Studying local species assemblages of salt-affected vegetation for monitoring Natura 2000 habitats

By

Gennai, Matilde
Angiolini, Claudia
Bertacchi, Andrea
Gabellini, Antonio
Sarmati, Simona
Viciani, Daniele
Foggi, Bruno

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2022-5-13

Original Publication

Plant sociology

Volume

59

Series / Issue

Issue: 1

Pages

1--10

Subjects

Crypsietea aculeatae , Habitats Directive , Juncetea maritimi , Monitoring , Saginetea maritimae , Salicornietea fruticosae , Therosalicornietea , typical species

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Pavia Società italiana di scienza della vegetazione 2012-2019

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/pls2022591/01

 

Abstract

This study aims to characterize saline habitats of the Tuscan coast based on the Natura 2000 Habitats Directive 92/43/ECC. These habitats include Atlantic salt meadows (1330), Mediterranean salt meadows (1410) Mediterranean and thermo-Atlantic halophilous scrubs (1420), and Mediterranean salt steppes (1510). We compiled vegetation data from a total of 418 plots carried out during our own fieldwork (N = 157) and published scientific literature (N = 261). We performed a Linear Discriminant Analysis to associate species to habitats and used the phi coefficient of association to identify diagnostic species of each habitat. For each habitat, we provide a regional syntaxonomic framework, constant species, cover coefficients, diagnostic species (phi) and “typical species”. We identified groups of species, that we called “local assembly of typical species”, composed by species with a phi coefficient > 20 and/or a cover coefficient > 50 that can be used to identify the habitats and to monitor their conservation status at the local level. This study revealed differences in the “local assembly of typical species” among habitats, characterized by fewer species in habitats 1420 and 1510, and many species in habitats 1410 and 1310. Our results showed that the habitat 1510 was recognizable only for the high cover value of Limonium narbonense and, at least in Tuscany, its syntaxonomic attribution to the order Limonietalia is uncertain. We tested this approach only for a few habitats, but a broader applicability based on other habitats is desirable.