Riccardo Guarino | Università degli Studi di Palermo (original) (raw)

Books by Riccardo Guarino

A comprehensive guide for botanical excursions in Central and Western Sicily, including 24 itiner... more A comprehensive guide for botanical excursions in Central and Western Sicily, including 24 itineraries described in every detail and illustrated by maps and photographs of the excursion sites. The book illustrates, as well, the whole flora of Sicily (more than 3000 species of vascular plants) arranged in synoptic tables and provides an up-to date syntaxonomy and bibliography of the phytosociological classification of the Sicilian vegetation.
The guide was prepared for the 60th Annual Symposium of the International Association for Vegetation Science, held in Palermo, Italy, on June 20–24, 2017. The symposium saw 393 participants from 56 States across 5 continents.

Environmental ethics/policies by Riccardo Guarino

Plant Sociology, 2021

In the summer of 2021, enormous wildfires in the Mediterranean eliminated huge areas of mainly co... more In the summer of 2021, enormous wildfires in the Mediterranean eliminated huge areas of mainly coniferous forest, destroyed adjacent settlements and claimed the lives of many people. The fires indicate effects of climate change and expose consequences of rural demographic changes, deficits in regional and touristic development planning and shortcomings in forest policy. This forum article highlights the dimensions of the problem, calls for a paradigm shift and shows solutions. Land abandonment, woody plant encroachment and non-reflective afforestation are leading to increasing amounts of combustible biomass. To prevent disastrous fires in future, fundamental changes in tree species composition, forest structure and management are essential. Plantations of reseeding pines are to be substituted by spacious or periodically open woodlands of long-lived trees with resprouting capacity such as Mediterranean oaks. Biomass-reducing practices including wood-pasture have to be revived in rural and peri-urban areas. Exemplary fire-resistant multifunctional oak woodlands occur throughout the Mediterranean. Urgent and medium-term measures in the burnt areas include promoting natural ecosystem regeneration, developing regionalized seed banks and nurseries to support native genetic resources, fostering vegetation mosaics of groves and multiple-use open and coppice woodland maintained by traditional practices, and in general forest management aiming at fuel biomass reduction and a policy counteracting land abandonment.

Plant Sociology, 2021

Field investigation carried out by the Sicilian botanists in the last 20 years enabled them to id... more Field investigation carried out by the Sicilian botanists in the last 20 years enabled them to identify eight habitat types of high biogeographic and conservation interest, neglected by the Directive 92/43, which deserve ad hoc conservation measures. For each of these habitats, a syntaxonomic interpretation of the corresponding plant communities, their main ecological, physiognomic and syndynamic traits and a list of diagnostic species are provided. Their classification into the macrotypes listed in the Annex I of the Directive 92/43 and the respective correspondence in EUNIS habitat classification are proposed. The habitats here described integrate those already proposed by the Italian Botanical Society, with the hope of an adequate recognition at national at supranational level.

AGRICOLTURA, SOCIETÀ E SVILUPPO SOSTENIBILE DELL’AREA DEL MEDITERRANEO, 2021

Alcune teorie economiche, largamente riconosciute ma poco at- tuate nella pianificazione strateg... more Alcune teorie economiche, largamente riconosciute ma poco at- tuate nella pianificazione strategica dell’Unione europea, individuano nello sviluppo place-based la via per affrontare l’abbandono e l’esclusione sociale di specifici luoghi. A sostegno di uno sviluppo endogeno, l’Unione europea promuove altresì il community-led local development, un programma che dà spazio alle comunità locali nella definizione dei propri obiettivi di sviluppo. Le regioni che si affacciano sul Mediterraneo sono luoghi ideali per sperimenta- re nuovi obiettivi, forti di un vantaggio competitivo dovuto non soltanto alla ricchezza e all’eterogeneità delle risorse territoriali, ma anche alla saggezza con cui, tradizionalmente, le genti del Mediterraneo definivano il benessere, traendo ispirazione dalla tendenza degli ecosistemi a raggiungere uno stato di equilibrio. L’idea Mediterranea di benessere, la stessa felicità umana sono da sempre assimilate a una condizione di soddisfacimento equilibrato e durevole, ispirata al concetto ecologico di climax. L’άταραξία dei greci, l’otium dei latini sono espressioni di una pienezza da assaporare constatando saggiamente la soddisfazione non dei propri desideri, ma dei propri bisogni. La sfida che atten- de le regioni che si affacciano sul Mediterraneo è quella di (ri-)progettare uno stile di vita ispirato da ideali e modelli complementari e alternativi a quelli del consumo e del mercato globale. Non il ritorno a un mondo arcadico preindu- striale, bensì l’evoluzione da un mondo accentrato dal mercato globale verso un mondo in cui le tecnologie e le conoscenze attuali vengono impiegate per dare risalto alla diversità locale e favorire la transizione verso una società umana naturalmente sviluppata, ovvero in grado di utilizzare le risorse locali e globali in maniera responsabile, consapevole di dipendere dalla natura oggettivamente e soggettivamente.

The IPBES regional assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services for Europe and Central Asia, 2018

The aim of this chapter is to assess evidence of the status and trends of the drivers that affect... more The aim of this chapter is to assess evidence of the status and trends of the drivers that affect biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people. There are three wider categories of nature’s contributions to people: regulating, material and non-material contributions, that are similar to, but not identical to classifications of ecosystem services (see Chapter 1). Ecosystems are dynamic interacting networks of animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms, above and below ground and water-surfaces. These biodiverse networks of interacting organisms respond to a set of environmental factors such as climate, soil, or water conditions. Social-ecological systems also include human activities (direct drivers) that modify almost all of these ecosystem interactions and environmental factors, and the underlying societal (indirect) drivers of these activities. It is thus important to understand the status and trends of the direct and indirect drivers that affect biodiversity, including ecosystems and, thereby, affect nature’s contributions to people.

Spatial planning and environmental restoration are essential corollaries to the management of pro... more Spatial planning and environmental restoration are essential corollaries to the management of protected natural areas, however, without a sound awareness of the evolutionary consistency of biocoenoses, the harmonious integration between human activities and ecosystem preservation remains an unattainable utopia. The theorization of a balanced welfare, inspired by the universal tendency of ecosystems to reach a steady state, has to go along with the defection from any economic greed.

Rendiconti Lincei-scienze Fisiche E Naturali, 2010

The first mention on conceptualisation of what we now term “biodiversity” was given by Federico C... more The first mention on conceptualisation of what we now term “biodiversity” was given by Federico Cesi about 400 years ago. By the light of the first formulation of this concept, the historical changes in the human approach to “biodiversity” are discussed. The popularity of this term shifted from scientific to socio-political contexts and its significance became progressively blurred by eco-social implications. Biodiversity, today, is perceived by most as an ideal container of the remains of a vanishing traditional landscape, where man and nature lived together harmoniously. This is in contrast with the man’s desire for self-assertion, which has accompanied the civilisation process from its origins up to the birth of the ecology movements. While the present need to promote research on biodiversity arises from the desire to help organisms and ecosystems threatened by man, Federico Cesi and the first Linceans were inspired by the desire to “acquire knowledge and wisdom” in order to improve man’s condition. Between the Cesian view of diversitas and the modern perception of biodiversity, there is the same gap that marked the transition from a “traditional” world, longed for by modern man as an Edenic state, to a “modern” world, probably dreamt by the first Linceans as the point of arrival of a strongly innovative scientific ascent, which was taking its first steps during their time. The strong connecting element between diversitas and biodiversity is represented by a common epistemological approach, i.e. to delineate an exhaustive and shareable bulk of knowledge on living organisms, according to how they appear in the light of a collection of empirical data.

During the next EU programming, Italy will suggest to commit a substantial portion of the funds t... more During the next EU programming, Italy will suggest to commit a substantial portion of the funds to the development of the inland areas. This will happen through a structured program that will interact, since its start-up, with the local subjects in order to combine and to bind the development with the territory.
The maintenance of the territory together with the involvement of the local communities focus the attention on the management of the common goods. The debate is still open and the inland areas policy which is built up by the Department for Development and Economic Cohesion (formerly the Department for Development Policy and Cohesion) of the Ministry of Economic Development, does not face the legal recognition of the common properties as such (see the works of Rodotà’s commission), but it acknowledges their public utility through the practice of the development policies and the funding channels.

A comprehensive guide for botanical excursions in Central and Western Sicily, including 24 itiner... more A comprehensive guide for botanical excursions in Central and Western Sicily, including 24 itineraries described in every detail and illustrated by maps and photographs of the excursion sites. The book illustrates, as well, the whole flora of Sicily (more than 3000 species of vascular plants) arranged in synoptic tables and provides an up-to date syntaxonomy and bibliography of the phytosociological classification of the Sicilian vegetation.
The guide was prepared for the 60th Annual Symposium of the International Association for Vegetation Science, held in Palermo, Italy, on June 20–24, 2017. The symposium saw 393 participants from 56 States across 5 continents.

Plant Sociology, 2021

In the summer of 2021, enormous wildfires in the Mediterranean eliminated huge areas of mainly co... more In the summer of 2021, enormous wildfires in the Mediterranean eliminated huge areas of mainly coniferous forest, destroyed adjacent settlements and claimed the lives of many people. The fires indicate effects of climate change and expose consequences of rural demographic changes, deficits in regional and touristic development planning and shortcomings in forest policy. This forum article highlights the dimensions of the problem, calls for a paradigm shift and shows solutions. Land abandonment, woody plant encroachment and non-reflective afforestation are leading to increasing amounts of combustible biomass. To prevent disastrous fires in future, fundamental changes in tree species composition, forest structure and management are essential. Plantations of reseeding pines are to be substituted by spacious or periodically open woodlands of long-lived trees with resprouting capacity such as Mediterranean oaks. Biomass-reducing practices including wood-pasture have to be revived in rural and peri-urban areas. Exemplary fire-resistant multifunctional oak woodlands occur throughout the Mediterranean. Urgent and medium-term measures in the burnt areas include promoting natural ecosystem regeneration, developing regionalized seed banks and nurseries to support native genetic resources, fostering vegetation mosaics of groves and multiple-use open and coppice woodland maintained by traditional practices, and in general forest management aiming at fuel biomass reduction and a policy counteracting land abandonment.

Plant Sociology, 2021

Field investigation carried out by the Sicilian botanists in the last 20 years enabled them to id... more Field investigation carried out by the Sicilian botanists in the last 20 years enabled them to identify eight habitat types of high biogeographic and conservation interest, neglected by the Directive 92/43, which deserve ad hoc conservation measures. For each of these habitats, a syntaxonomic interpretation of the corresponding plant communities, their main ecological, physiognomic and syndynamic traits and a list of diagnostic species are provided. Their classification into the macrotypes listed in the Annex I of the Directive 92/43 and the respective correspondence in EUNIS habitat classification are proposed. The habitats here described integrate those already proposed by the Italian Botanical Society, with the hope of an adequate recognition at national at supranational level.

AGRICOLTURA, SOCIETÀ E SVILUPPO SOSTENIBILE DELL’AREA DEL MEDITERRANEO, 2021

Alcune teorie economiche, largamente riconosciute ma poco at- tuate nella pianificazione strateg... more Alcune teorie economiche, largamente riconosciute ma poco at- tuate nella pianificazione strategica dell’Unione europea, individuano nello sviluppo place-based la via per affrontare l’abbandono e l’esclusione sociale di specifici luoghi. A sostegno di uno sviluppo endogeno, l’Unione europea promuove altresì il community-led local development, un programma che dà spazio alle comunità locali nella definizione dei propri obiettivi di sviluppo. Le regioni che si affacciano sul Mediterraneo sono luoghi ideali per sperimenta- re nuovi obiettivi, forti di un vantaggio competitivo dovuto non soltanto alla ricchezza e all’eterogeneità delle risorse territoriali, ma anche alla saggezza con cui, tradizionalmente, le genti del Mediterraneo definivano il benessere, traendo ispirazione dalla tendenza degli ecosistemi a raggiungere uno stato di equilibrio. L’idea Mediterranea di benessere, la stessa felicità umana sono da sempre assimilate a una condizione di soddisfacimento equilibrato e durevole, ispirata al concetto ecologico di climax. L’άταραξία dei greci, l’otium dei latini sono espressioni di una pienezza da assaporare constatando saggiamente la soddisfazione non dei propri desideri, ma dei propri bisogni. La sfida che atten- de le regioni che si affacciano sul Mediterraneo è quella di (ri-)progettare uno stile di vita ispirato da ideali e modelli complementari e alternativi a quelli del consumo e del mercato globale. Non il ritorno a un mondo arcadico preindu- striale, bensì l’evoluzione da un mondo accentrato dal mercato globale verso un mondo in cui le tecnologie e le conoscenze attuali vengono impiegate per dare risalto alla diversità locale e favorire la transizione verso una società umana naturalmente sviluppata, ovvero in grado di utilizzare le risorse locali e globali in maniera responsabile, consapevole di dipendere dalla natura oggettivamente e soggettivamente.

The IPBES regional assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services for Europe and Central Asia, 2018

The aim of this chapter is to assess evidence of the status and trends of the drivers that affect... more The aim of this chapter is to assess evidence of the status and trends of the drivers that affect biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people. There are three wider categories of nature’s contributions to people: regulating, material and non-material contributions, that are similar to, but not identical to classifications of ecosystem services (see Chapter 1). Ecosystems are dynamic interacting networks of animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms, above and below ground and water-surfaces. These biodiverse networks of interacting organisms respond to a set of environmental factors such as climate, soil, or water conditions. Social-ecological systems also include human activities (direct drivers) that modify almost all of these ecosystem interactions and environmental factors, and the underlying societal (indirect) drivers of these activities. It is thus important to understand the status and trends of the direct and indirect drivers that affect biodiversity, including ecosystems and, thereby, affect nature’s contributions to people.

Spatial planning and environmental restoration are essential corollaries to the management of pro... more Spatial planning and environmental restoration are essential corollaries to the management of protected natural areas, however, without a sound awareness of the evolutionary consistency of biocoenoses, the harmonious integration between human activities and ecosystem preservation remains an unattainable utopia. The theorization of a balanced welfare, inspired by the universal tendency of ecosystems to reach a steady state, has to go along with the defection from any economic greed.

