SCIENCE@home

Effects of buildings on plant composition and diversity in a Mediterranean protected area

R. Fernández-Alés,J. C. Muñoz-Reinoso

Published 2020 in Acta Oecologica-international Journal of Ecology

ABSTRACT

Abstract In natural protected areas, buildings such as small villages, farms, shepherd's huts, camps, small hotels or visitor centres are common, usually at very low densities. Although buildings could play a role in modifying the biodiversity of natural protected areas, there has hardly been any attempt to describe the composition and characteristics of the vegetation associated with these buildings. Here, we analysed if there is specific vegetation associated with buildings in a set of six buildings within the Donana National Park (SW Spain). We used Detrended Correspondence Analysis to identify trends of variation associated with buildings, and G-tests to examine if the species associated with buildings differed significantly in geographical distribution and functional characteristics from the species of the natural area. To compare species richness between the plots associated with the buildings and those associated with the natural area, sample-based rarefaction curves were created using incidence data. We found that buildings increased the richness of plant communities, mainly of species with a wide geographical distribution or which are adapted to heavy disturbance. This effect remained even 40 years after abandonment, which means that buildings act as a long-lasting refuge for ruderal and invasive plant species that remain around them, but not invading the surroundings unless there are disturbances. We conclude that the perturbation caused by isolated buildings seem to create localized plant diversity hotspots in the sands of the Donana ecosystems that remain distinct from the surrounding natural area for decades.

PUBLICATION RECORD

CITATION MAP

EXTRACTION MAP

CLAIMS

  • No claims are published for this paper.

CONCEPTS

  • No concepts are published for this paper.

REFERENCES

Showing 1-45 of 45 references · Page 1 of 1

CITED BY