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opencc-zeroJun 2022View details →

Data from: Grassland type and seasonal effects have a bigger influence on plant functional and taxonomical diversity than prairie dog disturbances in semi-arid grasslands

Prairie dogs (Cynomys sp.) are considered keystone species and ecosystem engineers for their grazing and burrowing activities (summarized here as disturbances). As climate changes and its variability increases, the mechanisms underlying organisms' interactions with their habitat will likely shift. Understanding the mediating role of prairie dog disturbance on vegetation structure, and its interaction with environmental conditions through time, will increase knowledge on the risks and vulnerability of grasslands. Here, we compared how plant taxonomical diversity, functional diversity metrics and community-weighted trait means (CWM) respond to prairie dog C. mexicanus disturbance across grassland types and seasons (dry and wet) in a priority conservation semiarid grassland of Northeast Mexico. Our findings suggest that functional metrics and CWM analyses responded to interactions between prairie dog disturbance, grassland type and season, whilst species diversity and cover measures were less sensitive to the role of prairie dog disturbance. We found weak evidence that prairie dog disturbance has a negative effect on vegetation structure, except for minimal effects on C4 and graminoid cover, but which depended mainly on season. Grassland type and season explained most of the effects on plant functional and taxonomic diversity as well as CWM traits. Furthermore, we found that leaf area as well as forb and annual cover increased during the wet season, independent of prairie dog disturbance. Our results provide evidence that grassland type and season have a stronger effect than prairie dog disturbance on the vegetation of this short-grass, water restricted grassland ecosystem. We argue that focusing solely on disturbance and grazing effects is misleading, and attention is needed on the relationships between vegetation and environmental conditions which will be critical to understand semi-arid grassland dynamics under future climate change conditions in the region.

openother-openSep 2021View details →

Supporting data and code for: Host plant and insecticides shape the evolution of genetic and clonal diversity in a major aphid crop pest

This is the first release of the final data and code for the article accepted for publication in Evolutionary Applications journal. It contains the necessary scripts to produce most of the analyses and figures of the manuscript. All the necessary data can be found in the 'data' folder.

opencc-zeroFeb 2023View details →

Area, connectivity and plant life strategy diversity and abundance in temporary ponds of Southeastern Carpathians (Romania, Europe)

We used this dataset to determine whether area and connectivity of temporary ponds can predict plant species diversity, and the diversity and abundance of different plant life histories within the ponds. The studied system is located in the Ciuc Basin of the Southeastern Carpathian Mountains, Romania. We collected data on the macrophyte species diversity of 28 temporary ponds between 2006-2009. Plant species identified in the ponds were assigned into one of the social behaviour types proposed by Borhidi (1995), which describe plant-habitat interactions within a framework extended from Grime's evolutionary life strategies (Grime 1988), as follows: competitors, stress tolerants (generalists or specialists) and ruderals (natural pioneers i.e., plants of habitats disturbed by natural factors, and plants of habitats disturbed by human factors, classified as either: disturbance tolerants, native weeds, naturalised crops, adventitious weeds, ruderal competitors, alien competitors). We expressed species diversity as observed species richness (total number of species) and Shannon diversity index, and abundance as cumulative vegetation cover, calculated for each pond and for each social behaviour type separately. We calculated pond area using the short and long axis of the ellipse that best approximated the pond shape. Pond connectivity with the Olt river was defined as the pond present and respectively past (preceding river regulation) geographic distance from the Olt river, measured between the pond GPS coordinate and the nearest point of the river.

opencc-zeroJul 2022View details →

Flower color and flowering phenology mediate plant-pollinator interaction assembly in a diverse co-flowering community