Rendiconti Lincei-scienze Fisiche E Naturali, 2010

The first mention on conceptualisation of what we now term “biodiversity” was given by Federico C... more The first mention on conceptualisation of what we now term “biodiversity” was given by Federico Cesi about 400 years ago. By the light of the first formulation of this concept, the historical changes in the human approach to “biodiversity” are discussed. The popularity of this term shifted from scientific to socio-political contexts and its significance became progressively blurred by eco-social implications. Biodiversity, today, is perceived by most as an ideal container of the remains of a vanishing traditional landscape, where man and nature lived together harmoniously. This is in contrast with the man’s desire for self-assertion, which has accompanied the civilisation process from its origins up to the birth of the ecology movements. While the present need to promote research on biodiversity arises from the desire to help organisms and ecosystems threatened by man, Federico Cesi and the first Linceans were inspired by the desire to “acquire knowledge and wisdom” in order to improve man’s condition. Between the Cesian view of diversitas and the modern perception of biodiversity, there is the same gap that marked the transition from a “traditional” world, longed for by modern man as an Edenic state, to a “modern” world, probably dreamt by the first Linceans as the point of arrival of a strongly innovative scientific ascent, which was taking its first steps during their time. The strong connecting element between diversitas and biodiversity is represented by a common epistemological approach, i.e. to delineate an exhaustive and shareable bulk of knowledge on living organisms, according to how they appear in the light of a collection of empirical data.

During the next EU programming, Italy will suggest to commit a substantial portion of the funds t... more During the next EU programming, Italy will suggest to commit a substantial portion of the funds to the development of the inland areas. This will happen through a structured program that will interact, since its start-up, with the local subjects in order to combine and to bind the development with the territory.
The maintenance of the territory together with the involvement of the local communities focus the attention on the management of the common goods. The debate is still open and the inland areas policy which is built up by the Department for Development and Economic Cohesion (formerly the Department for Development Policy and Cohesion) of the Ministry of Economic Development, does not face the legal recognition of the common properties as such (see the works of Rodotà’s commission), but it acknowledges their public utility through the practice of the development policies and the funding channels.

Environmental Sciences Europe, 2011

Background Over the past 20 years, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have raised enormous exp... more Background Over the past 20 years, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have raised enormous expectations, passionate political controversies and an ongoing debate on how these technologies should be assessed. Current risk assessment procedures generally assess GMOs in terms of their potential risk of negatively affecting human health and the environment. Can this risk-benefit approach deliver a robust assessment of GMOs? In this paper, we question the validity of current risk assessment from both a social and an ecological perspective, and we elaborate an alternative approach, namely in-context trajectory evaluation. This paper combines frame analysis, context analysis and ecosocial analysis to three different case studies. Results Applying frame analysis to Syngenta's recent campaign 'Bring plant potential to life', we first de-construct the technosocial imaginaries driving GMOs innovation, showing how the latter endorses the technological fix of socioeconomic problems whilst reinforcing the neoliberal sociopolitical paradigm. Applying context analysis to biopharming in New Zealand, we then explore local practices and knowledge, showing that particularities of context typically omitted from risk assessment processes play a key role in determining both the risks and the potential benefits of a technology. Finally, drawing from the Italian case, we outline through ecosocial analysis how the lack of long-term studies, further aggravated by current methodological deficiencies, prevent risk assessment from considering not only how GMOs affect the environmental context but also, and most importantly, the way people live in, and interact with, this context. Conclusion Incorporating frame analysis, context analysis and ecosocial analysis, in the form of in-context trajectory evaluation, into the assessment of GMOs can improve the social compatibility, political accountability and ecological sustainability of its outcomes.

Applied Vegetation Science, 2016

The European Vegetation Archive (EVA) is a centralized database of European vegetation plots deve... more The European Vegetation Archive (EVA) is a centralized database of European vegetation plots developed by the IAVS Working Group European Vegetation Survey. It has been in development since 2012 and first made available for use in research projects in 2014. It stores copies of national and regional vegetation- plot databases on a single software platform. Data storage in EVA does not affect on-going independent development of the contributing databases, which remain the property of the data contributors. EVA uses a prototype of the data- base management software TURBOVEG 3 developed for joint management of multiple databases that use different species lists. This is facilitated by the Syn- BioSys Taxon Database, a system of taxon names and concepts used in the indi- vidual European databases and their corresponding names on a unified list of European flora. TURBOVEG 3 also includes procedures for handling data requests, selections and provisions according to the approved EVA Data Property and Governance Rules. By 30 June 2015, 61 databases from all European regions have joined EVA, contributing in total 1 027 376 vegetation plots, 82% of them with geographic coordinates, from 57 countries. EVA provides a unique data source for large-scale analyses of European vegetation diversity both for fundamental research and nature conservation applications. Updated informa- tion on EVA is available online at http://euroveg.org/eva-database.

Two years after its official start, the national vegetation database VegItaly, a collaborative pr... more Two years after its official start, the national vegetation database VegItaly, a collaborative project supported by the Italian scientific community and developed by a large group of scientists, is presented. This article offers a concise overview of the content of the database, currently consisting of 31,100 vegetation plot, including published and unpublished data. Some basic statistics are analysed; for example, data distribution in space and time, represented vegetation types expressed as physiognomic categories. Although rather young and still in progress, VegItaly already contains data from all the Italian regions and stands as an optimal candidate for the development of an Italian national vegetation database. Its main goals,theoretical basis, technical features, functionalities and recent progresses are outlined, showing glimpses of future prospects.

Italian Botanist, 2023

The results of the annual excursion of the Working Group for Vegetation Science of the Italian Bo... more The results of the annual excursion of the Working Group for Vegetation Science of the Italian Botanical Society, held in the Egadi Islands, Mount San Giuliano and Mount Cofano (W Sicily) on April 23-27 2022, are presented. This paper includes: (1) general information on the visited sites; (2) geology and geomorphology; (3) climatology and bioclimatology with tables of climatic data; (4) description of the following five geobotanical itineraries-accompanied by 29 original vegetation relevés and 11 synthetic relevés, proceeding from different bibliographic references: (a) Mount San Giuliano; (b) Marettimo Island: coastal and subcoastal stretch of the southern part, between Punta Bassana and Contrada Chiappera; (c) Marettimo Island: Case Romane, Mount Pizzo Falcone and the northwestern coastal stretch; (d) Island of Levanzo; (e) Mount Cofano-with catenal pictograms of the vegetation, surveys and description of the plant communities and related syntaxonomic scheme; (5) list of the surveyed plant taxa, collected specimens and herbaria in which they are deposited. A new syntaxon is also described (Catapodio pauciflori-Moraeetum sisyrinchii ass. nova), referring to an ephemeral dry grassland located along the northwestern coastal stretch of Marettimo. The new association is framed in the Plantagini-Catapodion balearici, alliance of the Stipo-Bupleuretalia semicompositi order of the class Stipo-Trachynietea distachyae (order Stipo-Bupleuretalia semicompositi, alliance Plantagini-Catapodion balearici). An original synoptic table, regarding 17 different plant communities with high frequency of Moraea sisyrinchium, provides a comparative framework of the new association with allied vegetation units so far described throughout the Mediterranean region. Syntaxonomical and nomenclatural remarks regarding the Mediterranean vegetation occurring in this territory are also given throughout the text. Some floristic updates for the study sites are also reported, including the discovery for the first time in Sicily of Lysimachia loeflingii.

Vegetation Classification and Survey, 2021

Aims: We studied the syntaxonomic position, biodiversity, ecological features, nature conservatio... more Aims: We studied the syntaxonomic position, biodiversity, ecological features, nature conservation value and current status of dry grasslands investigated by Josias Braun-Blanquet more than 60 years ago. Study area: Inner-alpine valleys of Austria. Methods: We sampled 67 plots of 10 m 2 , following the standardized EDGG methodology. We subjected our plots to an unsupervised classification with the modified TWINSPAN algorithm and interpreted the branches of the dendrogram syntaxonomically. Biodiversity, structural and ecological characteristics of the resulting vegetation units at association and order level were compared by ANOVAs. Results: All the examined grasslands belong to the class Festuco-Brometea. From ten distinguished clusters, we could assign four clusters to validly published associations, while the remaining six clusters were named tentatively. We classified them into three orders: Stipo-Festucetalia pallentis (Armerio elongatae-Potentilletum arenariae, Phleo phleoidis-Pulsatilletum nigricantis, Medicago minima-Melica ciliata community, Koelerio pyramidatae-Teucrietum montani), Festucetalia valesiacae (Sempervivum tectorum-Festuca valesiaca community); Brachypodietalia pinnati (Astragalo onobrychidis-Brometum erecti, Agrostis capillaris-Avenula adsurgens community, Anthericum ramosum-Brachypodium pinnatum community, Ranunculus bulbosus-Festuca rubra community, Carduus defloratus-Brachypodium pinnatum community). Conclusions: The ten distinguished dry grassland communities of the Austrian inner-alpine valleys differ in their ecological affinities as well as their vascular plant, bryophyte and lichen diversity. We point out their high nature conservation importance, as each of them presents a unique habitat of high value.

Applied Vegetation Science, 2019

Aims: We examined all available literature and some unpublished data on the We examined all avail... more Aims: We examined all available literature and some unpublished data on the We examined all available literature and some unpublished data on the grasslands dominated by Lygeum spartum from Southern Europe and North Africa to produce a for-malised classification of this vegetation and to identify the main factors determining its plant species composition. Location: Mediterranean Basin and Iberian Peninsula. Methods: We used a dataset of 728 relevés, which were resampled to reduce unbalanced sampling effort, resulting in a dataset of 568 relevés and 846 taxa. We classified the plots by TWINSPAN, interpreted the resulting pools, and used them to develop formal definitions of phytosociological alliances characterised by L. spartum vegetation. The definitions were included in an expert system to assist automatic vegetation classification. We related the alliances to climatic factors and described their biogeographical features and ecological preferences. The floristic relationships between these alliances were analysed and visualised using distance-based redundancy analysis. Results: We defined eleven alliances of L. spartum vegetation, including the newly described Launaeo laniferae-Lygeion sparti from SW Morocco and the Noaeo mucro-natae-Lygeion sparti from the Algerian highlands and NE Morocco. Biogeographical, climatic, and edaphic factors were revealed as putatively driving the differentiation between the alliances. Vegetations of clayey slopes and inland salt basins displayed higher variability in comparison with those of coastal salt marshes. Main conclusions: A comprehensive formal classification, accompanied by an expert system, of the grasslands from Southern Europe and North Africa dominated by Lygeum spartum vegetation was formulated. Eleven phytosociological alliances were recognised, whose plant species composition is influenced by biogeographic, climatic, and edaphic drivers. The expert system, containing formal definitions of the phytosociological alliances, will assist in identifying the syntaxonomic position of new datasets.

Webbia, 2018

The results of preliminary phytosociological investigations on freshwater communities of Sicily b... more The results of preliminary phytosociological investigations on freshwater communities of Sicily biotopes with a significant presence of Characeae are presented. In spite of the relatively frequent occurrence of Characeae, a typical Charetea intermediae vegetation is rather rare in the investigated biotopes. Indeed, the Characeae are mainly part of communities attributable to the classes Potamogetonetea, Phragmito-Magnocaricetea, Juncetea mar-itimi and Isoeto-Nanojuncetea. Some ecological and functional implications are discussed, along with some consequences on conservation measures and policies, caused by the lack of knowledge on the Characeae of Sicily.

Aims: Although many phytosociological studies have provided detailed local and regional descripti... more Aims: Although many phytosociological studies have provided detailed local and regional descriptions of coastal dune vegetation, a unified classification of this vegetation in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin has been missing. Our aim is to produce a formalized classification of this vegetation and to identify the main factors driving its plant species composition at a continental scale. Location: Atlantic and Baltic coasts of Europe, Mediterranean Basin and the Black Sea region. Methods: We compiled a database of 30,759 plots of coastal vegetation, which were resampled to reduce unbalanced sampling effort, obtaining a data set of 11,769 plots. We classified these plots with TWINSPAN, interpreted the resulting clusters and used them for developing formal definitions of phytosociological alliances of coastal dune vegetation, which were included in an expert system for automatic vegetation classification. We related the alliances to climatic factors and described their

A historical overview of the phytosociological method in Europe is presented. Some methodological... more A historical overview of the phytosociological method in Europe is presented. Some methodological and procedural differences in the application of the Braun-Blanquet approach, from the selection of the sampling plots to the assignment of relevés to existing or newly described units, are briefly compared. The main advantages and limitations of the phytosociological vegetation classification are reviewed and discussed, also in light of their applications for vegetation mapping and monitoring.

On the basis of literature and unpublished data, a syntaxonomical review about the chasmo-philous... more On the basis of literature and unpublished data, a syntaxonomical review about the chasmo-philous synanthropic vegetation occurring in the Mediterranean territories and in the Atlantic and Central Europe was carried out. These plant communities are linked to masonry walls and rocky faces heavily disturbed by men, which are colonized by a fairly specialized flora dominated by he-micriptophytes, chamaephytes and mosses. From the syntaxonomical point of view, in accordance with the greatest part of the authors who studied the matter, the wall vegetation must be considered in a well-distinguished class whose valid name is Parietarietea judaicae Oberd. 1977, rather than in the Asplenietea trichomanis class, as proposed by other authors. Within the class one order, Tortulo-Cymbalarietalia Segal 1969, and three alliances have been recognized: they are Parietarion judaicae Segal 1969, Cymbalario-Asplenion Segal 1969 and Parietario judaicae-Hyoscyamion aurei all. nova. The first of the alliances, chiefly linked to the Mediterranean bioclimate, is charaterized mainly by thermophilous chamaephytes while the cryptogams are almost absent; the second one, distributed in the territories having a temperate bioclimate, is differentiated by an high abundance of ferns and mosses; finally the third one, characterized by a thermo-xerophilous pool of chamaephytes, can be considered a S.-E. Mediterranean vicariant of the Paretarion judaicae alliance. For each syntaxon the nomenclatural type and synonims are reported, as well as the indication of the main ecological, floristic and chorological characteristics.

