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What processes shape early-successional vegetation in fly ash and mine tailings?

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Abstract

Local abiotic filters and regional processes (i.e., regional pools of species that are dispersal-limited to varying degrees) interactively structure the development of vegetation in human-disturbed habitats, yet their relative contributions to this process are still to be determined. In this study conducted in the Czech Republic, we related plant species diversity and composition of 10 fly ash and 7 mine tailings to local edaphic conditions, and to vegetation from a 100-m perimeter (regional species pool). We found that the species richness and composition on the tailings were significantly associated with diversity and composition of vegetation in the surroundings, but not with the local edaphic conditions. Species from adjacent vegetation that were more abundant and those producing lighter seeds were more likely to establish on the tailings. The same characteristics also enhanced species abundance on the tailings, but the two predictors explained less than 10% in variation of establishment success or of species abundance. A non-significant relationship between species number and tailings size, but a significant association between diversity and time of vegetation development indicate that the study systems are still far from equilibrium. Our study provides evidence for a strong effect of regional processes, with a limited influence of measured edaphic conditions on plant communities developing de novo. It also highlights the necessity to consider the broader spatial context in the analysis of vegetation succession in human-disturbed habitats.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the Fund for the Development of Universities of the Czech Ministry of Education, Grant No. 2348, and the research project MSM 31300042 “Ecological plasticity and taxonomical variability of expansive plant species” of the Czech Ministry of Education. It was also supported by the long-term research development project RVO 67985939 of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The authors thank Ota Rauch, who recommended several interesting localities and methods of substrate analyses, and Josef Vařeka, who prepared the soil samples for the substrate analyses. The authors also acknowledge Zuzana Münzbergová for her help with developing the sampling design. The authors also thank three anonymous reviewers and the associate editor who improved the text.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Czech Environmental Inspectorate, Wolkerova 11/40, 160 00, Praha 6, Czech Republic

    Jana Urbanová

  2. Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Benátská 2, 128 01, Praha 2, Czech Republic

    Pavel Kovář

  3. Institute of Botany, The Czech Academy of Sciences, 252 43, Průhonice, Czech Republic

    Petr Dostál

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  1. Jana Urbanová
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  2. Pavel Kovář
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  3. Petr Dostál
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Correspondence to Petr Dostál.

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Communicated by Katinka Ruthrof.

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Urbanová, J., Kovář, P. & Dostál, P. What processes shape early-successional vegetation in fly ash and mine tailings?. Plant Ecol 218, 127–137 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-016-0672-z

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