Has the vegetation and severity of invasion changed in sandy grasslands and old-fields of the Kiskunság in the last decade? – Results of a repeated survey

  • Anikó Csecserits Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research
  • Boglárka Berki Doctoral School of Biology, Institute of Biology, Eötvös Loránd University
  • Zoltán Botta-Dukát Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research
  • Edina Csákvári Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research
  • Melinda Halassy Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research
  • András Mártonffy Eötvös Loránd University
  • Tamás Rédei Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research
  • Katalin Szitár Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research
Keywords: common milkweed, invasive alien species, invasion, Kiskunság, monitoring, old-field, sandy grassland

Abstract

In order to track the dispersal of native and alien species, long-term monitoring is necessary, as this method is best suitable to reveal changes. In this study, conducted between 2019 and 2021, we repeated a vegetation survey first conducted in primary grasslands and old-fields in the Kiskunság between 2007 and 2009. Our aim was to monitor changes of land use, successional stages, and the level of invasion. Regarding land use, we only found changes in the case of old-fields; some of them are used as arable lands again. We detected some successional changes, the cover of annual plants in recently abandoned old-fields decreased, and the cover of woody species increased in closed primary grasslands. The level of invasion did not change, either in primary or in secondary grasslands, which indicates that alien species form a stable part of the vegetation of the Kiskunság, with a larger abundance in old-fields than in primary grasslands.

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Published
2022-12-14
Section
Scientific Research