Uncovering the role of competition and facilitation in community assembly is central for developing a predictive understanding of the forces that organize biodiversity. Standard trait-based approaches however rely on detection of only one assembly mechanism (competition or facilitation) along a single trait even though pollinator-mediated plant-plant interactions can be structured along multiple phenotypic, phenological and ecological traits. We evaluated plant species distribution along multiple phenotypic and ecological traits (flower color, flowering time, pollinator sharing) and described an entire co-flowering community as a set of modules with unique patterns of assembly, to test predictions regarding the relative contribution of competition and facilitation to the assembly of a diverse co-flowering community. We show a modular pattern of flower color assembly. Flower color modules differ in their spectral reflectance patterns including color hue and saturation. Within modules, however, species are differentially assembled along phenological and ecological traits (pollinator sharing) depending on the main pollinator group visiting plant species within each module. Results suggest different trait assembly patterns within individual trait-modules in the same co-flowering community and that different trait-patterns can result from the same type of ecological interaction. This study reveals empirical evidence of community assembly along multiple axes of trait differentiation and raises caution when interpreting assembly patterns based on a single trait.

opencc-zeroAug 2022View details →

Invasive plant species that experience lower herbivory pressure may evolve lower diversities of chemical defence compounds in the exotic range

ABSTRACT PREMISE Invasive plant species often escape from specialist herbivore species and are likely to experience herbivory mostly from generalist herbivore species in the exotic range. Consequently, the Shifting Defence Hypothesis (SDH) predicts that invasive plants will express higher concentrations of qualitative defence compounds to deter dominant generalist herbivores in the exotic range. Here, I additionally propose a Reduced Chemical Diversity Hypothesis (RCDH), which predicts that reduced herbivory pressure will select for invasive plant genotypes that produce lower diversities of defence compounds in the exotic range. METHODS I tested whether: (1) Invasive Brassica nigra populations express a lower diversity and an overall higher concentration of glucosinolate compounds than native-range B. nigra; (2) Brassica nigra individuals that express high diversities and concentrations of glucosinolates are more attractive to specialist and deterrent to generalist herbivores; (3) Tissues of invasive B. nigra are less palatable to two generalist herbivores Theba pisana and Helix aspersa than tissues of native-range B. nigra. RESULTS Invasive B. nigra populations expressed a significantly lower diversity of glucosinolate compounds and a marginally higher concentration of total glucosinolate compounds. Leaf tissues of the invasive B. nigra were significantly less palatable to T. pisana and marginally less so to H. aspersa. Brassica nigra individuals that expressed high concentrations of total glucosinolate compounds were visited by a low diversity of generalist herbivore species in the field. CONCLUSIONS The biogeographical differences in glucosinolate profiles of invasive and native-range populations of B. nigra may be the result of differential herbivore selection pressures in the respective ranges.

opencc-zeroAug 2022View details →

Bottom-up effects of plant quantity and quality on arthropod diversity across multiple trophic levels in a semi-arid grassland

1. Plant quantity and quality can independently affect the diversity of the entire arthropod communities and multiple arthropod taxa in grassland ecosystems. However, it remains unclear how these effects on arthropod taxa at one trophic level propagate through food web to influence the diversity of higher trophic levels. 2. We performed a monoculture experiment with 15 herbaceous species in the Inner Mongolian grassland to investigate how natural variations in plant productivity and host leaf traits affect herbivore taxon richness, which in turn affects predator taxon richness. 3. For herbivores, plant productivity indirectly promoted herbivore taxon richness by increasing herbivore biomass, which was attributed to the increases in the richness of dominant sucking herbivores and endophytes with high food requirements. However, the high plant quality indicator (e.g. high leaf protein, phosphorus and water contents, and high leaf protein to carbohydrate ratio) directly increased, whereas the low plant quality indicator (e.g. high leaf lignin content) directly decreased herbivore taxon richness. Taxon richness of chewing and sucking herbivores with specific feeding modes (tearing or sucking mouthparts) showed strong positive responses to increasing plant quality. 4. For predators, herbivore taxon richness, rather than herbivore biomass, mainly mediated the positive effects of plant productivity and the high plant quality indicator, but the negative effect of the low plant quality indicator, on predator taxon richness. At the feeding guild level, the taxon richness of parasitoids, other predators and spiders exhibited positive responses to different herbivores, which was attributed to their different diet preferences. Predator diversity could be promoted by prey partitioning among predator guilds facilitating species coexistence. At the family level, the taxon richness of most predator families was positively correlated with that of more than one herbivore family, suggesting that high predator diversity may be caused by balanced diets owing to high prey diversity. 5. Synthesis. Natural variations in plant quantity and quality can substantially affect the diversity of herbivores and cascade up the food web to affect predators. Specificity and mechanisms of feeding have a large impact on the responses of arthropod guilds at each trophic level.

