0000000000934588
AUTHOR
Nagore G. Medina
Tree age‐dependent changes among epiphytic bryophyte communities in Mediterranean environments. A case study from Sicily (Italy)
Abstract The epiphytic bryophytes inhabiting trees of different size/age in a Quercus ilex wood from Madonie Mountains (northern Sicily, Italy) were studied with the purpose of describing the changes that take place in the bryophyte stratum during the tree lifespan. Results indicate an increase of bryophyte cover combined with a progressive decrease of epiphytic lichens and the existence of an active process of species and community substitution. The way these processes take place corresponds to a succession sequence, which is characterised by a high number of pioneer species on the youngest trees and a sharp decline of species number on middle‐aged and old trees due to the great spread of …
Drivers of plant richness patterns of Mediterranean riparian forests at local and regional scales have bottom-up and top-down effects
Questions: It has been long recognized that community species richness depends on factors operating at different spatial scales. Most frequently, across-scale studies have focused on the impact of regional factors on local richness (top-down effects) while few have analyzed the importance of local factors on regional richness (bottom-up) and even fewer have tried to integrate effects on both directions. Our objectives were to reveal the key factors shaping plant species richness of Mediterranean riparian forests and to test whether empirical models based on top-down or bottom-up relationships are able to explain the spatial scaling of richness. Location: Southern half of Spain, SW Europe. M…