28th Meeting of the European Vegetation Survey Vegetation Diversity and Global Change 2-6 September 2019 Madrid, Spain ABSTRACTS & PROGRAMME Pharmacology, Pharmacognosy and Botany Department Pharmacy. Complutense University Organizing committee Rosario G. Gavilán (EVS Congress Chair), Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Alba Gutiérrez Girón, (EVS Congress Secretary) Complutense University and Biodiversia Coop, Madrid, Spain. José Luis Izquierdo, Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, Madrid, Spain. Daniel Sánchez Mata, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. José Mª Pizarro, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Federico Fernández González, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo, Spain. Camila Monasterio, Biodiversia Coop., Spain. Guillermo Amo de Paz, Biodiversia Coop., Spain. Zuzana Ferencova, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Rosina Magaña, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Javier Pérez Hernández, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Esteban Ramírez, Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain. Irene Sánchez, Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain. Advisory Committee Paloma Cantó Ramos, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Adrián Escudero Alcántara, Rey Juan Carlos University, Madrid, Spain. Keynote Lectures Vicenta de la Fuente, Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain. Borja Jiménez-Alfaro, Research Unit of Biodiversity,CSIC, Universidad de Oviedo, Spain. Felipe Martínez, Technical University of Madrid, Spain). José Antonio Molina Abril, Complutense University, Madrid, Spain. Juan Carlos Moreno, Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain. Rosa Pérez Badia, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo, Spain. Agustín Rubio Sánchez, Technical University of Madrid, Spain. Lourdes Rufo Nieto, Francisco de Vitoria University, Madrid, Spain. Santiago Sardinero Roscales, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo, Spain. Scientific Committee Emiliano Agrillo, University "La Sapienza", Roma, Italy. Fabio Attorre, University "La Sapienza", Roma, Italy. Andraž Čarni, Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Milan Chytrý (EVS secretary), Masaryk University, Brno, Check Republic. Monika Janišová, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Banská Bystrica, Slovakia. María Pilar Rodríguez-Rojo, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo, Spain. John Rodwell, Ecological Consultant, Lancaster, United Kingdom. Joop Schaminée, Wageningen University, The Netherlands. Editors: Rosario G. Gavilán & Alba Gutiérrez-Girón ISBN 978-84-09-13738-1 2 3 Linking above and below ground plant community responses: A sampling approach for habitat monitoring at national scale a melting pot of interactions and soil heterogeneity Chiarucci A1, Cervellini M1, Nascimbene J1, Angelini P2, Casella L2, Maccherini 3 3 4 4 5 Adrián Escudero S , Angiolini C , Cerabolini B , Dalle Fratte M & Fattorini L 1Department of Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum, University Biodiversity and Conservation Department, Rey Juan Carlos University, c/Tulipán s/n., E-28933 of Bologna, Bologna, Italy; 2ISPRA - Italian National Institute for Environmental Protection and Móstoles, Spain. Presenting author: [email protected] Research, via V. Brancati, 60, 00144 ROMA Italy; 3Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Via 4 Vegetation Science and, for extension, plant Community Ecology as a whole are Mattioli 4, 53100 Siena, Italy; Department of Theoretical and Applied Sciences, University of Insubria, via J.H. Dunant, 3, I-21100 Varese Italy; 5Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Siena, profoundly limited by the fact that current empirical and theoretical models proceed P.za S. Francesco, 8, 53100 Siena Italy. Presenting author: [email protected] from the aboveground compartment leaving almost untouched the below ground fraction. This is especially noticeable in the case where root biomass constitutes a very Achieving a relevant and measurable improvement in the conservation status of high fraction of the total carbon stock in the plant community such as in very stressful species and habitats of Nature 2000 network is one of the targets of the European 2020 habitats. For instance, we have assisted to an important development of what has been Biodiversity Strategy. According to the “Directive 92/43/EEC”, this goal has to be called Coexistence Theory. It comprises deterministic and stochastic processes for accomplished by each EU member state, by maintaining a favourable conservation explaining realized communities and co-occurring patterns at very fine spatial scales. status of the habitats. Assessing, on a quantitative basis, the conservation status of Those scales where is thought