Plant community attributes affect dry grassland orchid establishment

Several factors have been taken into account to explain the distribution of orchid species. We explored the extent to which plant community attributes affect the abundance and reproductive fitness of three orchid species (Anacamptis morio, Himantoglossum adriaticum and Ophrys sphegodes), native to dry grasslands. Structural attributes of plant community (e.g. cover and height) were assessed in ninety 4 m(2) plots scattered on three hill massifs of the Veneto Region (NE Italy). For the three target orchid species, the height of the flowering stalk, the relative ramet height and the number of flowers and fruits were recorded in 203 tagged ramets. Generalized Linear Model revealed that plant community attributes such as cover and height of the herb layer exert a negative effect on the abundance of orchid populations. Furthermore, regression models indicated that O. sphegodes and H. adriaticum reproductive fitness, determined as fruit/flower ratio, was positively affected by relative ramet height. Our results revealed that local herbaceous vegetation structure influences the cover and fruit set of target orchid species. However, there can be substantial variation in the response of different species and variation in the structural attributes of surrounding vegetation may be associated with differences in the strength of selection. In order to achieve effective results in orchid species conservation, protocols for the in situ conservation must detail the range of vegetation covers and heights at which orchid species are favoured and can produce the most effective inflorescences

Flora der Region der Babitonga-Bucht: Diversität, Herkunft und Ursprung

The Babitonga bay (Baía da Babitonga) is an estuarine complex at the northern coast of the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil. The Babitonga bay region is situated in the southern part of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, which in terms of biodiversity, is one of the world’s richest biomes. The region comprises well-preserved remnants of natural vegetation: tropical rain forests, mangrove swamps, salt meadows, beach dunes and the unique restinga coastal woodlands, but also a variety of secondary and ruderal formations. In recent years the awareness to the importance of the conservation of the region’s biodiversity has increased; therefore, the University of Joinville, Univille, together with the University of Erlangen, initiated the Babitonga Research Program. The program’s objective is to explore various environmental aspects in the region. This survey, as part of the Babitonga Research Program, focuses on vascular plant diversity in the region. The first aim of the survey was to record, characterize and evaluate the region’s flora. For that, plants were collected from all habitats during a three year’s period; additionally, a survey of herbarium specimens was carried out, and previously completed monographs were reviewed. The checklist contains information on the habitat, nativity status, distribution range and abundance of species collected in the course of this project, with regard to taxonomic updates and biogeographic novelties. The second aim was to relate the survey’s findings to historical processes that brought forth the extant flora in the region. Following paleoecological publications, tropical vegetation established in the region during Holocene, after the last glacial period. This leads to the conjecture that the most part of the flora migrated to the area recently. Based upon the collected biogeographic data, this monograph discusses the possible origins from which species arrived to the area. Moreover, the study retrieves information from the present floristic composition to create an image of historical landscape changes, and to understand the causes of floristic variations. Lastly, the study aimed to employ the findings for the conservation of biodiversity. Using the data on local abundance and geographic distribution, an evaluation of rare species was carried out; it points out endangered and/or rare species that urgently require conservation. 