Effects of grazing vs mowing on the functional diversity of sub‐Mediterranean productive grasslands

Abstract

Questions: In order to preserve the ecosystem functioning of semi-natural\ud sub-Mediterranean calcareous grasslands of the Central Apennines, it is vital to\ud understand how functional diversity (FD) changes in relation to different types\ud of disturbance. To compare the effects of sheep grazing and those of late-summer\ud mowing, we asked: do different types of disturbance (grazing and mowing)\ud affect FD; are FD and species diversity positively correlated in both grazed and\ud mown grasslands; do FD and species diversity take different paths in the two\ud disturbance regimes; and are different FD values related to changes in the composition\ud of traits linked to competitive ability, resource acquisition and resistance\ud strategies?\ud Location: Grazed andmown sites in the Central Apennines (Italy).\ud Methods: We performed redundancy analysis and indicator species analysis to\ud characterize the trait composition of the two disturbance regimes. We calculated\ud FD for each selected trait and a compound FD for multiple traits, using Rao’s\ud quadratic entropy index. Differences in FD between disturbance regimes were\ud tested with a nested ANOVA. We performed a regression analysis between FD\ud and species diversity indices under the two disturbance types.\ud Results: Species and functional diversity were positively correlated in both disturbance\ud types. FD was generally less correlated with species diversity variations\ud in mown grasslands than in grazed ones, suggesting that late mowing\ud leads to higher levels of functional redundancy (i.e. to a wider overlap of species\ud functional composition). Late mowing promoted higher species and functional\ud diversities and a wider variety of functional traits in the plant\ud community. Grazing, besides negatively affecting the species diversity of grasslands,\ud reduced their FD by favouring the dominance of traits related to avoidance\ud and tolerance strategies.\ud Conclusion: The continuation of late mowing is recommended to preserve the\ud richness and variability of functional groups and the ecosystem functioning of\ud sub-Mediterranean grasslands

The conservation benefit of mowing vs grazing for management of species‐rich grasslands: a multi‐site, multi‐year field experiment

“…Our results suggest that annual mowing should be the preferred conservation management method of semi-natural grasslands in Sweden. The somewhat contradictory reports from elsewhere in Europe (Schläpfer et al 1998, Peter et al 2009, Catorci et al 2014 suggest caution when generalising these conclusions. Nevertheless, similar management effects should be expected in European grasslands similar to the ones investigated.…”

“…Switzerland and Italy have also found a more positive effect of mowing compared with grazing on e.g. plant species richness (Peter et al , Catorci et al ). However, there are also examples of studies finding a more positive effect of grazing (Schläpfer et al ).…”

Environment or management? Relative importance for floristic composition of sub‐Mediterranean hay meadows in Central Italy

“…Many studies have shown the importance of management type and intensity in maintaining or modifying plant species richness and composition in grasslands (e.g Marini, Scotton, Klimek, Isselstein, & Pecile, ; Marini, Scotton, Klimek, & Pecile, ; Catorci, Cesaretti, Malatesta, & Tardella, ; Bonari et al., ; Rodríguez‐Rojo et al., ). On the other hand, other variables influence floristic composition, biodiversity and agronomic value of hay meadows: soil characteristics (Angiolini, Riccucci, & De Dominicis, ; Marini et al., ), topography‐related environmental factors (Bennie, Hill, Baxter, & Huntley, ; Gusmeroli et al., ), climatic (Herben, Krahulec, Hadincová, Pecháčková, & Wildová, ) and spatial factors (Di Giulio, Edwards, & Meister, ).…”

“…Functional traits have proved helpful in assessing the impact of management practices on grasslands vegetation (Doležal et al., ), in providing information about the underlying processes (Mauchamp, Mouly, Badot, & Gillet, ) and in generating models (Catorci, Ottaviani, & Cesaretti, ). However, only few studies have investigated the separate and combined effects of natural and management factors on sub‐Mediterranean hay meadow plant communities (Catorci & Gatti, ; Blasi et al., ; Ribeiro, Ladero, & Espírito‐Santo, ; Catorci et al., ) and, according to our knowledge, no studies have tested the explanatory power of environmental, management and spatial factors simultaneously. Recognizing the pure and shared influences of these factors on floristic composition and plant species traits can be very useful for both the management and conservation of these grasslands.…”

Pluralism in grassland management promotes butterfly diversity in a large Central European conservation area

“…For example, plant diversity may be maximized under higher grazing intensities than insect diversity (Pöyry et al 2004(Pöyry et al , 2006van Klink et al 2015), and among arthropods optimal intensities may also differ (Sjödin et al 2008). Switching from grazing to mowing, or to other types of surrogate usage, may either have beneficial (Socher et al 2013), detrimental (Catorci et al 2014) or neutral (e.g. Saarinen and Jantunen 2005) effects on the diversity of individual groups.…”