anthropogenic transformations of the segetal flora in spała

ANTHROPOGENIC TRANSFORMATIONS
OF THE SEGETAL FLORA IN SPAŁA LANDSCAPE PARK
Agnieszka Pułaska 1, Anna Bomanowska 2
Obornicka 8/11, PL-91-042 Łódź, e-mail: [email protected]; 2Department of Geobotany and
Plant Ecology, Faculty of Biology and Environment Protection, University of Łódź, Banacha 12/16,
PL-90-237 Łódź, e-mail: [email protected]
1
Abstract: In the course of studies on segetal flora conducted in 1997–2000 in the area of Spała Landscape Park, the occurrence of 330 plant species was recorded. Two groups of plants were distinguished:
expansive weeds which have increased their number of localities in recent years as well as receding
weeds which include species that are rare, endangered and probably extinct within the area of the Park.
Among all species which constitute the segetal flora of the Park, 11 were listed as expansive, 30 as receding, 15 as probably extinct.
Key words: threatened species, expansive weeds, Spała Landscape Park, Central Poland
INTRODUCTION
Spała Landscape Park (SpPK) was created in 1995 and together with Sulejów
and Przedbórz Landscape Parks it constitutes the Pilica Complex of Landscape Parks
(Burzyński 1998). The park is located in the middle part of Pilica river basin and
protects natural and cultural values of Pilica valley from Tomaszów Mazowiecki
down to Nowe Miasto. According to the physical-geographical regionalisation (Kondracki 1998), Spała Landscape Park is located in the contact zone of lowlands (Central Polish Lowlands Province) and highlands (Polish Highlands Province) within
the following mesoregions: Piotrków Plain, Białobrzegi Valley, Radom Plain, Rawa
Upland and Opoczno Hills. With regard to the administrative division, SpPK is located entirely in the Łódź Voivodeship.
Together with its buffer zone, SpPK occupies an area of 36 068 ha. A large share
of extensive and compact forest complexes is characteristic for this area. Arable land
with an area of 8620 ha constitutes less than 24% of the park. Character of agriculture
is defined by the local substrate conditions. The majority of soils used for crop cultivation are light soils poor in nutritional components, belonging to low-value complexes of agricultural usefulness: weak rye complex (6) and very weak rye complex
(7). More fertile soils belonging to higher complexes: very good rye complex (4) and
good rye complex (5) occur exclusively in the eastern and northern part of the Park.
In large tracts of land, agriculture is being phased out as a type of economic activity,
having been concentrated on cultivation of cereal crops and potatoes. In recent years,
abandonment and/or fallowing of arable fields has been common. Detailed studies
carried out by Pułaska (2002) on weeds found in arable fields proved that these factors had a strong influence on the diversity of segetal flora in this area.
The aim of the present study is to reveal changes that have occurred in recent
years in the segetal flora of Spała Landscape Park and especially to identify the group
of species which have spread in arable fields of SpPK and to compile a local list of
endangered and threatened weed species in this area.
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MATERIAL AND METHODS
Detailed studies on the segetal flora of Spała Landscape Park were carried out in
the period 1997–2000 (Pułaska 2002). The method of qualitative cartograms with
the basic unit of 1 km by 1 km is compatible with the Polish plant cartography system
ATPOL (Zając and Zając 2001). Studies were executed in segetal habitats (cereal
and root crop fields, stubble fields, vegetable gardens) found within 187 basic grid
squares. Fallows and abandoned fields were excluded from investigations. Based on
floristic lists compiled for all basic study units, a list of taxa currently occurring in
arable fields of SpPK was prepared. The frequency of occurrence for each species was
determined on a 5-degree scale based on the number of localities (grid squares) from
which it had been recorded.
Identification of groups of species with opposed dynamic tendencies was performed by comparing the results with literature data. Among others, the publications
of Olaczek (1963), Mowszowicz (1978), Załuski (1978) and Warcholińska
(1976, 1994b, 2002) were used. For compilation of the local “red list” of segetal species, the following sources were taken into account: list of threatened segetal species
in Poland (Warcholińska 1994a), regional lists of threatened species for Central
Poland (Jakubowska-Gabara and Kucharski 1999, Warcholińska 2002, 2004)
and the red list of vascular plants of Poland (Zarzycki and Szeląg 2006). Species
were assigned to threat categories according to IUCN recommendations introduced
in 1994 with later modifications (Gärdenfors et al. 2001, IUCN 2001, 2003). Nomenclature of species was adopted after Mirek et al. (2002).