opencc-zeroAug 2022View details →

Plant dispersal characteristics shape the relationship of diversity with area and isolation

Aim This study disentangles how plant dispersal syndromes influence the relationship of species richness with area and isolation while also accounting for the human impact on island biodiversity. It builds on the potential of islands at the mesoscale and of similar origin to contribute to the ongoing discussion in island biogeography on what determines species richness and filtering. Location Denmark, 54 saltwater and brackish water islands in the North and Baltic Sea Taxon Vascular plants, including pteridophytes (ferns, clubmosses and horsetails) Methods Generalized linear models (GLMs) and linear regressions are used to analyse how dispersal syndromes influence the relationships of species numbers with island area and isolation, as well as island inhabitation and human density, respectively. Results Species numbers, as well as mean seed mass and the proportion of zoochore and anemochore species, are positively related to island area while the share of water-dispersed species decreases with increasing area. The slope of the regression line representing the species-area relationship (SAR) was 0.34 and lies within the common range for this relationship. Isolation is weakly related to mean seed mass but has no explaining power for species numbers and the presence of specific dispersal syndrome on the target islands. Species richness and seed mass was positively related to human presence. Main conclusions Human impact for centuries has not overwritten the strong relationship of species richness with area on the Danish Islands but is affecting the shape of this relationship. Island area constitutes a strong filter for different dispersal syndromes and leads to the assumption that heavier and animal-dispersed seeds are positively related to island area due to the presence of more bird and mammal species. Human-induced loss of isolation caused by ongoing traffic and the connection of landmasses by bridges and ferries may be a reason for the overall low explanatory power of island isolation. Higher species richness on inhabited islands may further be linked to higher habitat diversity in human modified landscapes.

opencc-zeroSep 2022View details →

High resolution ancient sedimentary DNA shows that alpine plant diversity is associated with human land use and climate change

The European Alps are highly rich in species, but their future may be threatened by ongoing changes in human land use and climate. Here, we reconstructed vegetation, temperature, human impact and livestock over the past ~12,000 years from Lake Sulsseewli, based on sedimentary ancient plant and mammal DNA, pollen, spores, chironomids, and microcharcoal. We assembled a highly-complete local DNA reference library (PhyloAlps, 3,923 plant taxa), and used this to obtain an exceptionally rich sedaDNA record of 366 plant taxa. Vegetation mainly responded to climate during the early Holocene, while human activity had an additional influence on vegetation from 6 ka onwards. Land-use shifted from episodic grazing during the Neolithic and Bronze Age to agropastoralism in the Middle Ages. Associated human deforestation allowed the coexistence of plant species typically found at different elevational belts, leading to levels of plant richness that characterise the current high diversity of this region. Our findings indicate a positive association between low-intensity agropastoral activities and precipitation with the maintenance of the unique subalpine and alpine plant diversity of the European Alps.

Landscape simplification leads to loss of plant-pollinator interaction diversity and flower visitation frequency despite buffering by abundant generalist pollinators

Global change, especially landscape simplification, is a main driver of species loss that can alter ecological interaction networks, with potentially severe consequences to ecosystem functions. Therefore, understanding how landscape simplification affects the rate of loss of plant-pollinator interaction diversity (i.e., number of unique interactions) compared to species diversity alone, and the role of persisting abundant pollinators, is key to assess the consequences of landscape simplification on network stability and pollination services. We analysed 24 landscape-scale plant-pollinator networks from standardised transect walks along landscape simplification gradients in three countries. We compared the rates of species and interaction diversity loss along the landscape simplification gradient and then stepwise excluded the top 1-20% most abundant pollinators from the data set to evaluate their effect on interaction diversity, network robustness to secondary loss of species, and flower visitation frequencies in simplified landscapes. Interaction diversity was not more vulnerable than species diversity to landscape simplification, with pollinator and interaction diversity showing similar rates of erosion with landscape simplification. We found that 20% of both species and interactions are lost with an increase of arable crop cover from 30 to 80% in a landscape. The decrease in interaction diversity was partially buffered by persistent abundant generalist pollinators in simplified landscapes, which were nested subsets of pollinator communities in complex landscapes, while plants showed a high turnover in interactions across landscapes. The top 5% most abundant pollinator species also contributed to network robustness against secondary species loss, but could not prevent flowers from a loss of visits in simplified landscapes. Although persistent abundant pollinators buffered the decrease in interaction diversity in simplified landscapes and stabilised network robustness, flower visitation frequency was reduced, emphasising potentially severe consequences of further ongoing land-use change for pollination services.

