Environment and space drive the community assembly of Atlantic European grasslands: Insights from multiple facets

Abstract

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Distinguishing the mechanisms driving multifaceted plant diversity in subtropical reservoir riparian zones

“…Under fluctuating reservoir hydrology, there may be an enrichment of soil nutrients at lower elevations of the drawdown zone of the reservoir (Ran et al, 2022). This situation can increase the nutrient supply capacity of these areas, resulting in a decrease in FD with increased nutrient availability (Mugnai et al, 2022). In the hydro-fluctuation belt of the TGRR, soil nutrients show an increasing trend with decreasing elevation (Ran et al, 2022), which may be one of the reasons for the lower FD diversity at lower elevations.…”

Testing the Functional and Phylogenetic Assembly of Plant Communities in Gobi Deserts of Northern Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

“…Phylogeny could reflect important unmeasured traits or complex ecological strategies not easily captured by functional traits, such as plant– Mycorrhiza and plant–pathogen interactions (Gilbert and Webb, 2007 ; Cadotte et al, 2013 ; Montesinos-Navarro et al, 2015 ). Therefore, exploring the relationship between phylogenetic conservatism and trait evolution contributes to better inferring community assembly mechanisms (Purschke et al, 2013 ; Mugnai et al, 2022 ). When plant functional traits exhibited significant phylogenetic signals, plant functional and phylogenetic diversity generally should show similar patterns (De Bello et al, 2017 ).…”

“…Phylogenetic structure measures the evolutionary lineages among species within a community (Webb et al, 2002 ). Therefore, trait-based and phylogenetic analyses can help infer the assembly mechanisms governing plant communities (Cadotte et al, 2013 ; De Bello et al, 2017 ; Mugnai et al, 2022 ). However, the functional and phylogenetic structure exhibits distinct distribution patterns and is subjected to different controlling processes (Garcia-Giron et al, 2019 ; Wang et al, 2019 ).…”

Taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity of communities hosting Ionopsidium savianum (Brassicaceae) growing on serpentine and limestone substrates

“…Indeed, the use of molecular phylogenies may help analyze the forces that influence patterns of biodiversity and biogeography, and in depicting the interactions among co-occurring species (Selvi et al 2016). Especially when supported by data on functional diversity, phylogenetic information can be used in the study of the phylogenetic overdispersion or clustering of the community in relation to the variation of the habitat conditions (Erickson et al 2014, Qian and Jiang 2014, Selvi et al 2016, Mugnai et al 2022.…”

“…In this sense, functional traits and their universal approach may inform on ecosystem multifunctionality and services, also providing insights into the plant communities' direct response, often easily interpretable, to environmental changes (Violle et al 2007(Violle et al , 2014. Accordingly, trait-based metrics may be used together with taxonomic ones, as they may better depict biodiversity patterns across different spatial scales (de Bello et al 2013, Mugnai et al 2022, and for this reason, trait-based studies have become extremely common in plant ecology (Chelli et al 2019). Despite this, through the review of trait-based ecological studies performed in Italy (Chelli et al 2019), some gaps have been highlighted, such as the Mediterranean ecosystems are still poorly represented (e.g., Bricca et al 2020, Stanisci et al 2020, Mugnai et al 2021.…”