RESULTS
In the course of field studies, 330 species of vascular plants were found to occur
in arable land together with crops. The comparison of present results with earlier publications from other investigators showed that recent several decades have brought
about changes in distribution and number of localities for many weed species.
Forty five species were included in the group of receding weeds (Table 1). The
presence of 15 species which had earlier been recorded from this area could not be
confirmed in the present study. In view of the lack of recently confirmed localities,
these species were assigned the regionally extinct (RE) status. This group includes
weeds listed in the red list of vascular plants of Poland (Zarzycki and Szeląg 2006),
e.g. Aphanes inexpectata, Illecebrum verticillatum, Lolium temulentum.
The remaining 30 species were labelled as threatened to a different extent. The
highest threat category – critically endangered (CR) was assigned to two species (Radiola linoides, Stachys annua), sporadically recorded in fields (one or two localities)
with small populations consisting of only few specimens. The category endangered
(EN) was assigned to apophytes Falcaria vulgaris, Filago arvensis, Juncus capitatus
and archeophytes Galium spurium, Odontites verna, Valerianella dentata, all of them
recorded very rarely and in small numbers. The largest group consisting of 10 species were considered as vulnerable (VU), e.g.: Camelina microcarpa, Neslia panicu-
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Table 1. List of threatened segetal plant species in Spała Landscape Park.
Threat category according to
Pułaska (2002,
modified)
Warcholińska
(1994a)
Warcholińska
(2004)
JakubowskaGabara,
Kucharski
(1999)
Zarzycki,
Szeląg
(2006)
3
4
5
6
7
1. Agrostemma githago
NT
VU
V
2. Anagallis arvensis
NT
3. Anagallis foemina*
RE
EN
V
No. Species
1
2
4. Anthusa arvensis
NT
LR
5. Anthemis tinctoria
VU
VU
R
6. Aphanes inexpectata*
RE
VU
R
7. Avena strigosa
VU
VU
E
8. Camelina microcarpa
VU
VU
V
9. Camelina sativa*
RE
CR
EX
10. Campanula rapunculoides
DD
DD
11. Centunculus minimus*
RE
VU
V
12. Chaenorhinum minus*
RE
VU
R
13. Chenopodium polyspermum*
RE
DD
I
14. Consolida regalis
NT
VU
I
15. Falcaria vulgaris
EN
DD
16. Filago arvensis
EN
DD
I
17. Fumaria officinalis
VU
LR
I
V
DD
LR nt
18. Fumaria vaillantii
VU
EN
V
19. Gagea pratensis
NT
VU
I
20. Galium spurium
EN
VU
I
21. Geranium columbinum*
RE
VU
R
22. Gnaphalium luteo-album*
RE
VU
V
23. Herniaria glabra
NT
DD
I
24. Herniaria hirsuta*
RE
VU
V
25. Holosteum umbellatum
VU
VU
I
26. Hypericum humifusum
NT
VU
V
27. Illecebrum verticillatum*
RE
EN
V
28. Juncus capitatus
EN
VU
R
29. Lolium temulentum*
RE
CR
E
30. Malva pusilla
DD
DD
I
31. Myosurus minimus
VU
VU
I
32. Neslia paniculata
VU
VU
33. Odontites verna
EN
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V
I
V
EN
V
LR nt
V
V
LR nt
I
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230
1
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2
34 Papaver dubium
3
4
5
LC
VU
I
35. Papaver rhoeas
LC
VU
I
36. Peplis portula
VU
VU
V
37. Plantago arenaria
NT
38. Polycnemum arvense*
RE
EN
V
39. Radiola linoides
CR
VU
V
40. Saxifraga tridactylites*
RE
EN
R
41. Sherardia arvensis*
RE
CR
V
42. Stachys annua
CR
EN
V
VU
I
LR
I
43. Valerianella dentata
EN
44. Veronica agrestis
VU
45. Veronica polita*
RE
6
7
V
DD
V
Explanations: * – species extinct in SpPK, CR – critically endangered, DD – data deficient,
E, EN – endangered, EX – extinct, I – indeterminate threat, LR – low risk, LR nt – low risk/near
threatened, NT – near threatened, R – rare, RE – regionally extinct, V, VU – vulnerable.