opencc-by-4.0Apr 2024View details →

Diversity and composition of macrofungi in different Types of Stands in planted forest Biyang County, central China

Table S1:List and distribution statistics of macrofungi in Biyang County. Table S2: Species Scientific Names and Corresponding Abbreviations.

Woody plant diversity before and after the Horseshoe Two Fire in the Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona, USA

Aim: Drastic changes in fire regimes are altering plant communities, inspiring ecologists to better understand the relationship between fire and plant species diversity. We examined the impact of a 90,000-ha wildfire on woody plant species diversity in an arid mountain range in southern Arizona, USA. We tested recent fire-diversity hypotheses by addressing the impacts of fire severity, fire variability, historical fire regimes, and topography on diversity. Location: Chiricahua National Monument, Chiricahua Mountains, Arizona. USA., part of the Sky Islands of the US-Mexico borderlands. Taxon: Woody plant species. Methods: We sampled woody plant diversity in 138 plots before (2002-2003) and after (2017-2018) the 2011 Horseshoe Two Fire in three vegetation types and across fire severity and topographic gradients. We calculated gamma, alpha, and beta diversity and examined changes over time in burned vs. unburned plots and the shapes of the relationships of diversity with fire severity and topography. Results: Alpha species richness declined and beta and gamma diversity increased in burned but not unburned plots. Fire-induced enhancement of gamma diversity was confined to low fire severity plots. Alpha diversity did not exhibit a clear continuous relationship with fire severity. Beta diversity was enhanced by fire severity variation among plots and increased with fire severity up to very high severity, where it declined slightly. Main Conclusions: The results reject the intermediate disturbance hypothesis for alpha diversity but weakly support it for gamma diversity. Spatial variation in fire severity promoted variation among plant assemblages, supporting the pyrodiversity hypothesis. Long-term drought probably amplified fire-driven diversity changes. Despite the apparent benign impact of the fire on diversity, the replacement of two large conifer species with a suite of drought-tolerant shrubs signals the potential loss of functional diversity, a pattern that may warrant restoration efforts to retain these important compositional elements.

Data from: Landscapes with higher crop diversity have lower aphid species richness but higher plant virus prevalence

Diversifying agricultural systems by growing more than one crop species in an area can decrease pest and disease pressure and increase crop yields. However, there is a lack of information on how crop diversity at larger spatial scales influences pest and disease pressure. Here, we investigated how landscape-scale crop diversity affects aphid vector communities and prevalence of non-persistently transmitted potato virus Y (PVY). To test the influence of landscape-scale crop diversity on PVY prevalence and aphid communities, we conducted a field study during the 2020 and 2021 field seasons in the San Luis Valley, Colorado where we quantified aphid communities and PVY incidence at multiple sites. We then determined the association of aphid species richness and abundance and PVY incidence with landscape variables (crop diversity metrics and percentage cover of crop species) within 1, 2 and 3 km buffers from study sites. Higher crop diversity (measured as Shannon diversity index) led to decreased aphid species richness at a 3 km buffer in the 2021 field season. Percentage of alfalfa was positively associated with aphid species richness in 2020 and aphid abundance in 2021 within a 1 km buffer. Higher crop diversity led to increased PVY incidence at a 2 km buffer in 2021 and 3 km buffer in 2020 and 2021. At a 3 km buffer in 2021, we found a positive influence of crop species richness on PVY incidence and a negative influence of crop species evenness on PVY incidence. Also in 2021, we found a positive influence of percentage of potato (virus host) on PVY incidence and a negative influence of percentage of barley (virus non-host) on PVY incidence. Synthesis and applications: In summary, we found that landscape-scale crop diversity impacts plant virus prevalence at spatial scales of >1 km. This suggests that potato growers could reduce PVY prevalence by geographically isolating potato fields from other potato or other PVY-hosts. Crop diversity had a negative influence on aphid vector communities so growers could reduce risk of virus spread by aphid vectors by using certified potato seed in a diversified landscape.

