We investigated the interrelations between environmental variables (proxies for water availability and soil physico-chemical properties) and tree community patterns (diversity, composition and structure) along pond-upland topographic gradients within depressional watersheds in the upper Uruguay River basin in southern Brazil. Sampling plots were allocated in four topographic habitats: (1) inside ponds

Knowledge about the effects of fire on tree communities of Araucaria forests (AF) is scarce, although this physiognomy is among the most threatened ones in the entire Brazilian hotspot Atlantic Forest. With this study, we sought to answer the following questions: After three years of the fire, how has the soil of this forest remnant been recovering? Are fires in the AF able to change the structure

Urbanization is one of the main drivers of environmental change and can result in drastic changes to the biodiversity and composition of plant communities. The objective of the present work was to investigate whether the structure, diversity and composition of Neotropical savanna woody plant communities differ among fragments immersed in urban, peri-urban and rural environments. The study was carried

The history and continuity of lowland woodlands in Central Europe is closely connected with human activities. We studied a small wetland situated directly in a low-elevation oak-dominated woodland to evaluate the history and impact of humans on an oak woodland in south-eastern Slovakia. We used different proxies to obtain evidence of woodland history spanning at least 8,500 years. Pollen, diatom and

Understanding the influence of environmental and anthropogenic factors on the distribution of species is essential for developing management in endangered ecosystems. We studied the current abundance and distribution patterns of vegetation along environmental and anthropogenic gradients in North West Algeria. We focused on the four dominant coniferous species (Pinus halepensis, Tetraclinis articulata

The steppe flora and vegetation represents a significant part of the Eurasian temperate grassland biome. In Serbia, this flora is a part of the biome’s western border zone and its characteristics therefore may be modified. The aim of this study was to determine the number of steppe taxa in Serbia and to conduct a chorological and ecological analysis of this flora. The results of diversity analysis

Climate variability added to anthropogenic pressures leads to habitat fragmentation, degradation and loss of forest ecosystem resources in Burkina Faso. Studying vegetation structure and woody species composition is important in monitoring vegetation dynamics for efficient forest management. This study was carried out to characterize woody vegetation along a climatic gradient. Stratified sampling according

The genus Sabulina is represented by 26 taxa in Turkey. Some interesting specimens belonging to the genus, the main distribution area of which is the Mediterranean phytogeographical region, were collected in Erzurum province. These newly collected specimens and Sabulina rimarum var. rimarum were compared with each other in terms of their general morphology and seed micromorphology. Besides, by using

Semi-natural, extensively managed, grasslands are among the most species-rich agroecosystems in Europe. However, they are threatened by abandonment. We investigated the response of semi-natural grasslands to cessation of mowing at ten sites in three UNESCO Biosphere Reserves in Switzerland and Austria. We assessed vegetation characteristics, topsoil properties and microbially mediated soil processes

Paepalanthus subsect. Polycladus was proposed based on a few and incomplete specimens of P. polygonus. In this manuscript we re-circumscribe the group, include the remarkable new species Paepalanthus lychnophorellus and exclude P. grao-mogolensis, providing also a complete description of Paepalanthus polygonus. One new synonym is proposed (P. spiralifolius = P. polygonus) and one lectotypification

Climbing plants form a substantial component of tropical forest diversity. Climbers are a diverse group comprising various ecological strategies dependent on tree support and are affected by biotic and abiotic forest conditions. In a lowland primary tropical rainforest in Papua New Guinea, we studied the distribution of root climbers from genus Piper in relation to topography (slope, convexity, altitude)

Larger plants of course generally produce more seed offspring than smaller plants. The vast majority of species, however (and resident reproductive plants within a given species’ population), are relatively small. To help interpret why this may be so, we controlled for effects of between-species body size variation by measuring fecundity per unit plant body size (i.e. ‘fecundity allocation’) – to test

Understanding vegetation-environment relationships enables perceiving past and present patterns and to predict responses to future scenarios, thereby being useful for conservation and understanding evolutionary processes. In this context, the objective of our study was to test the hypothesis that niche processes at local scales (< 1 km2) are significantly expressive in plant communities structuring

The tribe Neottieae (Orchidaceae subfam. Epidendroideae) represents an excellent potential system for understanding plastome evolution in orchids. The tribe includes about 100 species with six recognized genera and includes both chlorophyllous and achlorophyllous taxa. Previously published Neottieae plastomes have revealed a complicated history of gene loss, particularly ndh gene loss, as well as plastome

