associations and the new alliance Genistion lydiae have been described and classified within the order Lavandulo stoechadis-Hypericetalia olympici Mucina in Mucina et al. 2016 of the class Cisto-Lavanduletea stoechadis Br.-Bl. in Br.-Bl. et al. 1940. The study has also emphazised the potential threats concerning a decline of the habitat area and proposed some conservation measures

A phytosociological survey of aquatic vegetation in the main freshwater lakes of Greece. Vegetation

Zervas D, Tsiripidis I, Bergmeier E, Tsiaoussi V (2020) A phytosociological survey of aquatic vegetation in the main freshwater lakes of Greece. Vegetation Classification and Survey 1: 53-75. https://doi.org/10.3897/VCS/2020/48377This study aims to contribute to the knowledge of European freshwater lake ecosystems with updated and new information on aquatic plant communities, by conducting national-scale phytosociological research of freshwater lake vegetation in Greece. Moreover, it investigates the relationship between aquatic plant communities and lake environmental parameters, including eutrophication levels and hydro-morphological conditions. Study area: Lakes in Greece, SE Europe

insights into assembly processes

Changes in species diversity following volcanic eruptions have been studied extensively, but our knowledge on functional diversity and community assembly under such conditions is very limited. Here, we study the processes following the destruction of vegetation after a volcanic eruption. Specifically, we investigate (1) the temporal patterns of taxonomic and functional diversity over time since a previous eruption (alpha diversity) and beta diversity, (2) the temporal patterns of 26 individual traits (vegetative characteristics, plant taxa ecological preferences, and regenerative characteristics) providing more detailed information on species strategies at the initial and later stages of succession, and (3) the processes driving species assembly and whether they changed over time since the eruption an eruption. We analyzed data recorded during five floristic censuses that took place between 1911 and 2011, calculated alpha and beta facets of taxonomic and functional diversity and examined how community structure changed over time, using 26 functional characteristics, based on their ability to discern primary from later colonists, including longevity, growth form, Ellenberg's indicator values, seed production and weight, flower size and sex, pollination type, and dispersal mode. Null model analysis was used to test whether the observed functional diversity deviates from random expectations. Alpha diversity, both taxonomic and functional, increased over time after an eruption, while beta diversity did not display a clear trend. This finding indicates that mainly abiotic processes determine species assembly over time after an eruption (at least for the time span studied here), contrary to theoretical expectations. It is most interesting that, simultaneously, some aspects of diversity indicated the effect of biotic interactions (facilitation and competition) on the assembly of species a few years after an eruption. This finding implies a legacy effect, since a high percentage of perennial species was noticed in the assemblage right after the eruption, as well as the effect of the harsh environmental conditions on the assembly of the plant communities. In conclusion, our results indicate the role of legacy effects in succession (most probably through the survival of underground plant parts) and underline the importance of disturbance history in providing the context needed for understanding effects of past events on succession

Suha travišča južne Evrope: sintaksonomija, gospodarjenje in ohranjenje

The Mediterranean area is a natural biodiversity hotspot that has also been influenced by humans for millennia. Especially the grasslands of Southern Europe have long been known for their diversity and beauty. However, several gaps remain in our knowledge about these grasslands, e.g. for some regions such as the southern Balkans, or taxonomic groups such as cryptogams. Here we introduce a Special Issue with contributions from the 9th European Dry Grassland Group meeting held in Prespa, Greece, 2012. The topic of this meeting was “Dry grasslands of Europe: grazing and ecosystem services” with special focus on Southern European regions. The Special Issue, apart from this Editorial, consists of eight contributions arranged according to the three major topics: syntaxonomy (5 articles), management (2) and conservation (1). The classification papers include descriptions of four new associations and four subassociations. Data about management practices are provided as well. We conclude that dry grassland vegetation in Southern Europe exhibits transitions between different higher syntaxa and thus requires further studies at broader scales to allow better understanding at the supranational scale.Mediteran je naravna vroča točka biodiverzitete, na katero je človek tisočletja močno vplival. Po svoji raznolikosti in lepoti so še posebej že dolgo znana travišča južne Evrope, vendar so v poznavanju teh travišč prisotne številne vrzeli na območju južnega Balkana ali posameznih taksonomskih skupin, kot so kriptogami. Predstavljamo posebno številko s prispevki z 9. srečanja Evropske skupine za suha travišča (European Dry Grassland Group), ki je bilo leta 2012 v mestu Prespa (Grčija). Tema srečanja je bila “Suha travišča Evrope: paša in ekosistemske storitve” s posebnim poudarkom na območjih južne Evrope. Posebno številko poleg tega uvodnika sestavlja osem prispevkov, ki smo jih uredili v tri glavne teme: sintaksonomijo (5 člankov), gospodarjenje (2) in ohranjanje travišč (1). Članki o klasifikaciji vsebujejo opise štirih novih asociacij in štirih subasociacij. Prav tako vsebujejo podatke o načinu gospodarjenja. Zaključimo lahko, da kaže vegetacija suhih travišč v južni Evropi prehod med različnimi višjimi sintaksoni in zato so potrebne nadaljnje raziskave v večjem merilu, ki bodo omogočile boljše razumevanje v nadnacionalnem merilu

National scale ecosystem condition assessment with emphasis on forest types in Greece

This study presents a first, national scale approach on ecosystem condition assessment for Greece, through integrating the available surveillance and monitoring data for habitat types, at the plot level, within the Natura 2000 network. The study consists of two parts: (a) ecosystem condition assessment for ecosystem types in Greece, using the conservation degree at plot level as an indicator and (b) a large scale analysis of the forest types' condition using, as indicators, the pressures and typical plant species richness, as an exemplary case to interpret the outcomes of the assessment. The main results of this study revealed that: (i) the majority of the ecosystem types are in above good condition, with the higher percentages of bad condition recorded for wetlands, rivers and lakes, marine inlets and transitional waters, (ii) forest categories in their majority are at above-adequate condition, (iii) at forest ecosystem categories specific pressures (e.g. grazing, cultivations, forestry clearance) act as main drivers forecosystem condition change, (iv) Mediterranean deciduous forests are the most floristic-rich forest category, regarding typical plant species. Simultaneously, it is highlighted that already available datasets could be used for immediate and rapid framework assessments, which will guide future steps on ES studies, research and decision-making