902 identified vascular plant species were recorded. The best-represented plant families in terms of number of species are Asteraceae, Poaceae and Cyperaceae. In disturbed and ruderal sites Poaceae and Asteraceae are the species-richest families, while in forests Orchidaceae, Bromeliaceae, Piperaceae and Myrtaceae prevail the most. In terms of biogeography, the region’s flora is characterized by high Atlantic Forest endemism on one hand and a high proportion of neotropically and pantropically distributed species on the other hand. Intermediate floristic ranges, such as the Amazonian Forest, and central South America are less prevailing. Endemism only to the south-Brazilian region is markedly low. The low endemism rate for southern Brazil can be explained by the young age of tropical vegetation in the region. Before Holocene, it had been covered by grasslands and subtropical cold-adapted forest; tropical plants as those currently present in the area, are unlikely to have occurred there. The few south-Brazilian endemic species are probably neospecies that diversified by mechanisms of hybridization and asexual reproduction, as in orchids and bromeliads; other species, such as several Myrtaceae, could probably persist in the area in the cold-adapted woodlands. The high rate of Atlantic Forest endemism, especially for the region between Santa Catarina and southern Bahia, indicates that many tropical species persisted in the region between Bahia and Rio de Janeiro. This phenomenon, also called Quaternary refuges of tropical moist forests, was already suggested by taxonomists, and this monograph supports that suggestion. Moreover, the distribution range of Atlantic Forest endemic species allows assuming that greater part of them originated in the Quaternary, since they have not yet expanded to other moist tropical ecosystems in from their formerly isolated forests. The numerous species that are distributed in tropical America and further seem to have another history. These species, among which there are some tall canopy trees with very slow speciation rates, have probably existed before Quaternary; they reached their current distribution rates in during the warmer Tertiary, and remained unchanged or differentiated into subspecies in forest refuges during the Quaternary. Species that are common to the Atlantic Forest and to the drier biomes of central South America are most prevalent in restinga and degraded vegetation; they present a range disjunction between low-woodland patches within the moist Atlantic Forest and the dry forests and grasslands in the continent’s interior. This floristic similarity can be related to physiognomic similarities of the ecosystems. A wide variety of ruderal and pioneers species also accounts for the high plant diversity in the area; if the area were covered solely by forest, diversity would be likely to decrease significantly. Few species of anthropic habitats are endemic, while most of them are widespread. It is suggested, that many of these species have already arrived with pre-Columbian man; alternatively some may have persisted in the area also after the transformation of landscape from grassland to tropical forest. Alien plants, which account for 9% of the flora, represent the present-day migration of plants. This intensified migration is the result of human action; In terms of conservation of biodiversity, this migration is undesired. Fortunately, for the most part, the forest formations remained unaffected by alien plants, and they maintain their natural character. Disturbed habitats, however, are susceptible to invasion by aggressive exotic species and require urgent measures to exclude invasive plants. This essay attempts to illustrate the various ways in which a flora develops; it is shown, that the migration, speciation and persistence of plants vary from species to species. This monograph also presents a list of native species whose future persistence in the area is endangered; accordingly, several measures for the protection plant diversity are proposed.Die Babitonga-Bucht (Baía da Babitonga) ist ein Flußmündungssystem an der Nordküste des Bundesstaates Santa Catarina, Südbrasilien. Die Region liegt im südlichen Teil des Atlantischen Regenwaldes (Mata Atlântica), einer der artenreichsten Biome der Erde. Die Region zeichnet sich aus durch ursprüngliche Vegetationsformen: tropische Regenwälder, Mangrovenwälder, Salzwiesen, Stranddünen und die einzigartigen Restinga-Küstenwälder, sowie eine Vielfalt von Sekundär- und Ruderalformationen. In letzter Zeit ist das Bewusstsein um den Schutz der Biodiversität in der Region gestiegen. Deshalb haben die Universität von Joinville, Univille, in Zusammenarbeit mit der Universität Erlangen das Babitonga Forschungsprogramm initiiert. Das Ziel des Programms ist die Erforschung verschiedener Umweltaspekte. Die vorliegende Studie bezieht sich auf die Vielfalt der Gefäßpflanzen in dieser Region. Das erste Ziel dieser Studie war die Erfassung, Charakterisierung und Auswertung der Flora der Region. Hierzu wurden innerhalb von drei Jahren Pflanzen von allen Vegetationsformen gesammelt. Zusätzlich wurde eine Untersuchung von Herbarbelegen unter Berücksichtigung bereits abgeschlossener Ergebnisse ausgeführt. Die erstellte floristische Liste enthält Informationen zu Standort, Herkunft, Häufigkeit