Spatial patterns along an elevation gradient in high altitude grasslands, Brazil

Abstract

The Brazilian high altitude grasslands are important biodiversity centers that contribute to human well‐being far outside their boundaries. They host many vulnerable species that may go locally extinct as a result of small changes in the environment. Performing studies on local species distribution is important to guide biodiversity conservation in these areas. This study aimed to characterize a high altitude grassland plant community along an elevation gradient in southeastern Brazil. Simple logistic regression, chi‐squared tests and indicator species analysis were performed to investigate respectively whether: 1) the occurrence of botanical families was related to the altitude; 2) the richness and abundance of life forms varied along the gradient and 3) there were populations associated with specific altitudinal belts. Rubiaceae and Polygalaceae had higher occurrence probability at higher altitudes. Hemicryptophytes and chamaephytes seem to be the most favored life forms under local extreme conditions such as low temperatures and drought. The vegetation spectra varied significantly along the gradient, highlighting the major role of the turnover of habitats on a local scale for the underlying patterns of species distribution. Upper elevations encompassed a high number of indicator species, and further analyses of indicator species of high altitude grasslands will provide clues about adaptability of local species, important to consider in ecosystem management and conservation.

Permanent grassland classifications predict agronomic and environmental characteristics well, but not ecological characteristics

“…Both fertility and humidity indices were predicted well (high weight and goodness of fit) by combining classifications. Humidity and fertility indices have been linked to elevation (de Almeida Campos Cordeiro and Neri, 2019;Pittarello et al, 2018;Sevruk, 1997) but also to taxonomic (Critchley et al, 2002;Melts et al, 2018;Wang et al, 2007) and functional (Čop et al, 2009;Schellberg, 1999;Suding et al, 2005) diversity. We also used the fertility index to calculate oligotrophic species richness.…”

Variations in Plant Richness, Biogeographical Composition, and Life Forms along an Elevational Gradient in a Mediterranean Mountain

“…Since species responses to environmental factors are mediated by their traits and are reflected by their distribution, vegetation studies frequently take advantage by classifying species into life forms [23][24][25][26][27] and biogeographical categories [28][29][30][31][32]. Surprisingly enough, however, only a few studies have investigated variations in plant biogeographical [18,33] and life form (e.g., [18,20,[33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42]) composition along elevational gradients.…”