opencc-zeroDec 2023View details →

Data from: The functional diversity–productivity relationship of woody plants is climatically sensitive

Plot-scale experiments show that functional diversity (FD) plays a pivotal role in maintaining ecosystem functions such as net primary productivity (NPP). However, how FD affects NPP across larger scales under varying climatic conditions is sparsely studied, yet is important for forest–atmosphere interactions and policy development. Hence, we assess the effects of functional dispersion (FDis) and community-weighted means (CWMs) of woody plant traits on NPP across China and if such effects are modulated by climatic conditions at large scale. Using comprehensive datasets on distribution, functional traits and productivity for 9120 Chinese woody plant species, we evaluated the distribution pattern and the relationships of FDis and CWM (including three orthogonal trait indicators: plant size, photosynthetic capacity and flower duration) with NPP through multiple linear regression models. Structural equation models were used to test the effects of climatic conditions on FDis/CWM–NPP relationships. We found both general FD effects, but also that the magnitude of these could be modified by climate, with CWM and FDis of plant size especially promoting NPP in warm and wet regions, respectively. Climate indirectly increased NPP through positive effects on CWM or FDis, notably via mean photosynthetic capacity. This study provides the first comprehensive evidence for FD effects on NPP under varying climates at large scale. Importantly, our results suggest a general increase in the importance of plant traits for woody vegetation NPP with rising temperatures and wetter climates. Restoration and reforestation actions need to carefully consider not just CWMs and FDis, but, as an additional path, also their interactions with climate, to predict how FD may promote ecosystem functioning under future climatic conditions.

Global responses of plant abundance, diversity, and fitness to increased fire severity or frequency

Database of responses of plant abundance, diversity, and fitness to increased fire frequency or severity, collected from published scientific articles or reports. The database includes 394 studies published worldwide between 1962 and 2023. Information on the following variables are also provided: fire regime component (fire frequency or severity), time since the last fire, fire type (wildfire or prescribed fire), historical fire regime type (surface or crown fire), plant life form (woody plant, herb, or bryophyte), habitat type, and climate. The database underpins the meta-analysis 'Global plant responses to intensified fire regimes', published in Global Ecology and Biogeography.

opencc-by-4.0May 2024View details →

Unraveling the local and regional determinants of the high plant diversity at marine rocky outcrops in Uruguay

This repository includes the data (environmental and species by plot) and codes associated to our work which analized the high plant diversity reported in Atlantic rocky outcrops of Uruguay.  In this study we analyzed the local determinants and regional processes that could determine this high plant diversity. Specifically, we evaluated the potential role of the regional species pool diversity (through the presence of different species assemblages according to their preferential environment or vegetation type), and the local determinants of plant diversity in the coast-inland gradient of stress and disturbance.

opencc-zeroJun 2024View details →

Parcel level temporal variance of remotely sensed spectral reflectance predicts plant diversity

Over the last two decades, considerable research has built on remote sensing of spectral diversity to assess plant diversity. The spectral variation hypothesis (SVH) proposes that spatial variation in reflectance data of an area is positively associated with plant diversity. While the SVH has exhibited validity in dense forests, it performs poorly in highly fragmented and temporally dynamic agricultural landscapes covered mainly by grasslands. Such underperformance can be attributed to the mosaic-like spatial structure of human-dominated landscapes with fields in varying phenological and management stages. Therefore, we argued for re-evaluating SVH's flawed window-based spatial analysis and underutilized temporal component. In particular, In particular, we captured the spatial and temporal variation in reflectance and assessed the relationships between spatial and temporal components of spectral diversity and plant diversity at the parcel level as a unit that relates to management patterns. Our investigation spanned three grasslands on two continents covering a wide spectrum of agricultural usage intensities. To calculate different components of spectral diversity, we used multi-temporal spaceborne Sentinel-2 data. We showed that plant diversity was negatively associated with the temporal component of spectral diversity across all sites. In contrast, the spatial component of spectral diversity was related to plant diversity in sites with larger parcels. Our findings highlighted that in agricultural landscapes, the temporal component of spectral diversity drives the spectral diversityplant diversity associations. Consequently, our results offer a novel perspective for remote sensing of plant diversity globally.