und Areal der untersuchten Arten. Zweites Ziel der Arbeit war das Zusammenführen der Ergebnisse dieser Studie mit naturhistorischen Entwicklungen, die die heutige Zusammensetzung der Flora begründen. Durch paläoökologische Publikationen ist bekannt, dass die tropische Vegetation in der Region sich während des Holozäns nach der letzten Eiszeitperiode entwickelte. Das lässt vermuten, dass der größte Teil der Flora sich rezent angesiedelt hat. Die gesammelten biogeographischen Daten geben Hinweise auf die möglichen ursprünglichen Regionen, aus denen diese stammen. Die Studie untersucht zusätzlich mögliche historische Landschaftsverwandlungen anhand der heutigen Zusammensetzung der Flora. Des Weiteren behandelt sie die möglichen Mechanismen der Artenentstehung. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit sollen unter anderem dem Erhalt der Biodiversität dienen. Dazu wurde für die seltenen Arten eine Auswertung bezüglich der lokalen Artenhäufigkeit und Arealzugehörigkeit durchgeführt. Sie benennt gefährdete und/oder seltene Arten, die dringende Artenschutzmaßnahmen brauchen. Es wurden 902 Gefäßpflanzenarten erfasst. Die vielfältigsten Pflanzenfamilien sind die Asteraceae, Poaceae und Cyperaceae; in gestörten Standorten sind Poaceae und Asteraceae die artenreichsten; dagegen dominieren im Wald Orchidaceae, Bromeliaceae, Piperaceae und Myrtaceae. Biogeographisch zeichnet sich die Flora durch hohe Anteile von Mata Atlântica-Endemiten sowie hohe Anteile von neotropisch- und pantropisch verbreiteten Arten aus. Dazwischenliegende Areale, wie Zentral-Südamerika oder Amazonien sind weniger vertreten. Außerdem stellte sich heraus, dass die Endemismusrate in Südbrasilien extrem niedrig ist. Die geringe Endemismusrate in Südbrasilien erklärt sich durch die kurze Entwicklungsgeschichte der tropischen Vegetation in der Region. Vor dem Holozän war die Region von Savannen und kälteangepassten Wäldern geprägt; es ist deshalb unwahrscheinlich, dass zu dieser Zeit tropische Pflanzenarten dort entstehen konnten. Die wenigen südbrasilianisch-endemischen Arten sind wahrscheinlich Neospezies, die durch Hybridisierung and asexuelle Vermehrung entstanden sind; andere Arten, wie manche Myrtaceae, konnten in den kälteangepassten Wäldern bestehen. Die hohe Mata Atlântica Endemismusrate in der Region zwischen Süd-Bahia und Santa Catarina besagt, dass im Quartär viele tropische Arten in der Region zwischen Bahia und Rio de Janeiro vorkamen. Dieses Phänomen, bekannt als Quartär-Refugien tropischer Vegetation, wurde bereits von Taxonomen erwähnt; diese Monographie unterstützt diese Theorie. Das Areal dieser Endemiten lässt vermuten, dass sie während des Quartärs entstanden sind, da sie sich noch nicht in andere feuchttropische Ökosysteme ausbreiten konnten. Die vielen Arten, die neotropisch und pantropisch verbreitet sind, scheinen eine andere Geschichte zu haben. Diese Arten existierten wahrscheinlich schon vor dem Quartär. Sie erreichten ihre gegenwärtigen Areale schon während des warmen Tertiärs und blieben unverändert oder leicht differenziert während des gesamten Quartärs. Arten die sowohl im Atlantischen Wald als auch in trockenerem Zentral-Südamerika vorkommen, sind häufig in der Restinga und in gestörter Vegetation. Das Areal dieser Arten ist disjunkt, getrennt durch die feutchen Wälder der Mata Atlântica. Diese Disjunktion erklärt sich durch physiognomische Ähnlichkeiten zwischen Restinga- und Savannenvegetation. Die große Vielfalt der Ruderal- und Pionierpflanzen trägt zu der gesamten Biodiversität der Region bei. Würde die Region nur aus Wäldern bestehen, wäre die Pflanzendiversität geringer. Manche Ruderalpflanzen sind einheimisch und sogar endemisch, während die Mehrzahl weit verbreitet sind. Es wird vermutet, dass die meisten auf die präkolumbianische menschliche Einwanderung zurückzuführen ist. Andere Arten blieben in der Region auch nach der Landschaftsverwandlung von Savanne zu Wald. Exotische Pflanzen, die 9% der Flora ausmachen, repräsentieren die aktuelle Pflanzenmigration. Die verstärkte Zuwanderung von Pflanzen ist auf menschliche Eingriffe zurückzuführen. Vom Standpuknt des Scutzes der lokalen Biodiversität zu schützen ist diese Migration als schädlich zu betrachten. Wälder wurden von dieser Migration kaum betroffen und erhielten ihren natürlichen Charakter. Gestörte Standorte begünstigen die Einbürgerung von aggressiven exotischen Arten. Diese Arbeit zeigt die verschiedenen Möglichkeiten der Entwicklung von Flora. Es wird aufgezeigt, dass die Migration, Artentstehung und Ansiedlung sich von Art zu Art unterscheiden. Zudem enthält die Arbeit eine Liste gefährdeter einheimischer Arten. In diesem Zusammenhang werden verschiedenste Naturschutzmaßnahmen vorgeschlagen