The class Parietarietea judaicae Oberd. 1977 in Italy. On the basis of literature and unpublished... more The class Parietarietea judaicae Oberd. 1977 in Italy. On the basis of literature and unpublished data, a synthesis on the synanthropic chasmophilous perennial vegetation occurring in the Italian territories has been carried out. These plant communities are linked to masonry walls and rocky faces heavily disturbed by man, and are dominated by hemicryptophytes, chamaephytes and bryophytes. From the syntaxonomical point of view, in accordance with the majority of the authors who studied the matter, the wall vegetation should be ascribed to a well-distinguished class, Parietarietea judaicae Oberd. 1977, rather than to the Asplenietea trichomanis class, as proposed by other authors. Within the class, one order, Tortulo-Cymbalarietalia Segal 1969, and two alliances are represented in Italy: Parietarion judaicae Segal 1969 and Cymbalario-Asplenion Segal 1969. The first alliance, chiefly linked to the Mediterranean bioclimate, is mostly characterized by thermophilous chamaephytes, while cryptogams are nearly absent; the second one, distributed in the territories having a temperate bioclimate, is differentiated by an high abundance of small ferns and mosses. For each syntaxon the nomenclatural type and synonims are reported, as well as the indication of the main ecological, floristic and chorological characteristics. Besides, some unpublished relevés from NE-Sicily, Tuscany (Volterra) and Garda lake are presented, and a new association, Asplenio trichomanis-Umbilicetum horizontalis, is described.

Feddes Repertorium, 2008

A survey about the orophilous shrubby vegetation of the Teide volcano (Tenerife) is provided, bas... more A survey about the orophilous shrubby vegetation of the Teide volcano (Tenerife) is provided, based on literature and unpublished data. The investigated communities are dominated by broom-shaped nanophanerophytes, chamaephytes and hemicryptophytes, well adapted to the climatic continentality characterizing their growing-sites, due to the localization above the cloud layer. From the syntaxonomical point of view, in this paper is proposed to refer this vegetation to the class Cytiso-Pinetea canariensis Rivas Goday & Esteve ex Sunding 1972, to the order Spartocytisetalia supranubii Schönfelder & Voggenreiter 1994 and to three alliances: Spartocytision supranubii Oberd. ex Esteve 1973, grouping the broom-shrublands occurring on relatively developed andosoils; Juniperion cedri all. nova, regarding the juniper communities colonizing steep rocky slopes; Violion cheiranthifoliae all. nova, grouping the hemicryptophytic communities of screes and unstable substrata. To support the syntaxonomic proposal, a multivariate numerical analysis, considering literature and personal data, has been performed. Moreover, considerations on the role that bioclimate plays on these plant-communities are given too. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)Wir geben einen Überblick der orophytischen Buschvegetation des Vulkans Teide (Teneriffa), auf der Basis von Literatur und unveröffentlichten Daten. In den untersuchten Pflanzengesellschaften dominieren besenförmige Nanophanerophyten, Chamaephyten und Hemikryptophyten, die dank ihrer Lage oberhalb der Wolken gut an das kontinentale Klima ihrer Heimat angepasst sind. Vom syntaxonomischen Standpunkt aus betrachtet schlagen wir vor, diese Vegetation der Klasse Cytiso-Pinetea canariensis Rivas Goday & Esteve ex Sunding 1972, der Ordnung Spartocytisetalia supranubii Schönfelder & Voggenreiter 1994 und drei Verbänden zuzuordnen (Spartocytision supranubii Oberd. ex Esteve 1973, die die besenförmige Buschvegetation auf relativ gut entwickelten Andosols umfassen; Juniperion cedri all. nova für die Wacholdergesellschaften, die steile, felsige Abhänge kolonisieren; Violion cheiranthifoliae all. nova, welches die hemikryptophytischen Gesellschaften auf steilen Schutthängen und instabilem Untergrund einschließt). Zur Unterstützung dieses syntaxonomischen Vorschlags haben wir eine multivariate numerische Analyse auf der Grundlage von veröffentlichten und unveröffentlichten Daten durchgeführt. Wir diskutieren weiterhin den Einfluss des Bioklimas auf diese Pflanzengesellschaften.

Plant Biosystems, 2012

After a general outline on the syntaxonomical framework of the class Pegano harmalae-Salsoletea v... more After a general outline on the syntaxonomical framework of the class Pegano harmalae-Salsoletea vermiculatae Br.-Bl. & O. Bolos 1958, the occurrence of this vegetation in the Italian territory is examined. In Italy, this vegetation is mostly found on clayish or marly substrata, particularly if slightly enriched with nitrates and chlorides. With reference to the Rivas-Martínez bioclimatic classification, the Italian stands have an infra- to thermo-Mediterranean thermotype (marginally up to the meso-Mediterranean one) with dry or arid ombrotype. In particular, this vegetation is well represented in Sicily, while in Sardinia and along the Italian Peninsula, it progressively becomes more rare and localized. Altogether, 21 associations are recognized, 11 of which are described here for the first time. The surveyed associations are ascribed to the following alliances: Salsolo oppositifoliae-Suaedionmollis (linked to less disturbed and more thermo-xeric habitats) and Artemision arborescentis (more disturbed and less thermo-xeric habitats). Finally, some conservation issues are discussed.

Feddes Repertorium, 2008

Orophilous plant communities of the Pino-Juniperetea class, occurring in the Central and Eastern ... more Orophilous plant communities of the Pino-Juniperetea class, occurring in the Central and Eastern Mediterranean area, are examined. This vegetation is characterized by the dominance of trees and shrubs, mostly represented by conifers belonging to the genera Juniperus, Abies and Pinus. These communities are nowadays relegated to the supra- and oromediterranean belt, and show a fragmentary distribution, which is an evident proof of their relict connotation. The comparison among these communities, based on original and literature data, has highlighted a remarkable floristic and structural homogeneity, together with a series of geographical vicariances. From the phytosociological point of view, this justifies the arrangement of the aforesaid communities in the class Pino-Juniperetea RIVAS-MARTÍNEZ 1964, whose range is therefore extended to the whole Mediterranean basin. In the Central and Eastern Mediterranean area, the class is represented by the order Juniperetalia hemisphaericae, which comprises two new alliances: Berberidion aetnensis, restricted to the Central Mediterranean area, and Berberido creticae-Juniperion foetidissimae, distributed in the Eastern Mediterranean area. Both of them have been on its turn split up in some suballiances, to emphasize the floristic autonomy of some well-defined phytogeographical districts. The identified associations, many of them new to science, are examined from the nomenclatural, floristical, ecological, structural and chorological point of view. New groups described pp. 265 ff.

aBStract – The results of a phytosociological investigation on the beech forests occurring in Sic... more aBStract – The results of a phytosociological investigation on the beech forests occurring in Sicily are given. On the basis of literature and unpublished data, four well differentiated associations have been identified and classified within the Doronico-Fagion, alliance of Querco-Fagetea. All the surveyed woodlands are localized in the mountain belt of North and NorthEastern Sicily. The associations have been examined from the floristical, ecological, chorological and nomenclatural point of view. Besides, a numerical analysis applied to the phytosociological relevés emphasizes the differences among the associations.

Laurel woodlands in the Madonie mountains (Sicily) are characterized by the presence of Laurus no... more Laurel woodlands in the Madonie mountains (Sicily) are characterized by the presence of Laurus nobilis, Rhamnus lojaconoi and Vitis vinifera subsp. sylvestris. The results of a phytosociological study are presented, and a new endemic association, Rhamno lojaconoi–Lauretum nobilis, is described. Present Mediterranean laurel communities are the result of an adaptive response by Tertiary laurel forest to the peculiar microclimatic conditions that characterize the refugia where they persist. These refugia have been recently considered as a priority habitat under the Directive 92/43/EEC, and their plant communities are very vulnerable. Protection measures of the studied laurel populations are necessary, with particular reference to the bulking up of R. lojaconoi through in situ and ex situ propagation. A multivariate analysis of 63 relevés from all the Sicilian laurel communities described so far and additional 65 relevés from all over southern Europe and the Mediterranean basin bears out the autonomy of the new association, showing at the same time some oristic afnities between Sicilian, southern Italian, Spanish and Iberian associations. Their syntaxonomic treatment is discussed.

Levels of plant invasions in different habitat types were assessed in several regional studies, b... more Levels of plant invasions in different habitat types were assessed in several regional studies, but few of them were from the Mediterranean. Here we compare the levels of vascular plant invasion across habitats and plant communities of Sicily. We used a large dataset of plant species presences/ absences in vegetation plots to analyze the invasion patterns across habitats considering biogeography, life form and phenology of alien plants. Vegetation plots were classified based on the EUNIS classification of European habitats. The invasiveness of each species was expressed in terms of its absolute and percentage frequency. Representation of different life forms and phenological patterns was compared between alien and native species. The fidelity of alien species to individual habitats was calculated using the phi coefficient. Our analysis shows that annual and woody species are the most represented life forms in the alien flora of Sicily and that alien species tend to have a longer flowering period than the native species. The investigated habitats differed strongly in their level of invasion by alien species, ranging from 0 to 15.6% of aliens of all species recorded. Most of the habitats were colonized by very few alien species or completely lacked them, except for sandy coasts, natu- rally-disturbed riverbeds, and synanthropic habitats. It must be noted, however, that the number of alien species occurring in a given habitat does not relate to the severity of the impact of invasion in that habitat. Some habitats are invaded by few (or single) species, which attain a high cover, transforming the whole ecosystem. The habitat-based approach proved to be suitable for evaluating the habitat specificity and frequency of alien species at a regional scale, improving the capacity for risk assessment in different ecological contexts.

Vegetation Classification and Survey

Aim: To propose a Finite Mixture Model (FMM) as an additional approach for classifying large data... more Aim: To propose a Finite Mixture Model (FMM) as an additional approach for classifying large datasets of georeferenced vegetation plots from complex vegetation systems. Study area: The Italian peninsula including the two main islands (Sicily and Sardinia), but excluding the Alps and the Po plain. Methods: We used a database of 5,593 georeferenced plots and 1,586 vascular species of forest vegetation, created in TURBOVEG by storing published and unpublished phytosociological plots collected over the last 30 years. The plots were classified according to species composition and environmental variables using a FMM. Classification results were compared with those obtained by TWINSPAN algorithm. Groups were characterized in terms of ecological parameters, dominant and diagnostic species using the fidelity coefficient. Interpretation of resulting forest vegetation types was supported by a predictive map, produced using discriminant functions on environmental predictors, and by a non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination. Results: FMM clustering obtained 24 groups that were compared with those from TWINSPAN, and similarities were found only at a higher classification level corresponding to the main orders of the Italian broadleaf forest vegetation: Fagetalia sylvaticae, Carpinetalia betuli, Quercetalia pubescenti-petraeae and Quercetalia ilicis. At lower syntaxonomic level, these 24 groups were referred to alliances and sub-alliances. Conclusions: Despite a greater computational complexity , FMM appears to be an effective alternative to the traditional classification methods through the incorporation of modelling in the classificatory process. This allows classification of both the co-occurrence of species and environmental factors so that groups are identified not only on their species composition, as in the case of TWINSPAN, but also on their specific environmental niche. Taxonomic reference: Conti et al. (2005). Abbreviations: CLM = Community-level models; FMM = Finite Mixture Model; NMDS = non-metric multidimen-sional scaling.

iForest

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) is a fast growing tree species native to temperate North A... more Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) is a fast growing tree species native to temperate North America, and widely diffused and naturalized in Europe. It is one of the candidate species for establishing bioenergy plantations on marginal lands in temperate and sub-Mediterranean regions. This potential is in contrast to its well-known invasive habit, leading to a potential damage to plant biodiversity in many European countries. Advise against black locust plantation in regions where it is already invasive has been issued by several international reports, as well as the adoption of mitigation measures (e.g., " containment " buffer zones) to prevent the spread of the species into natural and semi-natural habitats. In the Mediterranean basin, however, no studies have been carried out aimed at quantifying the escape rate of black locust saplings from plantation stands and its recruitment into natural habitats, together with the effectiveness of a buffer zone in reducing the spread. In this study we investigated the spread of black locust along 35 transects surrounding three 20-year-old plantations and including three different land cover types: abandoned arable land, semi-natural woodland and a buffer zone (orchards) with a low degree of farming input. In addition, the effect of soil disturbance on seed propagation was investigated. Our results demonstrate that the density of black locust regeneration is strongly affected by the land cover, abandoned agricultural land being the most prone to black locust colo-nization. Contrastingly, the spread was minimal in the buffer zone and negligible in semi-natural woodland. During the investigated year, seed generative propagation was also negligible. The semi-natural woodland seems to resist well to black locust invasion, though further observations are needed to assess the consequences of stand harvesting disturbance as well, according to local standard forest management. Buffer zones seem to be very effective in controlling black locust invasion. Best management practices, with active farming inputs, are also discussed.

Journal of Biogeography

Community assembly, dispersal limitation, distance decay, dune habitats, environmental filtering,... more Community assembly, dispersal limitation, distance decay, dune habitats, environmental filtering, Iberian Peninsula, metacommunity, species sorting, vegetation databases.

Tackling the Sicilian woody vegetation as case-study, this work aims to verify the relationship b... more Tackling the Sicilian woody vegetation as case-study, this work aims to verify the relationship between the Rivas-Martínez’s bioclimatic units and head vegetation series in the Mediterranean. Following this approach, one macrobioclimate and twenty five bioclimatic types belts can be recognized in Sicily. By means of a geostatistical analysis on WorldClim data sets, cartographic models of the distribution range of each single bioclimatic unit were obtained and crossed with vegetation data, in order to develop a new regional spatial framework, integrating climatic and vegetation data. The fidelity of each vegetation unit to a given climatic range was then evaluated as percent distribution of the occupied surface within a given bioclimatic unit, while the accuracy of the WorldClim data sets was tested by using half of the spatial data of the processed vegetation units as independent variables. Our results suggest that : (1) any kind of numerical threshold used to define bioclimatic units is not effective a priori, but only in relation to the territory and to the spatial scale used to set the model; (2) being bioclimatic indices an empirical tool, the model can be trained and eventually adjusted when applied to different territories; (3) the fidelity of vegetation units to a given bioclimatic unit is highly variable; (4) the mechanistic pitfall that climatophilous vegetation has to be necessarily linked to a single bioclimatic unit should be avoided.