that plant to plant interactions are prevalent and critical. habitats is therefore a major task for the European Union and for the member states. However, these advances have been done by considering exclusively the aboveground However, up to now, there is no consensus on how to achieve a statistically sound cover. Here, we present a new picture coming from the inclusion of the root universe. estimates of the abundance and status of the various habitat types and the member states This implies the development of techniques able to characterize the belowground are making national assessment by using various approaches. structure and composition at the fine scales where interactions are critical (i.e Here, we present a sampling strategy we are developing for monitoring all the metagenomics tools) in combination with new spatial point pattern analyses able to habitat types on the Italian territory, based on a multi-phase sampling scheme. General deep the so-called plant´s eye perspective. And the construction of a new theoretical aim of this national plan is to generate a standardised, reliable and comparable approach framework in which the two compartments are taken together. for the quantitative assessment of the habitat amount and conservation status. The approach is based on three sampling phases, that are run separately per each habitat type: 1) phase 1 consists in selecting a spatially balanced sample of the grid cells of 10 km x 10 km that are reported to have the presence of habitat (Dir. Art. 17), The sample of grid cells selected per habitat types ranges from 100%, for rare habitat types, to 10%, for common habitat types, according to a monotonic function; 2) Then, each grid cell selected in the first phase is partitioned into 100 m x 100 m sub-quadrats, that are exploited as sampling units to select habitat patches by means of network sampling in order to estimate the habitat cover and/or the number of patches; 3) finally, a third phase sampling is performed in the field to estimate the habitat status by assessing typical vegetation attributes. The sampling strategy here developed allows to achieve statistically sound estimates of habitat cover and status based on a sampling scheme that can be easily standardised and repeated over time. After validation of the standardized habitat multi- phase monitoring on the Italian territory, the possibility to apply the strategy at European scale could be an applicative achievement in building a shareable approach for maintaining a favourable conservation status of the Nature 2000 habitat network. 4 5 Singularity of Iberian Mediterranean grasslands in the European context Rodríguez-Rojo MP Institute of Environmental Sciences, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Avda. Carlos III s/n. E-45071. Toledo, Spain. Presenting author: [email protected] The Iberian Peninsula is characterized by a complex geology, a heterogeneous climate, and a biogeographical variability, influencing an environmental heterogeneity and a high plant community diversity. Additionally, the complex historical processes in the Mediterranean Bassin have contributed to the Iberian diversity. Paleobotanical analyses of the location and composition of Iberian vegetation types during the whole Pleistocene and Holocene periods showed the existence of a complex patched landscape: Pinus woodlands, deciduous and mixed forests, shrublands, steppes and grasslands. Previous studies have related that Iberian glacial refugia were not limited to the southern territories and fall entirely within areas with an Iberian endemism rate of more than 10%. As consequence, Iberia flora has a high degree of originality, with an endemism rate of 24%. The long history of pastoralism in the Iberia Peninsula for, at least, 4-5 millenia, have Oral presentations modelled the Mediterranean landscape. Iberian Mediterranean grasslands, including serial and permanent, can be classified into annual grasslands (Tuberarietea), annual vallicares (Agrostion salmanticae), perennial acidophilous grasslands (Stipo giganteae-Agrostietea castellanae), pseudosteppes on calcareous substrates (Lygeo-Stipetea), Mediterranean closely grazed grasslands (Poetea bulbosae), Mediterranean humid meadows (Holoschoenetalia), Iberian supra-cryoromediterranean silicicolous grasslands (Festucetea indigestae), Iberian supra- oromediterranean dry calcicolous grasslands (Festuco hystricis-Poetalia ligulatae). The community diversity within each type of grasslands responds to a marked biogeographical pattern in the Iberian Peninsula. Mediterranean acidophilous grasslands are largely and diversely represented in the Iberian Peninsula compared to other territories in the Mediterranean Region of Europe. Their conservation value seems to have been underestimated because of their lower species richness compared to Mediterranean grasslands on base-rich