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The economic management of lignocellulosic biomass from semi-natural grasslands is now a challenge across Europe. The abandonment of mowing these grasslands leads to the gradual degradation of these ecosystems. This study investigates how chemical and biological factors affect the suitability of biomass from abandoned grasslands for biogas production. We sampled 30 mown and 30 abandoned grassland sites in the Sudetes Mountains (Poland and Czechia). The cover contribution of short herbs was found to be significantly higher in mown grasslands (p < 0.001), while that of tall herbs was more prevalent in abandoned grasslands (p < 0.01). The specific biogas yield (SBY, NL kg -1 volatile solids) is negatively affected by an increased percentage of herbs in the biomass of mown and abandoned grasslands. This is due to the inhibitory effect of herbs on biodegradation, the increase in lignin content and the decrease in cellulose. This study highlights the importance of individual plant species in assessing grassland biomass for area biogas yield (ABY, m 3 ha -1 ) and provides new insights into a field that has not yet been extensively investigated. In mown grasslands, ABY was most positively correlated with grass species (Arrhenatherum elatius, Trisetum flavescens and Festuca pratensis). In abandoned grasslands, the ABY was most correlated with herbaceous species (Galium aparine, Urtica dioica and Chaerophyllum aromaticum) and grasses (A. elatius and Elymus repens). Mown grasslands had significantly higher species richness (p < 0.001) compared to abandoned grasslands, but the number of species sampled did not correlate with SBY and ABY. This study contributes to the development of a sustainable bio-economy by highlighting the need for efficient use of grassland biomass. This approach helps protect semi-natural ecosystems and facilitates sustainable management of renewable resources., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Recognition of species richness spatial patterns is important for nature conservation and theoretical studies. Inventorying species richness, especially at a larger spatial extent is challenging, thus different data sources are joined and harmonized to obtain a comprehensive data set. Here we present a new data set showing vascular plant species richness in Poland based on a grid of 10 × 10 km squares. The data set was created using data from two sources: the Atlas of Distribution of Vascular Plants in Poland and the Polish Vegetation Database. Using this data set, we analysed 2,160 species with taxonomical nomenclature according to the Euro + Med PlantBase checklist in 3,283 squares covering the entire territory of Poland (ca. 312,000 km 2 ). The species were divided into groups according to their status and frequency of distribution, and the statistics for each square were obtained. For purposes of analysis, sampling bias was assessed. The data set promotes theoretical analysis on species richness and reinforces the planning of nature conservations., (© 2023. Springer Nature Limited.)

This work aims to characterize the genetic diversity of species, early hybrids, and cultivars using microsatellite simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers, as well as analyze and identify the origin of Hemerocallis spp. early hybrids. For this research, samples were collected from different types of daylily species, early hybrids (known or hypothetically first-generation hybrids from Hemerocallis species), foreign, and Lithuanian varieties. An initial screening of SSR primers developed for Hemerocallis citrina was performed, and their suitability for testing other daylily species and hybrids was evaluated. The genetic diversity was assessed with the selected eight-primer set, and molecular SSR profiles were created. Primer SAU00097 is the most informative according to heterozygosity (0.95) and polymorphism information content ( PIC ) (0.17). The highest heterozygosity was observed in Lithuanian cultivars (0.713), the lowest in species (0.583). Genetic relationships between species show that only fulvous daylilies are separated into a different cluster. The highest variation among genotypes was observed in the species group (18%), while modern cultivars had the slightest variation among genotypes (1%). The putative origin of early hybrids was analyzed using a likelihood heatmap of all genotypes. Results show what species might be used in breeding for early hybrids. Several modern diploid and tetraploid daylily cultivars have triploid species as ancestors.