Plant Ecology, 2005

A combined field experiment and modelling approach has been used to provide evidence that ants ma... more A combined field experiment and modelling approach has been used to provide evidence that ants may be responsible for an observed lower patchiness and higher plant diversity in the neighbourhood of ant nests, within Mediterranean dry grasslands belonging to the phytosociological class Tuberarietea guttatae. The hypothesis was that seeds occurring in clumps may have a higher probability to be harvested than seeds having a scattered distribution. In order to test this hypothesis, four analysis steps were performed. First, pattern of seed production and dispersal of four species was recorded; two of them were more abundant next to ant nests (Tuberaria guttata, Euphorbia exigua), whereas the other two were more abundant away from ant nests (Bromus scoparius and Plantago bellardi). Second, a stochastic model was developed to simulate the observed dispersal patterns of each studied species. Third, 10 seed spatial arrangements in accordance to the distribution patterns created by the model were offered to ants and the location of predated seeds was recorded. Finally, the observed pattern of seed predation was matched to models performed by different distributions of probability. Results showed that the probability of being predated decreased as distance among seeds increased. This preference of ants for high concentration of food items holds down the dominant species sufficiently to allow the subordinates to survive, thus increasing diversity near nests. The observed higher frequency of small-seeded, small-sized, or creeping therophytes close to the ant nests can be therefore seen as an example of indirect myrmecophily.

Berichte der Reinhold Tüxen Gesellschaft

Basing on literature data, a synthesis on the morphologic, anatomic and physiologic adaptations o... more Basing on literature data, a synthesis on the morphologic, anatomic and physiologic adaptations of the Mediterranean dwarf shrubs is outlined. Three different functional types can be recognized: saltbushes, thermo-xerophilous fire-resistant dwarf shrubs and orophilous cushion-shrubs. The thermo-xerophilous fire-resistant dwarf shrubs mainly derive from the Mesogean flora and differentiated after the beginning of the Oligocene, and especially from the Pliocene, in the coastal regions around the Tethys Sea, as the result of a local adaptive radiation triggered by the shifting from subhumid to semiarid climatic conditions at the boundary between the tropical and the temperate zone. For the other two functional types, a Tethyan origin can be assumed. Both are probably originating from Irano-Turanian and Saharo-Arabian elements and came into the Mediterranean basin during the Messinian age. At the end of the Messinian age, the saltbushes didn’t differentiate too much from their ancestors, while the orophilous cushion-shrubs, together with their “Polstergäste”, passed through a new adaptive radiation, that gave rise to one of the richest system of vicariant endemism.

A synthesis on the functional types of Mediterranean dry grasslands is outlined. Three different ... more A synthesis on the functional types of Mediterranean dry grasslands is outlined. Three different types are outlined: wintergreen perennial dry grasslands, wintergreen ephemeral dry grasslands, summergreen perennial dry grasslands. The first type is the most primitive, including several relict species, often characterized by very disjoint, sometimes anfi-saharian distribution ranges. The second type is resulting from an evolutionary trend towards short-lived life strategy, triggered by climatic and topographic perturbations that affected the Mediterranean region in the Plio- and Pleistocene. The third type, only marginally occurring in the Mediterranean region, is deriving from Holarctic and Eurasian elements, that probably colonized the Mediterranean lands during the Pleistocenic dry interglacial periods. The evolutionary success of the Mediterranean dry grasslands have been ensured by the combination of high topographic diversity and multiple land-use patterns. Their existence is based on a dynamic long-term flow equilibrium, depending on cyclic perturbations, that let them to acquire a long-term evolutionary metastability.

Journal of Systematics and Evolution, 2023

Small islands represent a common feature in the Mediterranean and host a significant fraction of ... more Small islands represent a common feature in the Mediterranean and host a significant fraction of its biodiversity. However, the distribution of plant species richness across spatial scales-from local communities (alpha) to whole islands (gamma)-is largely unknown, and so is the influence of environmental, geographical, and topographical factors. By building upon classic biogeographic theory, we used the species-area relationship and about 4500 vegetation plots in 54 Central Mediterranean small islands to identify hotspots of plant species richness and the underlying spatial determinants across scales. To do so, we fitted and averaged eight species-area models on gamma and alpha richness against island area and plot size, respectively. Based on positive deviations from the fitted curves, we identified 12 islands as cross-scale hotspots. These islands encompassed around 70% of species and habitat richness, as well as almost 50% of the rarest species in the data set, while occupying less than 40% of the total island surface. By fitting generalized linear mixed models, we found that gamma richness was mainly explained by island area and was weakly related to mean annual temperature (positively) and annual precipitation (negatively). As for alpha richness, after accounting for the idiosyncratic effect of habitats and islands, plot size and gamma richness remained the only significant predictors, showing a positive relationship. This work contributes to the understanding of the patterns and drivers of plant diversity in Central Mediterranean small islands and outlines a useful methodology for the prioritization of conservation efforts.

Alpine Botany, 2022

The inner-alpine dry valleys of the Swiss Alps are characterized by subcontinental climate, leadi... more The inner-alpine dry valleys of the Swiss Alps are characterized by subcontinental climate, leading to many peculiarities in dry grassland species composition. Despite their well-known uniqueness, comprehensive studies on biodiversity patterns of the dry grasslands in these valleys were still missing. To close this gap, we sampled 161 10-m 2 vegetation plots in the Rhône, Rhine and Inn valleys, recording vascular plants, terricolous bryophyte and lichen species, as well as environmental data. Additionally, we tested the scale-dependence of environmental drivers using 34 nested-plot series with seven grain sizes (0.0001-100 m 2). We analysed the effects of environmental drivers related to productivity/stress, disturbance and within-plot heterogeneity on species richness. Mean species richness ranged from 2.3 species in 0.0001 m 2 to 58.8 species in 100 m 2. For all taxa combined, the most relevant drivers at the grain size of 10 m 2 were southing (negative), litter (negative), mean annual precipitation (unimodal), gravel cover (negative), inclination (unimodal) and mean annual precipitation (unimodal). For vascular plants the pattern was similar, while bryophyte and lichen richness differed by the opposite relationship to mean annual precipitation as well as negative influences of mean herb layer height, grazing and mowing. The explained variance of the multiple regression model increased with grain size, with very low values for the smallest two grain sizes. While southing and litter had high importance for the fiver larger grain sizes, pH and gravel cover were particularly important at the intermediate grain sizes, and inclination and mean annual precipitation for the two largest grain sizes. The findings emphasize the importance of taxonomic group and grain size for patterns and drivers of species richness in vegetation, consistent with ecological theory. Differences in the diversity-environment relationships among the three taxonomic groups can partly be explained by asymmetric competition that leads to low bryophyte and lichen diversity where vascular plants do well and vice versa. The relatively low alpha diversity of vascular plants in dry grasslands in Swiss inner-alpine valleys compared to similar communities in other parts of the Palaearctic remains puzzling, especially because Swiss stands are often large and well-preserved.

Journal of Vegetation Science, 2021

Aims: Understanding fine-grain diversity patterns across large spatial extents is fundamental for... more Aims: Understanding fine-grain diversity patterns across large spatial extents is fundamental for macroecological research and biodiversity conservation. Using the GrassPlot database, we provide benchmarks of fine-grain richness values of Palaearctic open habitats for vascular plants, bryophytes, lichens and complete vegetation (i.e., the sum of the former three groups).
Location: Palaearctic biogeographic realm.
Methods: We used 126,524 plots of eight standard grain sizes from the GrassPlot database: 0.0001, 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, 1, 10, 100 and 1,000 sq. m and calculated the mean richness and standard deviations, as well as maximum, minimum, median, and first and third quartiles for each combination of grain size, taxonomic group, biome, region, vegetation type and phytosociological class.
Results: Patterns of plant diversity in vegetation types and biomes differ across grain sizes and taxonomic groups. Overall, secondary (mostly semi-natural) grasslands and natural grasslands are the richest vegetation type. The open-access file ”GrassPlot Diversity Benchmarks” and the web tool “GrassPlot Diversity Explorer” are now available online (https://edgg.org/databases/GrasslandDiversityExplorer) and pro- vide more insights into species richness patterns in the Palaearctic open habitats.
Conclusions: The GrassPlot Diversity Benchmarks provide high-quality data on spe- cies richness in open habitat types across the Palaearctic. These benchmark data can be used in vegetation ecology, macroecology, biodiversity conservation and data quality checking. While the amount of data in the underlying GrassPlot database and their spatial coverage are smaller than in other extensive vegetation-plot databases, species recordings in GrassPlot are on average more complete, making it a valuable complementary data source in macroecology.

Vegetation Classification and Survey, 2021

Aims: To quantify how fine-grain (within-plot) beta diversity differs among biomes and vegetation... more Aims: To quantify how fine-grain (within-plot) beta diversity differs among biomes and vegetation types. Study area: Palaearctic biogeographic realm. Methods: We extracted 4,654 nested-plot series with at least four different grain sizes between 0.0001 m² and 1,024 m² from the GrassPlot database spanning broad geographic and ecological gradients. Next, we calculated the slope parameter (z-value) of the power-law species-area relationship (SAR) to use as a measure of multiplicative beta diversity. We did this separately for vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens and for the three groups combined (complete vegetation). We then tested whether z-values differed between biomes, ecological-physiognomic vegetation types at coarse and fine levels and phytosociological classes. Results: We found that z-values varied significantly among biomes and vegetation types. The explanatory power of area for species richness was highest for vascular plants, followed by complete vegetation, bryophytes and lichens. Within each species group, the explained variance increased with typological resolution. In vascular plants, adjusted R 2 was 0.14 for biomes, but reached 0.50 for phytosociological * Iwona Dembicz and Jürgen Dengler shall be considered as joint first authors.

Journal of Vegetation Science, 2021

Questions: Which environmental factors influence fine-grain beta diversity of veg- etation and do... more Questions: Which environmental factors influence fine-grain beta diversity of veg- etation and do they vary among taxonomic groups?
Location: Palaearctic biogeographic realm.
Methods: We extracted 4,654 nested-plot series with at least four different grain sizes between 0.0001 sq. m and 1,024 sq. m from the GrassPlot database, covering a wide range of different grassland and other open habitat types. We derived extensive environmental and structural information for these series. For each series and four taxonomic groups (vascular plants, bryophytes, lichens, all), we calculated the slope parameter (z-value) of the power law species–area relationship (SAR), as a beta diversity measure. We tested whether z-values differed among taxonomic groups and with respect to biogeographic gradients (latitude, elevation, macroclimate), ecological (site) characteristics (several stress–productivity, disturbance and heterogeneity measures, including land use) and alpha diversity (c-value of the power law SAR).
Results: Mean z-values were highest for lichens, intermediate for vascular plants and lowest for bryophytes. Bivariate regressions of z-values against environmental variables had rather low predictive power (mean sq.R = 0.07 for vascular plants, less for other taxa). For vascular plants, the strongest predictors of z-values were herb layer cover (negative), elevation (positive), rock and stone cover (positive) and the c- value (U-shaped). All tested metrics related to land use (fertilization, livestock grazing, mowing, burning, decrease in naturalness) led to a decrease in z-values. Other predictors had little or no impact on z-values. The patterns for bryophytes, lichens and all taxa combined were similar but weaker than those for vascular plants.
Conclusions: We conclude that productivity has negative and heterogeneity posi- tive effects on z-values, while the effect of disturbance varies depending on type and intensity. These patterns and the differences among taxonomic groups can be explained via the effects of these drivers on the mean occupancy of species, which is mathematically linked to beta diversity.

Aims: Aeolian islands form an active volcanic archipelago. By using updated vascular plant checkl... more Aims: Aeolian islands form an active volcanic archipelago. By using updated vascular plant checklists for islands and islets, we tested four hypotheses: (i) Island species– area relationship (ISAR) of alien species has lower c- and higher z-values than native species, (ii) islands with active volcanoes have lower species richness than expected for native and alien species, (iii) ISAR of native species shows lower c- and higher z- values than ISARs of Mediterranean land bridge archipelagos and (iv) species richness of smaller islets is independent of area.

Location: Aeolian Archipelago, Mediterranean Basin.

Taxon: Vascular plants, identified and named according to the Flora of Italy (Pignatti et al., 2017–2019).

Methods: Checklists of native and alien plant species were obtained for eight islands and 24 islets. ISARs were fitted by the Arrhenius power function (S = c ⋅ Az) and used to test the first two hypotheses. The third hypothesis was tested by comparing ISAR of Aeolian Archipelago to those from other central and eastern Mediterranean archipelagos. The fourth hypothesis was tested by fitting models defining the presence and limit of the small-island effect.
Results: The checklists included 894 species—749 native and 145 alien. ISARs fitted well for native and alien species and resulted in typical values of c and z parameters. The first and second hypotheses were supported by model fitting. The third hypothesis was not confirmed by the comparison of the ISAR of the Aeolian Archipelago with other archipelagos. The small-island effect predicted by the fourth hypothesis was supported using S versus LogA for both native and alien species, while for native species it was supported also using the log transformation of the Arrhenius model.

Main conclusions: We reported a first comprehensive analysis of plant species richness in the unique Aeolian Archipelago, verifying typical ISARs, no peculiarity with respect to land bridge archipelagos and a somewhat unclear signal for the small-island effect.

