scholarly journals Environmental and Management Control over the Submontane Grassland Plant Communities in Central Slovakia

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Andrea Diviaková ◽  
Slavomír Stašiov ◽  
Radovan Pondelík ◽  
Vladimír Pätoprstý ◽  
Milan Novikmec
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Diversity Management ◽  
Grassland Management ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Grassland Species

In Central Europe, submontane grassland plant biodiversity is currently threatened by management intensification as well as by the cessation and abandonment of management activities (extensive grazing and mowing). Although the vegetation of Central European grasslands has been well described by phytosociological papers, there is still a need to improve our understanding of the effect of both management and environment on species richness and community composition. We studied submontane grassland communities in Central Slovakia. Our study showed that both environmental variables and management were important for shaping the submontane grassland species richness and floristic composition. Plant species richness showed a weak negative relationship with soil pH. When grassland management types were analyzed individually, the amount of phosphorus, nitrogen, pH, and altitude were all found to be significantly correlated with plant species richness or diversity. Management type and local environmental factors (i.e., incoming solar radiation) both determined community composition.

scholarly journals The impacts of anthropogenic disturbance on plant species richness in the freshwater lakes of Algonquin Provincial Park

SURG Journal ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-13
Author(s):  
Adrian Helmers ◽  
Alexis Platek ◽  
Melissa Ponte ◽  
Natalie Secen ◽  
Karl Cottenie
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Human Activity ◽  
Anthropogenic Disturbance ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Access Point ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Provincial Park

This study quantified the impact of human activity on aquatic and shoreline plant species richness. We hypothesized that human activity at the shoreline would negatively impact plant species richness and that the extent of the impact would depend on the intensity of human activity. To test this, we sampled 11 lakes in Algonquin Provincial Park, of which five permitted motorboat access, and five permitted canoe access and prohibited motorboat access. The remaining lake, which had no designated access point for boats and was only accessible to researchers, acted as a control. To assess the impact of anthropogenic disturbance at each lake, we measured plant species richness in three 10 m by 2 m plots: a first plot at the access point, assumed to be the site of highest disturbance; a second at the site of intermediate disturbance, 30 m down shore from the access point; and a third at the site of lowest disturbance, 60 m down shore from the access point. We found a significant negative relationship between the level of disturbance and plant species richness, both in the motorboat-accessible and canoe access-only lakes. The control lake exhibited no correlation between disturbance level and plant species richness. However, there was no significant difference between motorboat-accessible and canoe access-only lakes in the relationship between disturbance level and plant species richness. Overall, this study highlights the consequences of anthropogenic disturbance on freshwater aquatic and shoreline plant communities, and provides a framework for future management and rehabilitation strategies.

scholarly journals Effect of Grazing System on Grassland Plant Species Richness and Vegetation Characteristics: Comparing Horse and Cattle Grazing

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 3300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anja Schmitz ◽  
Johannes Isselstein
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
Grassland Management ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Grazing Cattle ◽  
Grazing System ◽  
Vegetation Characteristics ◽  
Forage Value ◽  
Grazer Species

Horses are of increasing relevance in agriculturally managed grasslands across Europe. There is concern to what extent grazing with horses is a sustainable grassland management practice. The effect of longer-term horse grazing on the vegetation characteristics of grasslands has received little attention, especially in comparison to grazing cattle. Our study analyses the relative importance of grazing system (grazer species and regime) and grassland management for vegetation characteristics in grasslands as indicator for sustainable management. We monitored grassland vegetation in western central Germany and compared paddocks grazed by horses under two different regimes, continuous (HC) vs. rotational (HR), to paddocks grazed by cattle (C) under similar trophic site conditions. We observed more plant species and more High Nature Value indicator species on HC compared to C. The vegetation of C was more grazing tolerant and had higher forage value than HC. Regardless of the grazing regime, the competitive component was lower, the stress-tolerant component higher and the floristic contrast between patch-types stronger on HC and HR paddocks compared to C. Species richness was strongly influenced by the extent of the floristic contrast. Our results emphasize the potential of horse grazing for biodiversity in agriculturally managed grasslands.