Inland salt marshes are recognized as habitats of unique and valuable vegetation at the European scale. There is still a lack of generalization regarding its vegetation syntaxonomy and environmental requirements, which is needed for its effective protection. To falsify our hypothesis about vegetation dependence on environmental requirements we aimed at description of the syntaxonomical units present in temperate European inland salt marshes and identification of their main environmental drivers. In our work we focused on the vegetation from the northern part of temperate salt marshes to limit confusion related to the geographical ranges of species. We collected the database of 968 vegetation plots from different European countries and applied the Cocktail method to analyze the data. Based on results, expert knowledge, existing syntaxonomical classifications and information from the literature, we identified diagnostic, constant and dominant species for individual syntaxonomical units. Then, we compiled maps of the vegetation unit distribution, and identified the most important environmental factors for the analyzed vegetation using statistical and multivariate methods, including canonical variate analysis. We classified the analyzed vegetation into nine classes, including two typical for salt-marsh vegetation - the Therosalicornietea and Festuco-Puccinellietea. Within these two classes, we distinguished two alliances and a total of five associations. The classes differ the most in terms of species preferences to salinity, soil moisture, light availability and soil nitrogen content. In addition salt marsh associations differ also by soil reaction and soil organic matter content. This provides direct implications for salt marsh sustainable management., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Formalized classification of the class Isoëto-Nanojuncetea has not been performed in Poland. We used 69,562 relevés stored in Polish Vegetation Database. Based on the literature and expert knowledge we selected 63 diagnostic species for the Isoëto-Nanojuncetea class. Unequivocal classification was applied in this work according to Cocktail method. A set of formal definitions was established using a combination of logical operators of total cover of species in case of high-rank syntaxa while sociological species groups and cover of particular species were used for logical formulas describing class, alliances and associations. An Expert System was prepared and applied to classify the whole data set of PVD and 1,340 relevés were organized at the class level. We stratifies the data and finally we used data set of 903 relevés to prepare synoptic tables, distribution maps and descriptions of the syntaxa. Twelve associations and two plant communities were identified. Vegetation of the Isoëto-Nanojuncetea class occur in Poland's central and southern part, with scattered stands in northern region. We described two new plant communities within Eleocharition and Radiolion alliance. The first formal classification of the Isoëto-Nanojuncetea class revealed a high diversity of ephemeral vegetation wetland found in Poland in the eastern boundary of their geographical distribution in Europe., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© 2021 Kącki et al.)

Plant functional traits directly affect ecosystem functions. At the species level, trait combinations depend on trade-offs representing different ecological strategies, but at the community level trait combinations are expected to be decoupled from these trade-offs because different strategies can facilitate co-existence within communities. A key question is to what extent community-level trait composition is globally filtered and how well it is related to global versus local environmental drivers. Here, we perform a global, plot-level analysis of trait-environment relationships, using a database with more than 1.1 million vegetation plots and 26,632 plant species with trait information. Although we found a strong filtering of 17 functional traits, similar climate and soil conditions support communities differing greatly in mean trait values. The two main community trait axes that capture half of the global trait variation (plant stature and resource acquisitiveness) reflect the trade-offs at the species level but are weakly associated with climate and soil conditions at the global scale. Similarly, within-plot trait variation does not vary systematically with macro-environment. Our results indicate that, at fine spatial grain, macro-environmental drivers are much less important for functional trait composition than has been assumed from floristic analyses restricted to co-occurrence in large grid cells. Instead, trait combinations seem to be predominantly filtered by local-scale factors such as disturbance, fine-scale soil conditions, niche partitioning and biotic interactions.

Intermittently wet meadows of the Molinion alliance, as with many other grasslands of high-nature value, have become increasingly exposed to abandonment due to their low economic value. The potential consequences of land abandonment are the decrease in species diversity and environmental alterations. The issue of land-use induced changes in plant species composition and soil physico-chemical parameters have been rarely studied in species-rich intermittently wet grasslands. In this study we attempt to i) to identify determinants of plant species composition patterns and ii) to investigate the effect of cessation of mowing on vegetation composition and soil properties. The study was conducted in an area of 36 ha covered with Molinion meadows, comprising of mown sites and sites that were left unmown for 10 years. In total, 120 and 80 vegetation plots were sampled from mown and unmown sites, respectively. In these plots we measured plant community composition and soil physico-chemical parameters. The results have shown that the two groups of variables (soil properties and management) differ considerably in their ability to explain variation in plant species data. Soil variables explained four-fold more variation in plant species composition than management did. The content of soil organic matter, moisture, total nitrogen and exchangeable forms of potassium, calcium and magnesium were significantly higher in mown than in unmown grassland systems. The results revealed that soil organic matter was the component of the soil most strongly affected by management, followed by moisture, magnesium, calcium and potassium in that order. Each of these soil parameters was negatively correlated with the abundances of woody plants and invasive species. We concluded that low-intensity, late time of mowing is suitable grassland management practice to ensure high plant species diversity and sustainability of the grassland ecological system while cessation of mowing not only lead to reduced plant species richness and diversity, but also to reduced nutrient levels in grassland soils., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