Journal of Vegetation Science, 2021

Questions: Species-area relationships (SARs) are fundamental for understanding biodiversity patte... more Questions: Species-area relationships (SARs) are fundamental for understanding biodiversity patterns and are generally well described by a power law with a constant exponent z. However, z-values sometimes vary across spatial scales. We asked whether there is a general scale dependence of z-values at fine spatial grains and which potential drivers influence it. Location: Palaearctic biogeographic realm. Methods: We used 6,696 nested-plot series of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens from the GrassPlot database with two or more grain sizes, ranging from 0.0001 m² to 1,024 m² and covering diverse open habitats. The plots were recorded with two widespread sampling approaches (rooted presence = species "rooting" inside the plot; shoot presence = species with aerial parts inside). Using Generalized Additive Models, we tested for scale dependence of z-values by evaluating if the z-values differ with gran size and tested for differences between the sampling approaches. The response shapes of z-values to grain were classified by fitting Generalized Linear Models with logit link to each series. We tested whether the grain size where the maximum z-value occurred is driven by taxonomic group, biogeographic or ecological variables. Results: For rooted presence, we found a strong monotonous increase of z-values with grain sizes for all grain sizes below 1 m². For shoot presence, the scale dependence was much weaker, with hump-shaped curves prevailing. Among the environmental variables studied, latitude, vegetation type, naturalness and land use had strong effects, with z-values of secondary peaking at smaller grain sizes. Conclusions: The overall weak scale dependence of z-values underlines that the power function generally is appropriate to describe SARs within the studied grain sizes in continuous open vegetation, if recorded with the shoot presence method. When clear peaks of z-values occur, this can be seen as an expression of granularity of species composition, partly driven by abiotic environment.

Biodiversity and Conservation

The drivers of plant richness at fine spatial scales in steppe ecosystems are still not sufficien... more The drivers of plant richness at fine spatial scales in steppe ecosystems are still not sufficiently understood. Our main research questions were: (i) How rich in plant species are the natural steppes of Southern Siberia compared to natural and semi-natural grasslands in other regions of the Palaearctic? (ii) What are the main environmental drivers of the diversity patterns in these steppes? (iii) What are the diversity–environment relationships and do they vary between spatial scales and among different taxonomic groups?

Journal of Biogeography

Aim: Species–area relationships (SARs) are fundamental scaling laws in ecology al‐ though their s... more Aim: Species–area relationships (SARs) are fundamental scaling laws in ecology al‐ though their shape is still disputed. At larger areas, power laws best represent SARs. Yet, it remains unclear whether SARs follow other shapes at finer spatial grains in continuous vegetation. We asked which function describes SARs best at small grains and explored how sampling methodology or the environment influence SAR shape. Location: Palaearctic grasslands and other non‐forested habitats.
Taxa: Vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens.
Methods: We used the GrassPlot database, containing standardized vegetation‐plot data from vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens spanning a wide range of grass‐ land types throughout the Palaearctic and including 2,057 nested‐plot series with at least seven grain sizes ranging from 1 cm2 to 1,024 m2. Using nonlinear regression, we assessed the appropriateness of different SAR functions (power, power quad‐ ratic, power breakpoint, logarithmic, Michaelis–Menten). Based on AICc, we tested whether the ranking of functions differed among taxonomic groups, methodological settings, biomes or vegetation types.
Results: The power function was the most suitable function across the studied taxo‐ nomic groups. The superiority of this function increased from lichens to bryophytes to vascular plants to all three taxonomic groups together. The sampling method was highly influential as rooted presence sampling decreased the performance of the power function. By contrast, biome and vegetation type had practically no influence on the superiority of the power law.
Main conclusions: We conclude that SARs of sessile organisms at smaller spatial grains are best approximated by a power function. This coincides with several other comprehensive studies of SARs at different grain sizes and for different taxa, thus supporting the general appropriateness of the power function for modelling species diversity over a wide range of grain sizes. The poor performance of the Michaelis– Menten function demonstrates that richness within plant communities generally does not approach any saturation, thus calling into question the concept of minimal area.

Journal of Vegetation Science

Aim: Ecoinformatics offer new opportunity to test islands as biogeographic and ecological models.... more Aim: Ecoinformatics offer new opportunity to test islands as biogeographic and ecological models. In this paper we predicted three hypotheses: (1) plot-based data issuing from vegetation surveys can be used to predict Island Species-Area Relationships (ISARs) or island similarity; (2) the habitat area is an independent predictor of species richness patterns within island; (3) species richness and composition are more dependent on habitat type than island identity in land-bridge islands. Area: Tuscan Archipelago, Italy. Methods: We assembled a database of all the vegetation plots available for the archipelago. For the first hypothesis we calculated ISARs, using Arrhenius model, and Beta Diversity, using Jaccard dissimilarity, on both published floras and cumulative plot data. For the second hypothesis, we modelled Habitat Species-Area Relationships (HSARs), using Arrhenius model. For the third hypothesis, we used additive partitioning of species richness, NMDS and PERMANOVA. Results: Island Species-Area Relationships based on plot data mirrored those on published floras, but absolute values of c and z parameters were different. Beta diversity based on plot data resembled those of published floras, but was higher. Species richness was significantly related to the habitat area. The total species richness of the archipelago was linked to large scale drivers, such as island identity, while plot species composition was driven by both habitat type and island identity. Conclusions: Data assembled issuing from vegetation surveys are useful to describe biogeographic patterns. Species richness in the archipelago is driven by spatial factors such as the amount of habitats and the differences among islands, while the species composition of local assemblages is largely driven by habitat filters rather than by island identity, as expected in land-bridge islands. K E Y W O R D S biogeographic patterns, islands, plot data, species-area relationships

Journal of Vegetation Science, 2023

Question: Cushion-forming vascular plants are adapted to alpine environments and act as ecosystem... more Question: Cushion-forming vascular plants are adapted to alpine environments and act as ecosystem engineers by moderating microclimate and creating a fertility is- land under their canopy. Most of the available studies on cushion ecology have been devoted to plant facilitation, but none used a holistic approach that considers the response of co-existing plant species with other key ecosystem players. Here, we quantified the biogenic effect and facilitation capacity of Astragalus siculus, a spiny nitrogen-fixing cushion plant, and test the hypothesis that the facilitation effect would increase with elevation as stress gradient.
Location: Mount Etna, the highest active volcano in the Mediterranean Basin. Methods: We combined chemical characterization of the soil with a description of the soil microbiota by high-throughput sequencing of bacterial and eukaryotic rRNA gene markers carried out at three elevations, that is 1650, 1900 and 2210 m a.s.l. In addition, we analysed the microclimate outside and inside the Astragalus canopy to assess the linkages between above- and below-ground ecosystem compartments and quantified the occurrence of co-existing vascular plants.
Results: Astragalus cushions have strong biogenic effects on above- and below-ground conditions by dramatically increasing soil organic carbon and total nitrogen stocks at 1900 and 2210 m elevation. Moreover, a buffering of soil temperature and moisture regimes was recorded, with lower temperatures in summer but higher in winter inside the cushions. Cushions harbour a specific bacterial and fungal microbiota compared to external bare soil. Stem density and cushion height increase significantly with alti- tude, as does the nurse effect of the cushion on the growth and survival of co-existing vascular plants.
Conclusions: As a result of cushion biogenic environmental changes, the effect of Astragalus on some of the co-existing species shifted from negative or null at 1650 m to facilitative along the elevation gradient. Furthermore, our data show a relationship between Astragalus morphological traits and soil biogenic changes related to soil chemistry and microbiota that affect plant interaction and coexistence.

Ecology and Evolution, 2022

Extremely narrow endemic plant species (ENEs) are generally connected with microrefugia character... more Extremely narrow endemic plant species (ENEs) are generally connected with microrefugia characterized by particular environmental conditions. In-depth knowledge of the ecological requirements of ENEs is fundamental to plan appropriate conservation measures. Using cross-cutting technology, this paper gives a multifaceted approach to collect on-site data on the ecology of ENEs, defines the protocols for a correct sampling design and describes the type of equipment, the time and expenditure needed. Our sampling approach is based on two orthogonal transects, long enough to extrapolate the whole ecological gradient across the area of occupancy of the target species. Microclimatic data are recorded all along the transects through iButton technology, plus a weather station installed at the intersection of the transects. Microtopographic data are recorded with high-resolution digital elevation model and sub-metric GPS. Edaphic data are recorded along the transects through standard soil analyses and on-site evaluation of the seasonal decomposition rate of organic matter. Additionally, vegetation sampling in 4 m2 plots and on-site germination tests allow to collect data on auto- and synecological factors that regulate the life cycle of the target species. Our approach has proved to be cost-effective and efficient in terms of time spent in the field against the data collected. The most demanding activities were the establishment of the transects and the vegetation sampling. The time spent downloading microclimatic data and testing seed germination was relatively short. Our sampling design allows: (i) to catch as much micro-topographic variability as pos- sible, both within and out of the tolerance range of the target species, (ii) to minimize the risk of recording identical micro-topographic conditions compared with a random sampling scheme, and (iii) to ensure quick and relatively easy retrieval of the plots and the equipment both on a multi-seasonal and multi-annual basis.

Global Ecology and Conservation, 2022

Ptilostemon greuteri is one of the most endangered and poorly studied woody vascular plant specie... more Ptilostemon greuteri is one of the most endangered and poorly studied woody vascular plant species of the Mediterranean Basin, endemic to Sicily (Italy). Several peculiar traits confer to P. greuteri a character of uniqueness and an enigmatic attractiveness. In fact, at first glimpse the largest in- dividuals of this species remind the most remarkable and peculiar cases of herbaceous genera (e. g., Echium, Senecio) turned woody on insular or insular-like mountain ecosystems. Following the discovery of a second population of this rare species, a project aiming at the study and conser- vation of P. greuteri was set up. We present here updated information on the distribution, con- servation status, biology and ecological requirements of this species. Field surveys supported by drone imagery were carried out to estimate the current range of the two populations. The data obtained allowed to refine the conservation status assessment of the species and to update the distribution pattern of P. greuteri by means of detailed digital maps of each population. Ongoing field investigations currently provide valuable information about the ecological requirements of the species and point out the impact of wildfires on population size and structure. Our research has also highlighted several knowledge gaps that need to be filled to apply more effective con- servation measures. Preliminary results suggest that local topographic and mesoclimatic factors (air humidity and shade) are key variables explaining the persistency and survival of P. greuteri in the area.

Ecological Processes, 2020

Cytisus aeolicus is a narrow endemic species restricted to the Aeolian archipelago (SE Tyrrhenian... more Cytisus aeolicus is a narrow endemic species restricted to the Aeolian archipelago (SE Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy) and it is one of the most evolutionarily isolated plants in the Mediterranean flora. Historical and literature data suggest that both metapopulations and isolated individuals of C. aeolicus are gradually shrinking. Field investigations and drone images demonstrate that the C. aeolicus metapopulation from Stromboli experienced a strikingly fast increase during the last decades. As of 2019, more than 7000 ± 3000 mature individuals occur on Stromboli, i.e. 14 to 20 times more than those counted during the last census, 25 years ago. The diachronic analysis of aerial photos concerning last 80 years and the analysis of the growth rings of some selected plants pointed out that the surface occupied, the demographic structure and the distribution pattern of the subpopulations of Stromboli has been highly fluctuating during last decades. Moreover, data issuing from field observations in permanent plots placed in a transect between two isolated mature individuals showed that, under natural conditions, the germination rate of the seedlings of C. aeolicus can be very high and their establishment rate may exceed 40%. By contrast, seedlings mortality is subject to strong annual fluctuations. Additionally, the pollen morphology of the Strombolian metapopulation of this rare and isolated species is studied here for the first time. Contrary to what is stated in recent literature, the C. aeolicus metapopulation from Stromboli is healthy and very dynamic, albeit frequently damaged by the volcanic activity. Regular and repeated field surveys carried out during 3 years (2017-2019) allowed improving our knowledge on the life cycle of C. aeolicus and a new extinction risk assessment of the species, according to IUCN criteria, is presented.

Vegetation Classification and Survey, 2023

Aims: To develop a consistent ecological indicator value system for Europe for five of the main p... more Aims: To develop a consistent ecological indicator value system for Europe for five of the main plant niche dimensions: soil moisture (M), soil nitrogen (N), soil reaction (R), light (L) and temperature (T). Study area: Europe (and closely ad- jacent regions). Methods: We identified 31 indicator value systems for vascular plants in Europe that contained assess- ments on at least one of the five aforementioned niche dimensions. We rescaled the indicator values of each dimension to a continuous scale, in which 0 represents the minimum and 10 the maximum value present in Europe. Taxon names were harmonised to the Euro+Med Plantbase. For each of the five dimensions, we calculated European values for niche position and niche width by combining the values from the individual EIV systems. Using T values as an example, we externally validated our European indicator values against the median of bioclimatic conditions for global occurrence data of the taxa. Results: In total, we derived European indicator values of niche position and niche width for 14,835 taxa (14,714 for M, 13,748 for N, 14,254 for R, 14,054 for L, 14,496 for T). Relating the obtained values for temperature niche position to the bioclimatic data of species yielded a higher correlation than any of the original EIV systems (r = 0.859). The database: The newly developed Ecological Indicator Values for Europe (EIVE) 1.0, together with all source systems, is available in a flexible, harmonised open access database. Conclusions: EIVE is the most comprehensive ecological indicator value system for European vascular plants to date. The uniform interval scales for niche position and niche width provide new possibilities for ecological and macroecological analyses of vegetation patterns. The devel- oped workflow and documentation will facilitate the future release of updated and expanded versions of EIVE, which may for example include the addition of further taxonomic groups, additional niche dimensions, external validation or regionalisation.

Vegetation Classification and Survey, 2023

Aims: To develop a consistent ecological indicator value system for Europe for five of the main p... more Aims: To develop a consistent ecological indicator value system for Europe for five of the main plant niche dimensions: soil moisture (M), soil nitrogen (N), soil reaction (R), light (L) and temperature (T). Study area: Europe (and closely ad- jacent regions).
Methods: We identified 31 indicator value systems for vascular plants in Europe that contained assess- ments on at least one of the five aforementioned niche dimensions. We rescaled the indicator values of each dimension to a continuous scale, in which 0 represents the minimum and 10 the maximum value present in Europe. Taxon names were harmonised to the Euro+Med Plantbase. For each of the five dimensions, we calculated European values for niche position and niche width by combining the values from the individual EIV systems. Using T values as an example, we externally validated our European indicator values against the median of bioclimatic conditions for global occurrence data of the taxa.
Results: In total, we derived European indicator values of niche position and niche width for 14,835 taxa (14,714 for M, 13,748 for N, 14,254 for R, 14,054 for L, 14,496 for T). Relating the obtained values for temperature niche position to the bioclimatic data of species yielded a higher correlation than any of the original EIV systems (r = 0.859).
The database: The newly developed Ecological Indicator Values for Europe (EIVE) 1.0, together with all source systems, is available in a flexible, harmonised open access database.
Conclusions: EIVE is the most comprehensive ecological indicator value system for European vascular plants to date. The uniform interval scales for niche position and niche width provide new possibilities for ecological and macroecological analyses of vegetation patterns. The devel- oped workflow and documentation will facilitate the future release of updated and expanded versions of EIVE, which may for example include the addition of further taxonomic groups, additional niche dimensions, external validation or regionalisation.