Herbivore and pollinator responses to grassland management intensity along experimental changes in plant species richness

2012 ◽  
Vol 150 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anika Hudewenz ◽  
Alexandra-Maria Klein ◽  
Christoph Scherber ◽  
Lea Stanke ◽  
Teja Tscharntke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Grassland Management ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Management Intensity

scholarly journals Effects of plant species diversity on nematode community composition and diversity in a long-term biodiversity experiment

Oecologia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Dietrich ◽  
Simone Cesarz ◽  
Tao Liu ◽  
Christiane Roscher ◽  
Nico Eisenhauer
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Resource Quality ◽  
Plant Feeding ◽  
Shoot Mass

AbstractDiversity loss has been shown to change the soil community; however, little is known about long-term consequences and underlying mechanisms. Here, we investigated how nematode communities are affected by plant species richness and whether this is driven by resource quantity or quality in 15-year-old plant communities of a long-term grassland biodiversity experiment. We extracted nematodes from 93 experimental plots differing in plant species richness, and measured above- and belowground plant biomass production and soil organic carbon concentrations (Corg) as proxies for resource quantity, as well as C/Nleaf ratio and specific root length (SRL) as proxies for resource quality. We found that nematode community composition and diversity significantly differed among plant species richness levels. This was mostly due to positive plant diversity effects on the abundance and genus richness of bacterial-feeding, omnivorous, and predatory nematodes, which benefited from higher shoot mass and soil Corg in species-rich plant communities, suggesting control via resource quantity. In contrast, plant-feeding nematodes were negatively influenced by shoot mass, probably due to higher top–down control by predators, and were positively related to SRL and C/Nleaf, indicating control via resource quality. The decrease of the grazing pressure ratio (plant feeders per root mass) with plant species richness indicated a higher accumulation of plant-feeding nematodes in species-poor plant communities. Our results, therefore, support the hypothesis that soil-borne pathogens accumulate in low-diversity communities over time, while soil mutualists (bacterial-feeding, omnivorous, predatory nematodes) increase in abundance and richness in high-diversity plant communities, which may contribute to the widely-observed positive plant diversity–productivity relationship.

scholarly journals Plant diversity effects on herbivory are mediated by soil biodiversity and plant chemistry

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Ristok ◽  
Alexander Weinhold ◽  
Marcel Ciobanu ◽  
Yvonne Poeschl ◽  
Christiane Roscher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Nematode Community ◽  
Resource Acquisition ◽  
Soil Community ◽  
Aboveground Herbivory ◽  
Acquisition Strategy

Abstract Insect herbivory is a key process in ecosystem functioning. While theory predicts that plant diversity modulates herbivory, the mechanistic links remain unclear. We postulated that the plant metabolome mechanistically links plant diversity and herbivory. In autumn and in spring, we assessed aboveground herbivory rates and plant metabolomes of seven plant species in experimental plant communities varying in plant species and resource acquisition strategy diversity. In the same plots, we also measured plant individual biomass as well as soil microbial and nematode community composition. Herbivory rates decreased with increasing plant species richness. Path modelling revealed that plant species richness and community resource acquisition strategy affected soil community composition. In particular, changes in nematode community composition affected plant metabolomes and thereby herbivory rates. These results provide experimental evidence that soil community composition plays an important role in reducing herbivory rates with increasing plant diversity by changing plant metabolomes.

scholarly journals Plant species richness elicits changes in the metabolome of grassland species via soil biotic legacy

2019 ◽  
Vol 107 (5) ◽  
pp. 2240-2254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Ristok ◽  
Yvonne Poeschl ◽  
Jan‐Hendrik Dudenhöffer ◽  
Anne Ebeling ◽  
Nico Eisenhauer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Grassland Species
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