A central hypothesis of ecology states that regional diversity influences local diversity through species-pool effects. Species pools are supposedly shaped by large-scale factors and then filtered into ecological communities, but understanding these processes requires the analysis of large datasets across several regions. Here, we use a framework of community assembly at a continental scale to test the relative influence of historical and environmental drivers, in combination with regional or local species pools, on community species richness and community completeness. Using 42,173 vegetation plots sampled across European beech forests, we found that large-scale factors largely accounted for species pool sizes. At the regional scale, main predictors reflected historical contingencies related to post-glacial dispersal routes, whereas at the local scale, the influence of environmental filters was predominant. Proximity to Quaternary refugia and high precipitation were the main factors supporting community species richness, especially among beech forest specialist plants. Models for community completeness indicate the influence of large-scale factors, further suggesting community saturation as a result of dispersal limitation or biotic interactions. Our results empirically demonstrate how historical factors complement environmental gradients to provide a better understanding of biodiversity patterns across multiple regions.

Questions: What are the main floristic patterns in the Pannonian and western Pontic steppe grasslands? What are the diagnostic species of the major subdivisions of the class Festuco-Brometea (temperate Euro-Siberian dry and semi-dry grasslands)?, Location: Carpathian Basin (E Austria, SE Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Slovenia, N Croatia and N Serbia), Ukraine, S Poland and the Bryansk region of W Russia., Methods: We applied a geographically stratified resampling to a large set of relevés containing at least one indicator species of steppe grasslands. The resulting data set of 17 993 relevés was classified using the TWINSPAN algorithm. We identified groups of clusters that corresponded to the class Festuco-Brometea . After excluding relevés not belonging to our target class, we applied a consensus of three fidelity measures, also taking into account external knowledge, to establish the diagnostic species of the orders of the class. The original TWINSPAN divisions were revised on the basis of these diagnostic species., Results: The TWINSPAN classification revealed soil moisture as the most important environmental factor. Eight out of 16 TWINSPAN groups corresponded to Festuco-Brometea . A total of 80, 32 and 58 species were accepted as diagnostic for the orders Brometalia erecti , Festucetalia valesiacae and Stipo-Festucetalia pallentis , respectively. In the further subdivision of the orders, soil conditions, geographic distribution and altitude could be identified as factors driving the major floristic patterns., Conclusions: We propose the following classification of the Festuco-Brometea in our study area: (1) Brometalia erecti (semi-dry grasslands) with Scabioso ochroleucae-Poion angustifoliae (steppe meadows of the forest zone of E Europe) and Cirsio-Brachypodion pinnati (meadow steppes on deep soils in the forest-steppe zone of E Central and E Europe); (2) Festucetalia valesiacae (grass steppes) with Festucion valesiacae (grass steppes on less developed soils in the forest-steppe zone of E Central and E Europe) and Stipion lessingianae (grass steppes in the steppe zone); (3) Stipo-Festucetalia pallentis (rocky steppes) with Asplenio septentrionalis-Festucion pallentis (rocky steppes on siliceous and intermediate soils), Bromo-Festucion pallentis (thermophilous rocky steppes on calcareous soils), Diantho-Seslerion (dealpine Sesleria caerulea grasslands of the Western Carpathians) and Seslerion rigidae (dealpine Sesleria rigida grasslands of the Romanian Carpathians).

A survey of distribution patterns of floodwater mosquito eggs related to environmental conditions such as moisture and plant associations was conducted by using soil samples from irrigated fields in Wrocław, Poland. Mosquito egg distribution was determined by repeatedly flooding the soil samples with aerated water at a temperature of 25° C. Under laboratory conditions, hatching in installments of Aedes caspius (Pallas) and Aedes vexans (Meigen) were commonly observed. The results show that ∼75% of the larvae of Ae. caspius and Ae. vexans hatched after the first flooding under summer-like conditions, whereas, following the second and third flooding, the numbers of hatched larvae were significantly lower. In our study, within one intermediate flooded field, a total of 66 plant species was identified and classified into six communities. All vegetation types were associated by varied egg densities and showed differences both in richness and Shannon-Wiener diversity index as well as in ecological indices for moisture, soil reaction, and nutrient level. Small changes in elevation along the slope within the study area showed a large difference in the distribution of mosquito eggs. The highest average egg density was observed in zones with high occurrence of Phalaris arundinacea, usually prevalent in intermediate flooded and fertile areas. Knowledge of the indicators for the distribution of floodwater mosquito eggs in temporary breeding sites may be essential for organizing a successful, integrated mosquito control program with special regard to microbial control agents., (© 2011 The Society for Vector Ecology.)