Isatis Armena (Brassicaceae), New For Flora Palaestina

We report three records of Isatis armena L. (Brassicaceae) from southwestern Jordan, new for Flora Palaestina. The species, typically of a broad Irano-Turanian distribution, is unprecedentedly reported from the Saharo-Arabian floristic region, nearly 1000 km remote from its known range

‘Root of all success’: Plasticity in root architecture of invasive wild radish for adaptive benefit

Successful plant establishment in a particular environment depends on the root architecture of the seedlings and the extent of edaphic resource utilization. However, diverse habitats often pose a predicament on the suitability of the fundamental root structure of a species that evolved over a long period. We hypothesized that the plasticity in the genetically controlled root architecture in variable habitats provides an adaptive advantage to worldwide-distributed wild radish (Raphanus raphanistrum, Rr) over its close relative (R. pugioniformis, Rp) that remained endemic to the East Mediterranean region. To test the hypothesis, we performed a reciprocal comparative analysis between the two species, growing in a common garden experiment on their native soils (Hamra/Sandy for Rr, Terra Rossa for Rp) and complementary controlled experiments mimicking the major soil compositions. Additionally, we analyzed the root growth kinetics via semi-automated digital profiling and compared the architecture between Rr and Rp. In both experiments, the primary roots of Rr were significantly longer, developed fewer lateral roots, and showed slower growth kinetics than Rp. Multivariate analyses of seven significant root architecture variables revealed that Rr could successfully adapt to different surrogate growth conditions by only modulating their main root length and number of lateral roots. In contrast, Rp needs to modify several other root parameters, which are very resource-intensive, to grow on non-native soil. Altogether the findings suggest an evo-devo adaptive advantage for Rr as it can potentially establish in various habitats with the minimal tweak of key root parameters, hence allocating resources for other developmental requirements

Wild Grapevine (<i>Vitis vinifera</i> L. subsp. <i>sylvestris</i> (C.C. Gmelin) Hegi)—Novel Species to the Israeli Flora

The wild grapevine, Vitis vinifera subsp. sylvestris, grows naturally throughout the northern hemisphere, including the Mediterranean region. Wild grapevines have also been observed sporadically across the southern Levant and are considered a non-native feral plant. Nevertheless, no formal characterization has been conducted for wild grapevines in this region; thus, its taxonomical assignment remains elusive. Previously, we have shown that the wild grapevine populations growing in northern Israel are genetically separated from the feral domesticated forms. This work aimed to comprehensively describe the morphological, anatomical, and ecological traits of wild grapevines naturally thriving in two distinct habitats in Israel. The dioicous nature of the wild grapevine, the flower and pollen morphology, and the characteristic Sylvestris fruit and seed morphology, in addition to the occurrence of the natural germination of seeds in close vicinity of the mother plant, have all led to the conclusion that these plants belong to Vitis vinifera subsp. sylvestris and should be included in the Flora Palaestina. These findings, combined with the recently published genetic evidence for these populations, significantly advance our understanding of the species’ ecology and the importance of its preservation

G2-13

Flowering time measurements from 2013 common garden experiment in the greenhouse at Kellogg Biological Station. Populations: 9, Individuals per population: 14-30, Total individuals: 25

G-10

Flowering time data from 2010 common garden experiment in the greenhouse at Kellogg Biological Station. Populations: 4, Individuals per population: 8-22, Total individuals: 5

WeedEvo

All the data files and metadata files required to replicate the results of this paper. Scripts and readme are available on github https://github.com/ACharbonneau/creepy-barnacl