Ozinga, Wim A. and Roemermann, Christine and Bekker, Renee M. and Prinzing, Andreas and Tamis, Wil L. M. and Schaminee, Joop H. J. and Hennekens, Stephan M. and Thompson, Ken and Poschlod, Peter and Kleyer, Michael and Bakker, Jan P. and van Groenendael, Jan M. (2009) Dispersal failure contributes to plant losses in NW Europe. ECOLOGY LETTERS, 12 (1). pp. 66-74. ISSN 1461-023X, 1461-0248
Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)Abstract
The ongoing decline of many plant species in Northwest Europe indicates that traditional conservation measures to improve the habitat quality, although useful, are not enough to halt diversity losses. Using recent databases, we show for the first time that differences between species in adaptations to various dispersal vectors, in combination with changes in the availability of these vectors, contribute significantly to explaining losses in plant diversity in Northwest Europe in the 20th century. Species with water- or fur-assisted dispersal are over-represented among declining species, while others (wind- or bird-assisted dispersal) are under-represented. Our analysis indicates that the 'colonization deficit' due to a degraded dispersal infrastructure is no less important in explaining plant diversity losses than the more commonly accepted effect of eutrophication and associated niche-based processes. Our findings call for measures that aim to restore the dispersal infrastructure across entire regions and that go beyond current conservation practices.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | LIFE-HISTORY TRAITS; SPECIES RICHNESS; ENVIRONMENTAL-CONDITIONS; CONSERVATION; DIVERSITY; COMMUNITIES; EXTINCTION; LANDSCAPE; ECOLOGY; FRAGMENTATION; Colonization deficit; dispersal infrastructure; dispersal vectors; diversity loss; eutrophication; functional traits; land-use changes |
| Subjects: | 500 Science > 570 Life sciences 500 Science > 580 Botanical sciences |
| Divisions: | Biology, Preclinical Medicine > Institut für Pflanzenwissenschaften Biology, Preclinical Medicine > Institut für Pflanzenwissenschaften > Lehrstuhl für Ökologie und Naturschutzbiologie (Prof. Dr. Peter Poschlod) |
| Depositing User: | Dr. Gernot Deinzer |
| Date Deposited: | 12 Oct 2020 08:12 |
| Last Modified: | 12 Oct 2020 08:12 |
| URI: | https://pred.uni-regensburg.de/id/eprint/29715 |
Actions (login required)
 |
View Item |
