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Different aspects of plant diversity show contrasting patterns in Carpathian forest openings

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Abstract

It has long been known that α- and β-diversity are driven by different ecological processes. Recently, several theoretical papers have suggested that β-diversity can be expressed in many different ways, and that these measures might have different meanings and behaviours. In terms of ecological understanding, it is important to test how these diversity measures behave in different settings, yet this has been rarely attempted. We investigated this question using forest openings in the Trascău Mountains, Romania, which contain species from grasslands of high nature value. The sampling was conducted in 40 openings, using edge-to-interior transects composed of 1-m2 plots (α-diversity), from which we calculated five β-diversity measures at transect level. As predictor variables, we used canopy openness (from hemispherical photos), tree litter cover, heat load index, altitude, and bedrock type for α-diversity, and the means and ranges of these for β-diversity. Generalized linear mixed models showed that α-diversity was mostly explained by the first two variables. Amongst the β-diversity measures, the classical additive and multiplicative measures differed, the latter being similar to the Sørensen-based multiple-site dissimilarity. None of the predictors explained the slope of distance decay or Simpson-based multiple-site dissimilarity, except when considering ecological subsets of the species. We discuss the possible ecological processes underlying the different results, and the implication of our findings for nature conservation in the region. In conclusion, we support the joint application of different measures of α- and β-diversity, as long as their particular properties are taken into account.

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Acknowledgements

The study was designed and the field sampling carried out by P.D.T. as part of his Ph.D. thesis. The analyses and writing-up was led by P.D.T. under the supervision of J.D., who also critically revised the whole text. The financial support for the field work and the internship of P.D.T. in the research group of J.D. was provided by the project co-financed by the Sectoral Operational Program for Human Resources Development 2007–2013, Contract POSDRU/88/1.5/S/60185 — ‘Innovative doctoral studies in a Knowledge Based Society’. We thank Vasile Cristea for inspiring this topic, colleagues of the Section ‘Biodiversity of Plants’ in Hamburg for valuable comments on earlier versions of the manuscript, Will Simonson for editing the English language usage, and two anonymous reviewers for their many helpful comments and suggestions on earlier versions of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Taxonomy and Ecology, Faculty of Biology and Geology, Babeş-Bolyai University, Republicii Street 44, 400015, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    Pavel Dan Turtureanu

  2. Biodiversity, Evolution and Ecology of Plants, Biocentre Klein Flottbek and Botanical Garden, University of Hamburg, Ohnhorststr. 18, 22609, Hamburg, Germany

    Pavel Dan Turtureanu & Jürgen Dengler

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  1. Pavel Dan Turtureanu
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Correspondence to Pavel Dan Turtureanu.

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Turtureanu, P.D., Dengler, J. Different aspects of plant diversity show contrasting patterns in Carpathian forest openings. Plant Ecol 213, 67–76 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-011-0007-z

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