Journal of Vegetation Science, 2023

Aims: Ellenberg-type indicator values are expert-based rankings of plant species ac- cording to t... more Aims: Ellenberg-type indicator values are expert-based rankings of plant species ac- cording to their ecological optima on main environmental gradients. Here we extend the indicator-value system proposed by Heinz Ellenberg and co-authors for Central Europe by incorporating other systems of Ellenberg-type indicator values (i.e., those using scales compatible with Ellenberg values) developed for other European regions. Our aim is to create a harmonized data set of Ellenberg-type indicator values applica- ble at the European scale.
Methods: We collected European data sets of indicator values for vascular plants and selected 13 data sets that used the nine-, ten- or twelve-degree scales defined by Ellenberg for light, temperature, moisture, reaction, nutrients and salinity. We com- pared these values with the original Ellenberg values and used those that showed consistent trends in regression slope and coefficient of determination. We calculated the average value for each combination of species and indicator values from these data sets. Based on species’ co-occurrences in European vegetation plots, we also calculated new values for species that were not assigned an indicator value.
Results: We provide a new data set of Ellenberg-type indicator values for 8908 European vascular plant species (8168 for light, 7400 for temperature, 8030 for moisture, 7282 for reaction, 7193 for nutrients, and 7507 for salinity), of which 398 species have been newly assigned to at least one indicator value.
Conclusions: The newly introduced indicator values are compatible with the original Ellenberg values. They can be used for large-scale studies of the European flora and vegetation or for gap-filling in regional data sets. The European indicator values and the original and taxonomically harmonized regional data sets of Ellenberg-type indi- cator values are available in the Supporting Information and the Zenodo repository.

This study aims to test the extrapolation effects of species distribution models (SDM) using thre... more This study aims to test the extrapolation effects of species distribution models (SDM) using three groups of predictor variables: climate, relief and geology (bedrock type). We highlight potential ecological differences for selected taxa, regarding both generalists and specialists in terms of edaphic conditions. We used distributional data of 12 woody species shared by two large Mediterranean islands (Crete and Sicily) to calibrate Maxent models of their potential distribution. We trained models with data from Crete and extrapolated to Sicily and vice versa. We tested ten proxies for the three variable groups and compared AUC values as a measure of model performance. Extrapolation of SDMs worked fairly well across species and islands for those models including climatic and relief data, while those including geological information performed worse for the tested species. Edaphic generalists performed less well compared to edaphic specialists. The latter performed best with climate data included in models and more poorly with only geological data. This may be due to differences in bedrock type affinities of species between the two islands.

Studies to date about plants alien to Italy have had limited focus on the ecology of this compone... more Studies to date about plants alien to Italy have had limited focus on the ecology of this component of the flora. Ellenberg's indicator values are a useful tool to delineate the relationship between plants and environment, recognizing for each species a functional role as biological indicator; these values have been proposed for estimating the influence of the main environmental factors in determining flora and vegetation changes on a specific surface area. This contribution includes a list of 1206 taxa of plants naturalized in at least one administrative region or casual in at least three regions of Italy. In addition, some methodological considerations on the attribution and use of Ellenberg's indicator values and a comparison with the average indices for the native Italian flora are reported.

The consistency and reliability of Ellenberg’s indicator values (Eiv) as ecological descriptors o... more The consistency and reliability of Ellenberg’s indicator values (Eiv) as ecological descriptors of the Mediterranean evergreen vegetation ascribed to the phy- tosociological class Quercetea ilicis have been checked on a set of 859 phytosociological releve ́s 9 699 species. Diagnostic species were identified through a Twinspan analysis and their Eiv analyzed and related to the following independent variables: (1) annual mean temperatures, (2) annual rainfall. The results provided interesting insights to disentangle the current syntaxonomical framework at the alliance level demonstrating the usefulness of ecological indicator values to test the efficiency and predictivity of the phytosociological classification.

“Fingerprints” of Climate Change, 2001

The influence of slope gradient and exposure, of altitude and of distance from the sea on the win... more The influence of slope gradient and exposure, of altitude and of distance from the sea on the winter and summer stresses sustained by the Mediterranean vegetation have been parametrized. An example of vegetation changes driven by the variation of any of such environmental factors is reported, and a mathematical formula is proposed to determine a monthly value to add to or subtract from the drought stress and cold stress values, estimated by the Mitrakos' index, in order to better approximate reality. Values obtained in such way can be used in synecology and phytosociology to express in a synthetic-correlative way the ecological valence of plant communities with respect to the main physiognomical features of their growing sites.

Plants, 2023

Based on fieldwork and herbaria surveys, new data concerning the presence of 32 native and alien ... more Based on fieldwork and herbaria surveys, new data concerning the presence of 32 native and alien vascular species for Sicily (Italy) are provided. Among the native species, the occurrence of the following taxa is reported for the first time or confirmed after many decades of non-observation: Aira multiculmis, Arum maculatum, Carex flacca subsp. flacca, Mentha longifolia, Oxyba- sis chenopodioides, Najas minor and Xiphion junceum. Furthermore, we document the presence of three native species (Cornus mas, Juncus foliosus and Limonium avei) that, despite being repeatedly observed in Sicily and reported in the literature, are inexplicably omitted by the most recent authoritative checklists regarding the flora of Italy. Finally, fifteen alien species new to Sicily (including one new to Europe, i.e., Pyrus betulifolia) are reported and seven poorly documented allochthonous taxa are confirmed for the island, and for two of them, a status change is proposed. These new or confirmed records allow us to better define the European and national distribution of the targeted taxa and offer new insights on the native and alien flora of Sicily.

Mediterranean Botany, 2024

Alternanthera maritima was found in the southeastern part of Sicily, marking a new floristic reco... more Alternanthera maritima was found in the southeastern part of Sicily, marking a new floristic record for both Italy and Europe. This paper provides an analysis of the morphological characteristics observed in the collected specimens and explores the ecological features of the community where they were found. Also, we discuss the taxonomic criticality of the genus and assess the risk that the new finding may become invasive.

Naturalista Siciliano, 2018

In February 2018 a copious population of Cotula australis Hook f. (Asteraceae, Anthemideae) was f... more In February 2018 a copious population of Cotula australis Hook f. (Asteraceae, Anthemideae) was found on the cobblestones of the Acropolis of Lipari Island (Aeolian Archipelago, NE Sicily). This population represents the first record in southern Italy and is located at a distance of about 470 km as the crow flies from the nearest neighbour. From the phytosociological point of view, C. australis dominates a therophytic subnitrophilous dwarf vegetation of trampled sites which can be ascribed to the cosmopolitan class Polygono-Poetea annuae Rivas-Mart. 1975. This plant community is proposed as a new association, Galio muralis-Cotuletum australis, which can be considered a Mediterranean vicariant of the Polycarpo tetraphylli-Cotuletum australis Wildpret, Perez de Paz, Del Arco & Garcia Gallo 1988, recorded from the Canary Islands and Portugal. Some hypotheses on the origin of the Aeolian population in the frame of a documented very fast recent propagation world- wide are discussed.

Phytotaxa, 2021

A note about some taxa in Anthyllis and Trifolium (Fabaceae) described from Sicily is presented. ... more A note about some taxa in Anthyllis and Trifolium (Fabaceae) described from Sicily is presented. Concerning Trifolium, we provide the lectotypification of the name T. pratense var. semipurpureum (≡ T. pratense subsp. semipurpureum), using a specimen preserved at PAL (Todaro's collection). Concerning the Lojacono-Pojero's name Vulneraria heterophylla var. parvula, it is lectotypified by a specimen at G. A neotype at NAP is proposed for the Gussone's name Vulneraria heterophylla var. albiflora. As this latter name is applied to a taxon accepted here at specific rank, a new combination is validated. On the contrary, A. heterophylla var. parvula is considered as a new heterotypic synonym of Anthyllis vulneraria var. rubriflora. Finally, this latter is typified by a specimen deposited at TO.

The chemical profile of the essential oils in ten populations of the genus Helichrysum mill. (Ast... more The chemical profile of the essential oils in ten populations of the genus Helichrysum mill. (Asteraceae), collected in the loci classici of the nomenclatural types of the taxa endemic to Sicily, were analyzed. Our results confirm that the analysis of secondary metabolites can be used to fingerprint wild populations of Helichrysum, the chemical profiles being coherent with the systematic arrangement of the investigated populations in three main clusters, referring to the aggregates of H. stoechas, H. rupestre, and H. italicum, all belonging to the section Stoechadina. The correct nomenclatural designation of the investigated populations is discussed and the following two new combinations are proposed: Helichrysum preslianum subsp. compactum (Guss.) maggio, bruno, guarino, senatore & ilardi and Helichrysum panormitanum subsp. latifolium maggio, bruno, guarino, senatore & ilardi

As part of the ongoing researches on Asteraceae for the new edition of the Italian Flora, a revis... more As part of the ongoing researches on Asteraceae for the new edition of the Italian Flora, a revision of Helichrysum panor-mitanum s.l. is presented here. On the basis of previously published morphological and chemical data, as well as our morphological and chorological observations, we hereby propose to recognize six subspecies under H. panormitanum: subsp. panormitanum, subsp. stramineum, subsp. brulloi subsp. nov., subsp. messeriae, subsp. latifolium, and subsp. melitense comb. nov. All these taxa are endemic to Sicily and Egadi Islands (Italy), except H. panormitanum subsp. melitense which is endemic to Gozo island (Maltese archipelago). A diagnostic key for the six accepted subspecies is provided.

Discovery of a second locality for the narrow endemic Anthemis ismelia (Asteraceae) in NW Sicily ... more Discovery of a second locality for the narrow endemic Anthemis ismelia (Asteraceae) in NW Sicily Abstract Cusimano, D., Guarino, R. & Ilardi, V.: Discovery of a second locality for the narrow endemic Anthemis ismelia (Asteraceae) in NW Sicily. — Fl. Medit. A new population of Anthemis ismelia (Asteraceae) has been discovered on Mt Pecoraro (Cinisi, NW Sicily), a limestone headland at about 14 km from Mt Gallo (Palermo), the locus classicus et unicus of this species described in 1884. Taxonomic framework, distribution update, habitat characterisation, ecology and phytosociological framework are provided, as well as meta-population numerical estimates and risk status assessment.

The coastal and hilly sectors in the province of Messina Province and the Aeolian Archipelago hav... more The coastal and hilly sectors in the province of Messina Province and the Aeolian Archipelago have been explored, in order to obtain up-to-date information on the distribution of the populations of Chamaerops humilis in NE Sicily and on their site conditions. In addition to the field surveys, any local toponym possibly related to the Sicilian vernacular names of the dwarf palm was checked and verified throughout the investigated area. The total absence of the species along the coasts of Nebrodi Massif is confirmed. Of the 9 extant populations, 4 are located on Aeolian Islands, 2 along the Ionian coast and 3 along the Tyrrhenian coast of Peloritani Mountains: among them, the one of Capo Calavà represents a new record. The co-occurrence of centuries-long human disturbance and several forms of environmental stresses (e.g. prevalence of incoherent substrates) could be the reason for the relict connotation of most of the considered populations, which also are very discontinuous and consisting of small patches formed by a few individuals, in simplified and species-poor assemblages, mostly found on sea-facing rocky cliffs. On the other hand, the recent spread of Chamaerops humilis in Lipari could be related to the abandonment agricultural practices. Finally, the naturalisation cases recorded in Milazzo, Tindari, Panarea, Scaletta Zanclea and Taormina, where the dwarf palm escaped from public and private gardens, point out the urgent need of regulating its introduction, in order to avoid the genetic pollution of the autochthonous populations.

The results of the excursion of the “Gruppo di Floristica” of the Italian Botanical Society held ... more The results of the excursion of the “Gruppo di Floristica” of the Italian Botanical Society held in the Sicani Mountains (CW-Sicily) on May 3-6, 2012, are here presented. During the research a total of 532 taxa was recorded. Three of them, the native Rosa squarrosa and the alien Phyllostachys aurea and Vitis ×koberi are new to Sicily, and 14 are new to the Sicani Mts. On the other side, we confirm the exclusion of Erica manipuliflora from the flora of the region.

