Response of dry grassland vegetation to fluctuations in weather conditions: a 9-year case study in Prague (Czech Republic)

0369621 - BÚ 2012 RIV SK eng J - Journal Article
Dostálek, J. - Frantík, Tomáš
Response of dry grassland vegetation to fluctuations in weather conditions: a 9-year case study in Prague (Czech Republic).
Biologia. Roč. 66, č. 5 (2011), s. 837-847. ISSN 0006-3088. E-ISSN 1336-9563
R&D Projects: GA MŠMT 1M0571
Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60050516
Keywords : climate change * dry grassland * vegetation coverage
Subject RIV: EF - Botanics
Impact factor: 0.557, year: 2011

Correlations were found between different functional groups of species and individual species and weather variability. During a 9–year study in five nature reserves in Prague (Czech Republic), the following responses of dry grassland vegetation to weather conditions were observed: (i) wetter conditions, especially in the winter, affected the dominance and species richness of perennial grass species and the decline of rosette plants; (ii) the year-to-year higher temperatures in the winter produced a decline in the dominance of short graminoids and creeping forbs; (iii) spring drought adversely impacted the overall abundance, especially the abundance of dicotyledonous species, and the species richness. However, these relationships may be manifested in different ways in different locations, and in some cases the vegetation of different locations may respond to weather conditions in opposite manners.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0203643