opencc-by-4.0Jan 2024View details →

Data and Code for "No general support of functional diversity enhancing resilience across terrestrial plant communities"

The data and code provided here is to support the study "No general support of functional diversity enhancing resilience across terrestrial plant communities"  This repository contains the following files:  The code to reproduce main analysisi and graphs in R and HTML format <ul> <li>RcodeNoGeneralSupport.R</li> <li>RcodeNoGeneralSupport.html</li> </ul> The data to be used for the different analyses <ul> <li>ResilienceFDIndices.csv</li> <li>ResilienceFDIndices-BiomassH.csv</li> <li>ResilienceFDIndices-BiomassW.csv</li> <li>ResilienceFDIndices-CompositionW.csv</li> <li>ResilienceFDIndices-Herbaceous.csv</li> <li>ResilienceFDIndices-woody.csv</li> <li>ResilienceSR.csv</li> <li>ResilienceSR-BiomassH.csv</li> <li>ResilienceSR-BiomassW.csv</li> <li>ResilienceSR-CompositionW.csv</li> <li>ResilienceSR-herbaceous.csv</li> <li>ResilienceSR-woody.csv</li> </ul> The detailed information for each variable in each data set <ul> <li>README.txt</li> </ul>

opencc-zeroJul 2024View details →

Ungulate herbivores promote beta diversity and drive stochastic plant community assembly by selective defoliation and trampling: From a four-year simulation experiment

Ungulate herbivores shape grassland plant communities at multiple scales, ultimately affecting ecosystem function. However, ungulates have complex effects on grasslands, including defoliation, trampling, excreta return, and their interactions. Moreover, the effects of ungulate density on grasslands are regulated by these three mechanisms. Nevertheless, how these three mechanisms affect biodiversity at multiple scales and community assembly remains poorly understood. Here, we conducted a 4-year novel field experiment to disentangle the effects of defoliation, trampling, and excreta return by ungulates on plant community assembly in a temperate grassland in Inner Mongolia, China. This experiment set two different scenarios: moderate ungulate density (Moderate, characterised by selective defoliation and moderate trampling) and high ungulate density (Intense, characterised by non-selective defoliation and heavy trampling), including different combinations of defoliation, trampling, and excreta return in each scenario. We found that defoliation and trampling increased stochasticity in community assembly and promoted alpha and beta diversity under both scenarios. Specifically, defoliation promoted the coexistence of species with multiple resource acquisition strategies (higher functional trait diversity) by reducing interspecific competition; trampling tended to facilitate random species colonisation. Conversely, excreta return favoured grasses, promoting deterministic assembly and impacting species coexistence. Notably, selective defoliation in the moderate scenario led to a dominance of stochastic processes during community assembly, whereas non-selective defoliation still did not change the dominance of deterministic processes. Further, communities subject to selective defoliation were insensitive to changes in soil properties caused by trampling and excreta return, maintaining a high-level beta diversity and the stochastic of community assembly. Synthesis: Our study provides important insights into the mechanisms by which ungulate herbivores influence plant community assembly, suggesting that defoliation and trampling have the potential to drive stochastic processes, while excreta return plays the opposite role. Our study also suggests that selective foraging by ungulates acts as stronger stochastic forces during community assembly compared to non-selective defoliation. These results imply that considering ungulate feeding preferences and foraging behaviour in grassland management will help prevent biodiversity loss and biotic homogenisation.

opencc-by-4.0Feb 2021View details →

Figure 1. First lecture room for Botany – a in Hundred years of Botany at the NWU: contributions towards understanding plant and algae function, diversity and restoration in a changing environment

Figure 1. First lecture room for Botany – a stable (Source: NWU Records, Archives and Museum).