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Downy-Oak Woods of Italy: Phytogeographical Remarks on a Controversial Taxonomic and Ecologic Issue

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Warm-Temperate Deciduous Forests around the Northern Hemisphere

Part of the book series: Geobotany Studies ((GEOBOT))

Abstract

The importance of downy oak as an integral component of the “submediterranean” woods has been underscored by many studies. Nevertheless, terms like “submediterranean” and “downy oak” are some of the most poorly understood concepts in European phytogeographic and taxonomic research. Downy oak is well known to be a problematic taxon. The name “Quercus pubescens” (= Q. humilis) combines populations characterized by increasing phenotypic and genomic polymorphisms along north-south gradients, which is explained as the result of a “founder effect” produced by a relatively fast post-glacial re-colonization of the northern areas through rare long-distance dispersal events.

On the other hand, polymorphisms of downy oak in the south provide evidence for geographic/environmental selection driven by different edaphic conditions along clinal gradients of cold and drought stress, even if the distinction of different species is blurred by systematic hybridization and introgression, which have been enhanced by recent deforestation.

Because downy oak occurs widely throughout the Italian Peninsula, we tried to detect some ecological and geographical borders, which might be useful to identify climate-vegetation feedback mechanisms as well as to sharpen the syntaxonomical and systematic investigation of such a critical species complex. Our work is based on a well-distributed geo-referenced set of vegetation data, combined with layers of environmental variables (elevation, climate, soil chemistry). The statistical significance of the correlation between vegetation and environmental data has been evaluated through the Mantel test.

We assessed that:

  • The ecological amplitude of downy oak along the Italian peninsula increases southward;

  • The maximum variance in ecological conditions is found in Sicily, where the morphologic variability of downy oak is also maximized and where potential competitors, like Quercus frainetto, Q. trojana, Carpinus orientalis, and others, are missing;

  • Discontinuities in the distribution/prevalence of morphologic traits of Q. pubescens (regarded here as a species complex) are not determined by sharp ecological or geographical gaps but instead reflect patterns of selection and phenotypic variability in key traits of the geographical range;

  • The Ellenberg T and U indicator values for the flora of Italy are correlated well with temperature and precipitation.

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Acknowledgments

Financial aid from Forum Plinianum is gratefully acknowledged, and Dr. Stefano Perani is thanked for his helpful assistance with the statistical analyses.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Biology and Biodiversity, University of Palermo, via Archirafi, 38 – 90123, Palermo, Italy

    Riccardo Guarino & Giuseppe Bazan

  2. Department S.A.V.A., University of Molise, via De Sanctis, 1 – 86100, Campobasso, Italy

    Bruno Paura

Authors
  1. Riccardo Guarino
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  2. Giuseppe Bazan
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  3. Bruno Paura
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Correspondence to Riccardo Guarino .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Geography Department, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA

    Elgene O. Box

  2. Yokohama City University, Yokohama, Japan

    Kazue Fujiwara

Appendix: Syntaxonomical Scheme

Appendix: Syntaxonomical Scheme

QUERCO-FAGETEA Br.-Bl. & Vlieger in Vlieger 1937

QUERCETALIA PUBESCENTI-PETRAEAE Klika 1933

QUERCION PUBESCENTI-PETRAEAE Br.-Bl. 1932

Campanulo medii-Quercetum pubescentis Ubaldi 1995

Clematido flammulae-Quercetum pubescentis Ubaldi et Rondini in Ubaldi et al. 1993

Cytiso sessilifolii-Quercetum pubescentis Blasi 1982

Knautio purpureae-Quercetum pubescentis Ubaldi et al. 1993 ex Ubaldi 1995

Peucedano cervariae-Quercetum pubescentis Ubaldi 1988 ex Ubaldi 1995

LAURO-QUERCION PUBESCENTIS Ubaldi (1980) 1995

Cyclamino hederifolii-Quercetum virgilianae Biondi et al. 2004

Stipo bromoidis-Quercetum dalechampii Biondi et al. 2004

Irido collinae-Quercetum virgilianae Biondi et al. 2004

Roso sempervirentis-Quercetum pubescentis Biondi 1986

MELITTO ALBIDAE-QUERCION FRAINETTO Barbero, Bonin et Quézel in Barbero et Qéezel 1977

Centaureo centauroidis-Quercetum pubescentis Zanotti et al. 1995

PINO CALABRICAE-QUERCION CONGESTAE Brullo, Scelsi, Siracusa et Spampinato 1999

Agropyro panormitani-Quercetum congestae Brullo et al. 1999

Erico arboreae-Quercetum congestae Brullo, Scelsi et Spampinato 1998

Ilici aquifolii-Quercetum leptobalani Maniscalco & Raimondo 2009

Conopodio capillifolii-Quercetum congestae Maniscalco & Raimondo 2009

PAEONIO MORISII-QUERCION ICHNUSAE (Bacchetta et al. 2004) Brullo et al. 2012

Glechomo sardoae-Quercetum congestae Bacchetta et al. 2004

Ornithogalo pyrenaici-Quercetum ichnusae Bacchetta et al. 2004

QUERCETEA ILICIS Br.-Bl. ex A. & O. Bolòs 1947

QUERCETALIA ILICIS Br.-Bl. ex Molinier 1934 em. Rivas-Martínez 1975

QUERCION ILICIS Br.-Bl. ex Molinier 1934 em. Brullo, Di Martino & Marcenò 1977

Celtido aetnensis-Quercetum virgilianae Brullo & Marcenò 1985

Oleo sylvestris-Quercetum virgilianae Brullo & Marcenò 1985

Sorbo torminalis-Quercetum virgilianae Brullo, Minissale & Spampinato 1995

Lauro-Quercetum virgilianae Brullo, Costanzo e Tomaselli 2001

Lonicero implexae-Quercetum virgilianae Bacchetta et al. 2004

Prasio majoris-Quercetum ilicis quercetosum virgilianae Bacchetta et al. 2004

ERICO-QUERCION ILICIS Brullo, Di Martino & Marcenò 1977

Quercetum leptobalanae Brullo 1984

Mespilo-Quercetum virgilianae Brullo & Marcenò 1985

Erico arboreae-Quercetum virgilianae Brullo & Marcenò 1985

Arabido turritae-Quercetum congestae Brullo & Marcenò 1985

Festuco heterophyllae-Quercetum congestae Brullo & Marcenò 1985

Vicio elegantis-Quercetum congestae Brullo & Marcenò 1985

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Guarino, R., Bazan, G., Paura, B. (2015). Downy-Oak Woods of Italy: Phytogeographical Remarks on a Controversial Taxonomic and Ecologic Issue. In: Box, E., Fujiwara, K. (eds) Warm-Temperate Deciduous Forests around the Northern Hemisphere. Geobotany Studies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-01261-2_7

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