Festuca is a genus of the Poaceae family with about 140 species in South America. Little information is available about Festuca species growing in the Eastern Sierras Pampeanas in Argentina, a region with a significant degree of endemism. The taxonomic delimitation of some species of this region is imprecise. One such taxon is Festuca lilloi, which has not only been recognized as a native species of

Knowledge of ploidy level and genome size in a germplasm collection is critical before studying genetic diversification of different environmental range in grasses and other plants. We assessed the geographic patterns in ploidy level and genome size of 216 individuals of Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. (common bermudagrass) by flow cytometry of accessions sampled from 16 geographic sites along a latitudinal

The tribe Olyreae comprises 124 understorey herbaceous bamboos species and almost all of its species are distributed in the Neotropics. Only Buergersiochloa bambusoides is found in New Guinea, and Olyra latifolia has a disjunct distribution in tropical America, Africa and Madagascar. Applying phylogenetic and biogeographical analyses, our aim was to identify the ancestral area and time of divergence

The Cactaceae display a wide array of pollination systems, with many different animals already confirmed as pollinators. Pilosocereus is one of the most conspicuous bat-pollinated genera characteristic of the tropical dry forests of Brazil, known as Caatinga. The role of bats, hawkmoths and bees as pollinators in natural populations was investigated for four Pilosocereus species (P. catingicola, P

Knowledge about seed germination ecology is necessary for development of protocols for in ex situ conservation and in situ restoration of rare species. Here we investigate the effect of temperature, light, GA­3 and cold storage in the germination niche of Saxifraga italica (Saxifragaceae), and endemic species of Central Apennines (Italy). Several temperatures, both in dark and light conditions, and

Fire is a widespread disturbance that affects plant individuals and populations. In fire-prone environments, such as Mediterranean-type ecosystems, many species are stimulated to germinate by fire-related cues, for example heat and smoke. However, little is known about the effect of fire on seed germination of species from herbaceous communities like temperate grasslands. In this study we assessed

The factors that influence seed production and seed dormancy in rare plant species are crucial to their conservation yet are often poorly understood. In this study, we examined the breeding system and seed biology of the critically endangered Australian endemic species Persoonia pauciflora through a series of experiments. Pollinator visitation surveys and manipulative hand-pollination treatments were

Most Mediterranean wetlands are overexploited and degraded by different factors and are especially vulnerable to alien and invasive species. Currently, there is still a lack of knowledge on certain aspects of plant invasions, especially from an applied point of view, as key tools in restoration and conservation programmes. In this sense, Cortaderia selloana has showed a rapid expansion in the western

Plants growing in the same environment typically share ecophysiological characteristics enabling them to survive and reproduce when exposed to a common selection pressure. As such, seedlings establishing in temperate forest habitats cope with similar issues of low light availability and climate seasonality. We examined similarities in the germination syndromes in three shade-tolerant temperate forest

Seasonally tropical dry forests are among the most threatened environments by climate change. However, these forests, which are at risk of desertification, are still poorly studied and conserved. Seeds of several species endemic to the Caatinga, a Brazilian dry forest, are also understudied, mainly regarding their ability to cope with a hotter and drier climate predicted for the future. For the first

Heat shock-stimulated germination is frequently considered a trait restricted to a few plant families with impermeable seed coats in the Mediterranean Basin. We aimed to ascertain this general idea by using 68 eastern Mediterranean plant taxa differing in growth form, dormancy type and geographic distributional range. We conducted a laboratory experiment including heat shocks (60, 80, 100, 120 and

Transformation of coppices to high forests has caused fundamental changes in site conditions and a decline of many species across Central Europe. Nevertheless, some formerly coppiced forests still harbour a number of the declining species and have become biodiversity hotspots in the changing landscape. We focused on the best preserved remnant of formerly grazed and coppiced subcontinental oak forest

Understanding the effects of coppicing on forest ecosystems is important for progress towards sustainable forest management. A newly established coppicing experiment in a secondary temperate deciduous forest in the SE Czech Republic provides a rather unique insight into succession driven by canopy thinning in a forest still lacking species typical for forests established since long time ago. Herbaceous

Coppice abandonment had negative consequences for biodiversity of forest vegetation and several groups of invertebrates. Most coppicing restoration studies have focused only on a single trophic level despite the fact that ecosystems are characterized by interactions between trophic levels represented by various groups of organisms. To address the patterns of functional diversity in the perspective