Sulla base di ricerche bibliografiche, d'erbario e di campagna, viene presentata una rassegna del... more Sulla base di ricerche bibliografiche, d'erbario e di campagna, viene presentata una rassegna delle specie di querce caducifoglie presenti in Sicilia. Per ciascuna di esse viene fornita una descrizione morfologica corredata da disegni e completata da osservazioni corologiche ed ecologiche. Viene infine evidenziato come la variabilità fenotipica esistente in Sicilia nell'ambito delle specie appartenenti al ciclo di Q. humilis, anche considerando l'area tirrenica meridionale come possibile centro di speciazione del gruppo, deve necessariamente essere posta in relazione col disboscamento, che ha favorito il rimescolamento genetico tra le popolazioni. Il presente studio ha portato al riconoscimento di 9 specie ben distinte in base a caratteristiche morfologiche, ecologiche e fenologiche. Si tratta di: Q. cerris, specie ben conosciuta, in Sicilia ampiamente diffusa nella parte nord-orientale dell'isola; Q. gussonei, endemismo strettamente affine alla specie precedente e presente nella fascia submontana della Sicilia settentrionale, ove si localizza su substrati silicei; Q. fontanesii, probabilmente un ibrido stabilizzato tra Q. gussonei e Q. suber, distribuito nell'area pertinente alla prima delle due specie parentali; Q. petraea, in Sicilia rappresentata esclusivamente dalla nuova ssp. austrotyrrhenica, raro endemismo siculo-calabro localizzato in avvallamenti freschi e nebbiosi all'interno della fascia interessata dalle faggete; Q. congesta, Q. virgiliana, Q. dalechampii, Q. amplifolia, e Q. leptobalanos, tutte appartenenti al gruppo di Q. humilis. In particolare: Q. congesta è una specie acidofila ed orofila endemica della Sicilia, Calabria e Sardegna, caratterizzata soprattutto dall'avere una corteccia con scaglie piccole e regolari, un asse fruttifero estremamente raccorciato recante numerosi frutti aventi una piccola cupida ciaziforme coprente non oltre ¼ della ghianda e recante piccole squame finemente embriciate; Q. virgiliana è diffusa soprattutto nella fascia basale e submontana, presenta una corteccia abbastanza simile alla precedente ed ha come caratteri differenziali più rilevanti ghiande molto grosse, ricoperte fino ad ½ da una cupula emisferico-doliforme a bordo molto irregolare e con scaglie uniformemente sericee; Q. dalechampii è una specie orofila caratterizzata da una corteccia con costolature molto spesse e prominenti, ghiande ricoperte fino a ⅔ da una cupula emisferico-ogivale con bordo regolare e lunghe scaglie sericee alla base, carenate e scure all'apice; Q. amplifolia è la più termofila delle querce caducifoglie siciliane e presenta una corteccia simile a quella della specie precedente, ma le grosse ghiande ricoperte fino ad ¼ da una cupula ciazio-doliforme con scaglie gibbose, subglabre o sparsamente pelose rendono inconfondibile questa specie; Q. leptobalanos è un endemismo localizzato in alcune stazioni montane della Sicilia nord-occidentale, dove si rinviene su suoli silicei incoerenti ed è caratterizzata principalmente da una corteccia grigiastra con scaglie piccole e regolari e dalla produzione di un gran numero di piccoli frutti recati da assi generalmente allungati. Infine è da sottolineare che Q. siculo, segnalata per la Sicilia da varî autori, deve essere considerata specie dubbia, in quanto descritta su un campione raccolto da una pianta coltivata nell'Orto Botanico di Palermo e probabilmente identificabile con Q. canariensis; mentre Q. minaae è probabilmente una forma ibrida di incerto valore tassonomico. Diverse altre specie, anche se riportate per la flora sicula, sono in realtà da escludere in quanto menzionate in seguito ad errata identificazione dei campioni; questo è il caso di Q. crenata, Q. humilis, Q. robur, Q. frainetto, Q. brachyphylla. On the basis of literature, herbarium and field investigations, a survey of deciduous oaks occurring in Sicily is presented. A morphological description with drawings and some chorological and ecological observations is reported for each species. It is emphasized that the phenotypical variability observed within the Q. humilis group in Sicily, even if the S. Thyrrhenian area is considered as probable center of speciation for the group, related to deforestation, which had previously favoured the genetic mixing among the population. This study shows there are 9 species in Sicily, all well distinguished by morphological, ecological and phenological features. They are: Q. cerris, a well-known species, widespread in Sicily, in mountain sites of the north-eastern part of the island; Q. gussonei, an endemic closely related to the previous species, occurring in the sub-mountain belt of N-Sicily, where it is localized on siliceous substrata; Q. fontanesii, probably a hybrid between Q. gussonei and Q. suber and distributed within the area pertaining to the former parent; Q. petraea, in Sicily represented exclusively by the new subsp. austrotyrrhenica, very rare Sicilian-Ca- labrian endemic localized in fresh and foggy valleys within the beech belt; Q. congesta, Q. virgiliana, Q. dalechampii, Q. amplifolia and Q. leptobalanos, all belonging to the Q. humilis group. Q. congesta is an acidophilous and orophilous species endemic to Sicily, Calabria and Sardinia, mainly characterized by having small and regular ribs on the bark, an extremely short fruiting axis bearing several fruits, a small cyathiform cup covering not more than ¼ of the acorn, and very small and finely imbricate scales; Q. virgiliana is mainly distributed in the basal and submountain belt, and has a bark quite similar to the previous species, but with very big acorns covered up to ½ by an hemispheric-barrel-shaped cup with a very irregular border and uniformely silky scales. Q. dalechampii is an orophilous species characterized by very prominent thick ribs on the bark, acorns covered up to ⅔ by an hemispheric-ogival-cup with a regular border and long scales silky at the base, carinate and dark at the tip. Q. amplifolia is the most thermophilous among the Sicilian deciduous oaks and has a bark very similar to the previous species but very big acorns covered up to ¼ by a cyathio-barrel-shaped cup with humped subglabrous or sparsely hairy scales, make this species unmistakable. Q. leptobalanos is a very localized Sicilian endemic growing exclusively on siliceous soils in the mountain-belt of NW-Sicily; it is mainly characterized by a greysh bark with small and regular ribs and by the production of a great number of small fruits generally borne on long axes. Finally, it must be stressed that Q. sicula, quoted from Sicily by several authors, must be considered a phantom species, since it is described from a specimen taken from a plant cultivated in the Botanical Garden of Palermo, probably to be ascribed to Q. canariensis, while Q. minaae is likely to be an hybrid of uncertain taxonomical value. Some other species, even if previously reported for the Sicilian flora, must now be excluded from it, since their mention is mosdy due to mistakes in specimen identification, as in the case of Q. crenata, Q. humilis, Q. robur, Q. frai- netto and Q. brachypbylla.

A study on the vascular flora of the Gennargentu Massif (Central-Eastern Sardinia) is presented. ... more A study on the vascular flora of the Gennargentu Massif (Central-Eastern Sardinia) is presented. According to our results, the flora consists of 948 taxa: 686 species, 249 sub- species, 10 varieties and 3 hybrids, belonging to 97 families and 427 genera. Three taxa are new findings for the flora of Italy and eight for that of Sardinia. Life form analysis revealed, in particular, dominance of 35.65 % hemicryptophytes, 34.6 % therophytes, 12.13 % geophytes and 11.6 % (nano)-phanero- phytes. As concerns chorology, the Mediterranean element is largely prevailing (68.14%), mainly represented by circum- Medit. (29.1 %) and Euro-Medit. (23.07 %). Endemics are 14.87% of the whole flora (141 taxa), with a large prevalence of Sardo-Corsican (39.01 %) and Sardinian taxa (35.46 %), i.e. 74.47% of the total. Due to the high number of taxa (9) of Gennargentu exclusive endemics and the geologic and geo- morphologic peculiarities, it is here proposed a biogeographic classification for these territories serving to the identification of an autonomous sector.

Festuca humifusa, a new species from Cape Tyndaris (NE-Sicily) is described and illustrated. Its ... more Festuca humifusa, a new species from Cape Tyndaris (NE-Sicily) is described and illustrated. Its ecology, distribution and relationships with the allied species are discussed.

Current scientific research points out the low number of papers focused on the environmental patt... more Current scientific research points out the low number of papers focused on the environmental patterns in Mediterranean urban areas, where green infrastructure is still strongly underrated by scientists as well as by politicians, planners and decision-makers. In this paper, the results of a simple meta-analysis on the topics treated in scientific literature about the Mediterranean green roofs (MGRs) are presented. Our review pointed out the strikingly higher attention paid to building materials, energy efficiency and hydraulics with respect to life sciences (including basic ecology, horticulture, soil, plant and animal sciences) in the target paper selection. In fact, despite the availability of plentiful information about the Mediterranean vascular flora and vegetation, this is not so informing the selection of plants for roof greening purposes. The role of soil-based substrates in local bio-geochemical cycles, plant and animal communities and their dynamics have also been poorly studied so far. Social and perceptive aspects are completely underrated too, whilst the management strategies and the dominant economic approach are informed more by energy-saving than by the finding innovative and sustainable materials and techniques. More investments are needed to: 1) diversify the techniques and materials for roof construction, respecting local ecoregional features and circular economy; 2) sustain the use of native plants, well adapted to stand environmental stress and anthropogenic disturbance; 3) avoid potentially invasive alien plants; 4) implement the cost-benefit effectiveness of MGRs in the medium- and long-term.

Future City, 2021

Green infrastructure is a structural system of naturally developed human societies, capable of pr... more Green infrastructure is a structural system of naturally developed human societies, capable of preserving and ensuring as much space as possible to the local biodiversity. For this reason, green infrastructure shall be planned and designed so that the urban built environment is in harmony with the surrounding biotic communities. The challenge is to sustain nature-based solutions in order to improve citizens’ awareness towards natural and semi-natural ecosystems while providing our society with a more liveable, healthier, safer and fairer environment. This book puts an emphasis on the services the city can offer to nature, thanks to a multidisciplinary approach involving scientists and practitioners from different backgrounds: vegetation ecologists, architects, landscape architects, engineers and agronomists. The 26 contributions following this first chapter are organised in alphabetical order around three thematic pillars: (a) green infrastructure, urban ecology and vegetation science; (b) planning and implementation of green infrastructure; (c) nature-based solutions and innovative design approaches. The green infrastructure as we intend in this book includes urban and peri-urban spaces seen as semi-natural ecosystems, designed to establish mutually beneficial interactions and synergies with the surrounding natural ecosystems.

Future City, 2021

Urban green infrastructure could represent an important mean for environmental mitigation, if des... more Urban green infrastructure could represent an important mean for environmental mitigation, if designed according to the principles of restoration ecology. Moreover, if suitably executed, managed and sized, they may be assimilated to meta-populations of natural habitats, deserving to be included in the biodiversity monitoring networks. In this chapter, we combined automatised and expert opinion-based procedures in order to select the vascular plant assemblages to populate different microhabitats (differing in terms of light and moisture) co-occurring on an existing green roof in Zurich (Switzerland). Our results lead to identify three main plant species groups, which prove to be the most suitable for the target roof. These guilds belong to mesoxeric perennial grasslands (Festuco-Brometea), nitrophilous ephemeral communities (Stellarietea mediae) and drought-tolerant pioneer species linked to nutrient-poor soils (Koelerio-Corynephoretea). Some ruderal and stress-tolerant species refer...

Circular Economy and Sustainability, 2021

Urban environments consist of a mosaic of natural fragments, planned and unintentional habitats h... more Urban environments consist of a mosaic of natural fragments, planned and unintentional habitats hosting both introduced and spontaneous species. The latter group exploits abandoned and degraded urban niches which, in the case of plants, form what is called the third landscape. In the Anthropocene, cities, open spaces and buildings must be planned and designed considering not only human needs but also those of other living organisms. The scientific approach of habitat sharing is defined as reconciliation ecology, whilst the action of implementing the ecosystem services and functioning of such anthropogenic habitats is called Urban Rehabilitation. However, urban development still represents the main cause of biodiversity loss worldwide. Yet, the approach of planners and landscape architects highly diverges from that of ecologists and scientists on how to perceive, define and design urban green and blue infrastructure. For instance, designers focus on the positive impact that nature (generally associated with indoor and outdoor greeneries) has on human well-being, often neglecting ecosystems' health. Instead, considering the negative impact of any form of development and to achieve the no net loss Aichi's objectives, conservationists apply mitigation hierarchy policies to avoid or reduce the impact and to offset biodiversity. The rationale of this review paper is to set the fundamentals for a multidisciplinary design framework tackling the issue of biodiversity loss in the urban environment by design for nature. The method focuses on the building/ city/landscape scales and is enabled by emerging digital technologies, i.e., geographic information systems, building information modelling, ecological simulation and computational design.

Plant Biosystems, 2020

According to projects and practices that the Italian botanists and ecologists are carrying out fo... more According to projects and practices that the Italian botanists and ecologists are carrying out for bring- ing “more nature in the city”, new insights for a factual integration between ecological perspectives and more consolidated aesthetic and agronomic approaches to the sustainable planning and manage- ment of urban green areas are provided.

A B S T R A C T Green infrastructure and in particular green roofs are crucial to meet the challe... more A B S T R A C T Green infrastructure and in particular green roofs are crucial to meet the challenge of sustainable urbanisation fostered by the current European Research and Innovation agenda. Several documents were issued in the last decades in Europe for regulating the design, construction and upkeep of roof greening. In particular, the actual German guidelines have been widely adopted as a reference basis for green roof design and regulation worldwide , because of its exhaustiveness and proven building-and landscaping tradition. With the aim to assess the effectiveness of green roof guidelines and norms in supporting plant and soil biodiversity in different ecoregions, and particularly of the Mediterranean one, the German guidelines, the Swiss and Italian norms are screened and discussed in this paper. The German guidelines were chosen for their traditional referential role, the Swiss norm for its peculiar biodiversity approach, the Italian one for its application on a territory with remarkably heterogeneous environmental conditions, stretching from Alpine to Mediterranean ecosystems. Even if the three documents at comparison addressed to some extent biodiversity-related matters, none of them deepened the relationship between plant species selection (local ecotypes), growing medium composition (materials, granular size and thickness) and system build-ups (multi-layers and/or single-layer systems). This is a crucial point for countries, like Italy, encompassing very different climatic conditions. It was concluded that at the current knowledge a guideline/norm taking into account the peculiarities of green roof design in the Mediterranean ecoregion has to be widely refined.

Cities are defined as heterotrophic systems (Odum, 1983) as they depend mainly on external resour... more Cities are defined as heterotrophic systems (Odum, 1983) as they depend mainly on external resources and cause habitat loss and fragmentation. Green roofs represents a fundamental means of ecological compensation within the built environment, i.e. in highly altered and disturbed places by humans. In particular, green roofs for biodiversity (or biodiversity green roofs), being characterised by different but contiguous microhabitat (habitat mosaics or patches), can host several species with different mor- phological and functional traits (Brenneisen, 2003). The method known as the habitat template consists of choosing suitable plant species for green roofs from among the one that live in nature under similar conditions e.g. shallow and nutrient poor substrate, drought resistant (Lundholm, 2006). The phytosociological approach applied to green roofs considers the habitat analogue not only as a species pool, but also as a model to group plants in specific associations.

The variations in species composition and assemblage of unmanaged simple-intensive green roofs in... more The variations in species composition and assemblage of unmanaged simple-intensive green roofs in Hannover, Germany, were investigated over a thirty year period, in order to assess the persistence of the initial seed mixture and to evaluate floristic changes. The roofs were greened in 1985 with soil-based turf rolls sown with a mixture of five grasses (Festuca rubra, Festuca ovina, Agrostis capillaris, Lolium perenne and Poa pratensis). Three sets of 120 phytosociological relevés, sampled in 1987, 1999 and 2014, have been compared to assess: (1) nestedness vs spatial turnover, (2) functional diversity and (3) the importance of vegetation dynamics on green roof performance and design. Results demonstrated that from 1987 to 1999 the species diversity increased and the species turnover prevailed over nestedness, due to the progressive niche occupation by new species. In contrast, from 1999 to 2014 species diversity remained steady, suggesting that nestedness prevailed over species turnover. The main driver of the observed functional changes was a shift towards relatively more thermoxeric conditions. In terms of plant life strategies, the competitive species sown on the roof gradually gave way to stress-tolerant and ruderal species, along with a progressive increase in species with shortdistance seed dispersal strategies. It is concluded that: (a) to create resilient green roofs, spontaneous colonisation should be accepted and considered as a design factor; and (b) regional plant communities could serve as a model for seed recruitment and installations.

Extensive Green roofs can be an important mean for environmental mitigation if designed according... more Extensive Green roofs can be an important mean for environmental mitigation if designed according to the principles of restoration ecology. Moreover, if optimally executed, properly managed and of sufficient extension, they could be assimilated to meta-populations of natural habitats, worth to be included in the biodiversity monitoring networks. The best example supporting this hypothesis is the Lake water plant Moos in Wollishofen (Zurich, Switzerland) where, on three 100 years old units of extensive green roofs, occur most of the typical flora of Mesobromion, including high density of some endangered orchid species. With this work, we propose a methodology approach for green roofs in Mediterranean areas, based on a practical plant sociology understanding of EU Directive 92/43: a recognition of Natura 2000 habitat that could be imitated on roofs in terms of characteristic species and substrates. Our results lead to three category groups: those linked to sandy substrates (psammophilous vegetation), to gravely-pebbly substrates (glareicolous vegetation) and to xeromorfic soils (garrigues and dry grasslands). According to the last theories and practical application for grasslands restoration, we suggest a method applied and studied in Switzerland for green roofs, based on diaspore hay transfer from a donor meadow, in order to obtain the highest plant species richness and diversity.

Green areas are open spaces holding an unexpected kind of local biodiversity within the city, lin... more Green areas are open spaces holding an unexpected kind of local biodiversity within the city, linked to species and habitats frequently found in human sett- lements. Green roofs can be an important means for environmental mitigation and, if designed according to the principles of restoration ecology, can improve the thermodynamic performance / hydraulic system and at the same time encou- raging the development of urban biodiversity. With this work, we propose a methodology approach for green roofs in Mediterranean areas, that integrate aesthetic values with the functional traits of native species, in order to make green roofs “local tanks of biodiversity”.

Biodiversity and Conservation, 2021

We asked what are the behavioural and logistic preferences of professional and amateur botanists ... more We asked what are the behavioural and logistic preferences of professional and amateur botanists when exploring flora in the field. We extracted temporal and spatial data on vascular plant species occurrences from three datasets of Sicilian flora: a subset of iNaturalist, a dataset collected by a Facebook group focused on the flora of Sicily and a subset of the professional database European Vegetation Archive. We used the time span of individual contributor's activity as a proxy of their commitment to collecting information about the flora of Sicily. Climate and landscape data were used to better characterize the spatial and temporal activity of data contributors. Finally, we assessed which habitat types were more frequently visited in each dataset. Our results suggest that amateur botanists can be divided into two categories, "experienced" and "occasional", playing different roles on digital platforms. While experienced amateur botanists are characterized by prolonged activity and many posts, occasional ones have short and erratic activity but collectively compile more data than the former category. The occasional botanists represent a new phenomenon in data collection, supported by the spread of digital platforms. While in the past, experienced botanists were primarily involved in biodiversity data collection, at present, they also play a fundamental role in validating the observations by occasional botanists and disseminating floristic knowledge to them. Our study points out that the interaction through social media can catalyze the establishment of participatory monitoring networks, promote conservation-oriented initiatives and influence policy-makers.

Journal od Applied Ecology

Social networks offer communication channels through which people share huge amounts of primary d... more Social networks offer communication channels through which people share huge amounts of primary data that can be used for scientific analyses, including biodiversity research.
To understand to what extent data extracted from social networks could complement data collected for scientific purposes, it is necessary to quantify the bias of such data.
We analysed which plant traits increased the probability of a wild-growing plant species to be photographed and posted to a social network based on the data from an unstructured citizen science tool; a Facebook group focused on the vascular flora of Sicily (Italy). Then, we compared botanical data collected by this Facebook group members with data collected by scientists in 6,366 vegetation plots sampled across Sicily, stored in the EVA database.
Our results suggested that data proceeding from the analysed Facebook group were affected by various sampling biases, which differed from the biases inherent to other types of biodiversity data such as those from vegetation plots.
Facebook users recorded a higher proportion of red-listed and alien species than vegetation scientists. Therefore, social networks can provide a valuable complement to the data collected by scientists for research purposes.
Synthesis and applications. Despite Facebook does not support geotagging and interface for data access and analysis, it is an invaluable source of biodiversity data that could complement those collected by professional researchers. The main advantage of data from social networks is their high dynamism, as they report large amounts of species occurrences in almost real time. Therefore, citizen science data from a Facebook group where the records are curated by expert volunteers can be used (a) for monitoring population dynamics of threatened and alien species; (b) as a source of additional data on rare species occurrences, particularly for plants that are attractive for amateur botanists, such as orchids; (c) for early warning systems of potential new invasions; and (4) for phenological studies, especially at the beginning of the flowering season.

The traditional use of native wild food plants (NWFP) may represent a valuable supplementary food... more The traditional use of native wild food plants (NWFP) may represent a valuable supplementary food source for the present and future generations. In Sicily, the use of wild plants in the human diet dates back to very ancient times and still plays an important role in some rural communities. Moreover, in this regard, the natural and cultural inheritance of this island is wealthy and diversified for several reasons. First, Sicily hosts a rich vascular flora, with 3,000 native and 350 endemic plants. Second, due to its central position in the Mediterranean, the island has acted as a veritable melting pot for the ethnobotanical knowledge of the rural communities of the entire basin. We reviewed all the available literature and, starting from such omnicomprehensive checklist, partially improved thanks to the data issuing from recent field investigations, we critically revised the whole species list, basing our review on field data issuing from interviews and on our expert knowledge. As a result, we provide a substantially updated list of 292 NWFP growing on the island. Further 34 species, reported as NWFP on previous papers were discarded because they are not native to Sicily, while 45 species were listed separately because their identity, occurrence and local use as food is doubtful and needs to be further investigated. Moreover, we tried to shed light on the ecology (growth form and preferential habitat) of the Sicilian NWFP, with special focus on crop wild relatives (CWR). Our preliminary ecological analyses point out that a high percentage of these plants are linked with the so-called 'cultural' landscapes, patchy semi-natural environments rich in ecotones, leading to the conclusion that the maintenance of century-old agro-pastoral practices may represent an effective way to preserve the local heritage of edible plants. Our study allowed to identify as much as 102 taxa of agronomic interest which could be tested as novel crops in order to face ongoing global changes and to comply with sustainable agriculture policies. Among them, 39 taxa show promising traits in terms of tolerance to one or more environmental stress factors, while 55 more are considered CWR and/or can be easily cultivated and/or show high productivity/yield potential.

Sacred natural sites (SNS) are instances of biocultural landscapes protected for spiritual motive... more Sacred natural sites (SNS) are instances of biocultural landscapes protected for spiritual motives. These sites frequently host important biological values in areas of Asia and Africa, where traditional resource management is still upheld by local communities. In contrast, the biodiversity value of SNS has hardly been quantitatively tested in Western contexts, where customs and traditions have relatively lost importance due to modernization and secularization. To assess whether SNS in Western contexts retain value for biodiversity, we studied plant species composition at 30 SNS in Central Italy and compared them with a paired set of similar but not sacred reference sites. We demonstrate that SNS are important for conserving stands of large trees and habitat heterogeneity across different land-cover types. Further, SNS harbor higher plant species richness and a more valuable plant species pool, and significantly contribute to diversity at the landscape scale. We suggest that these patterns are related not only to pre-existent features, but also to traditional management. Conservation of SNS should take into account these specificities, and their cultural as well as biological values, by supporting the continuation of traditional management practices.

Metabolites, 2022

The Aeolian Islands (Italy) are a volcanic archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea comprising seven mai... more The Aeolian Islands (Italy) are a volcanic archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea comprising seven main islands, among which are two active volcanoes. The peculiar geological features and the wide variety of environments and soils have an important impact on native plants, and in particular, the Aeolian populations of Dactylis glomerata (a perennial cool-season bunchgrass) exhibit remarkable phenotypic variability. Considering that environmental drivers also strongly affect the production of plant metabolites, this work aimed at comparing the metabolomic profiles of D. glomerata (leaves) harvested at different altitudes on four islands of the Aeolian archipelago, namely: Lipari, Vulcano, Stromboli and Panarea. Samples were analyzed by 1H NMR profiling, and data were treated by PCA. Samples collected on Stromboli were very different from each other and from the samples collected in the other islands. Through an OPLS model, using altitude as the y variable, it emerged that the concentration of proline, glycine betaine, sucrose, glucose and chlorogenic acid of D. glomerata growing on Stromboli decreased at increasing altitude. Conversely, increasing altitude was associated with an increment in valine, asparagine, fumaric acid and phenylalanine.

Vegetation Classification and Survey, 2022

We propose an equation to evaluate the efficiency of a classification as a function of the effort... more We propose an equation to evaluate the efficiency of a classification as a function of the effort required and the population size of data collectors. The formula postulates a "classification efficiency coefficient", which relates not only to the complexity of the object to be classified, but also to the data availability and representativeness. When applied to the classification of phytocoenoses, the equation suggests that a classification system based on vascular plants offers the best compromise between sampling effort, resolution power and data availability. We discuss the possibility of basing a vegetation classification on plot records for all macroscopic photoautotrophic organisms co-occurring in the vertical projection of a given ground area, as recently suggested by some authors. We argue that the inclusion of cryptogams in the description of phytocoenoses dominated by vascular plants should rely on a synusial approach, conceived as complementary to the traditional Braun-Blanquet approach.

Plants, 2021

A synthetic and updated overview about the vascular flora and vegetation of the Island of Capo Pa... more A synthetic and updated overview about the vascular flora and vegetation of the Island of Capo Passero (SE-Sicily) is provided. These data issue from two series of field surveys-the first carried out between 1997 and 2000, and the second between 2005 and 2019 and mostly focused on refining and implementing vegetation data. The current islet's flora consists of 269 taxa, of which 149 (58%) are annual plants. The Mediterranean species are largely prevailing, 108 (40%) of which have a strictly Mediterranean biogeographical status. The comparison with a species list published in 1919 and updated in 1957 suggest that, despite the overall prevalence of anemochorous taxa, the vertebrate fauna represents an important vector for the plant colonization of the island, while the immigration of myrmechocorous taxa does not compensate the extinction rate. As many as 202 phy-tosociological relevés, 191 of which issue from original recent field surveys, enabled identifying 12 different plant communities. The comparison with a vegetation map published in 1965 suggests a strong reduction in dune habitats (2120 and 2210 according to EU 'Habitats' Directive 92/43), as well as a deep disruption in the succession typical of the local psammophilous vegetation series. In order to preserve rare, endangered and protected plant species (such as Aeluropus lagopoides, Cichorium spinosum, Limonium hyblaeum, L. syracusanum, Poterium spinosum, Senecio pygmaeus and Spergularia heldreichii) and to stop the ongoing habitat degradation, urgent and effective conservation measures should be adopted for this tiny, yet precious islet.

Ecography, 2018

With the aim of explaining the role that taxa and island features have in biogeographical pattern... more With the aim of explaining the role that taxa and island features have in biogeographical patterns, we processed presence–absence matrices of all the Macaronesian native species of ten different taxa (arthropods, birds, bryophytes, fungi, lichens, mammals, mollusks, pteridophytes, reptiles and spermatophytes) through simulated annealing analysis. Distribution patterns among the archipelagos were pinpointed, along with the different biogeographic roles played by islands and species groups. All the networks analysed resulted to be significantly modular and the structure of biogeographic modules reflects known past connections among the archipelagos and the current drivers of species distribution. The role assigned to the species supports some biological (ecological amplitude, degree of endemicity) and functional (long-distance dispersal and persistence abilities) traits of their respective biota and justifies their position in recent models of biogeographical distribution. Whereas it was expected that the modules identified by the spermatophytes and arthropods would reflect the compartmentalization of archipelagos quite well, this was also the case for much more vagile taxa, such as fungi or lichens. Conversely, results obtained for pteridophytes and bryophytes suggest that for those taxa geographic distance and/or macroclimatic conditions are less important than the size, age and orography of an island to determine the modularity of island groups. On the other hand, dry, species-poor islets, act as connectors, tending to cluster together for different taxa, independently of their archipelagic adscription, whereas large, high, humid islands tend to form network or module hubs representing regional centers of speciation and dispersal.

Berichte der Reinhold-Tüxen-Gesellschaft, 2018

Recent geological studies demonstrated that most of Sicily was still under water during lower Pli... more Recent geological studies demonstrated that most of Sicily was still under water during lower Pliocene, with the exception of the NE and the SE corners of the island (Peloritani Mts and Hyblaean Plateau, respectively). This geological evidence, so far not considered sufficiently by the scholars of the Sicilian flora, poses many still open questions on how and where many ancient lineages and Palaeogene relicts, currently found on the island, managed to survive. Purpose of this paper is to review the potential significance of isolation and ecological differentiation for the local floristic diversity and the evolution of narrow endemism in the Sicilian flora. In particular, the following drivers of Sicilian floristic patterns are considered: geographical segregation and age of the Sicilian terrains; climate variability and heterogeneity; geological patchiness; human influence on habitat fragmentation.

A historical overview of the phytosociological method in Europe is presented. Some methodological... more A historical overview of the phytosociological method in Europe is presented. Some methodological and procedural differences in the application of the Braun-Blanquet approach, from the selection of the sampling plots to the assignment of relevés to existing or newly described units, are briefly compared. The main advantages and limitations of the phytosociological vegetation classification are reviewed and discussed, also in light of their applications for vegetation mapping and monitoring.