lata, Peplis portula. They were recorded in few localities, although their populations
had sometimes a large number of individuals. Also numerous is the group of near
threatened species (NT). Their resources in the study area are relatively abundant
(e.g. Agrostemma githago, Consolida regalis, Hypericum humifusum), but a slight
change in habitat conditions or abandonment of cultivation may cause their rapid
disappearance. The least concern (LC) category is represented by 2 anthropophytes:
Papaver dubium and P. rhoeas, the populations of which seem to be relatively safe in
the study area, while under threat elsewhere in the country. The DD (data deficient)
category was assigned to 2 species for which sufficient data is unavailable to include
them in any of the previous threat categories.
The group of expansive species consisted of 11 species which have significantly
increased the number of localities and abundance in arable fields in Spała Landscape
Park during recent several decades. This group includes: Agrostis capillaris, Anthoxanthum aristatum, Artemisia vulgaris, Cardaminopsis arenosa, Crepis tectorum,
Digitaria ischaemum, Galeopsis ladanum, Galium aparine, Setaria pumila, S. viridis,
Veronica dillenii.
DISCUSSION
Changes which have occurred in the segetal flora of SpPK in recent years are
similar to those undergone in agrocoenoses in Poland and Europe. The number of
localities and abundance of populations have decreased for many weed species, especially for those with extreme trophic requirements as well as speirochores, while
eurytopic species have spread, especially the ones which are resistant to herbicides
(Kornaś 1987, Warcholińska 1994b, 2002, Andreasen et al. 1996, Baessler and
Klotz 2006).
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231
The most strongly threatened group in arable fields of Spała Landscape Park are
specialised archeophytes. The recession of numerous weeds of this group was caused
by application of qualified crop seed material and common use of chemical crop
protection agents (herbicides). As a result, many archeophytes have disappeared,
while others decreased their number of localities and became rare, e.g.: Agrostemma
githago, Camelina microcarpa.
A significant factor which causes the recession of segetal weeds in Spała Landscape Park is the decline in total area of segetal habitats due to field fallowing and
abandonment. Such species as e.g. Gagea pratensis, Holosteum umbellatum, Hypericum humifusum, once widespread in arable fields in this area, are at present rarely
recorded in cultivated fields, although they occur rather frequently in balks and fallows in direct vicinity of fields.
For species with high trophic requirements, e.g.: Consolida regalis, Falcaria vulgaris, Fumaria officinalis, an additional factor limiting their occurrence was the rarity
of appropriate habitats. Therefore, these species have never been widespread in the
study area (Warcholińska 1976, Mowszowicz 1978).
The expansion of some species is another example of transformations occurring currently in the segetal flora of Spała Landscape Park. The spreading weeds are
mainly apophytes from acidophilous and oligotrophic habitats, e.g.: Cardaminopsis
arenosa, Crepis tectorum, Galeopsis ladanum. Their expansion is aided by relatively
infertile soils formed on sands which predominate in the study area. An additional
stimulatory factor is provided by late post-harvest agricultural procedures which favour repeated flowering and fruiting of these species (Pułaska 2002).
As many as five grasses belong to the group of expansive species. Their success
in colonising new localities is dependent both on their biological characteristics
(Mizianty 1995, Tokarska-Guzik 2003) and on the edaphic conditions in Spała
Landscape Park. As established by Korniak (2002), the spread of e.g. Anthoxantum
aristatum, Digitaria sanguinalis and Setaria pumila in crop fields is favoured by low
level of agricultural practice and obsolete farming technology, especially on infertile
sandy soils.
CONCLUSIONS
1. Despite the relatively extensive system of land use and crop cultivation, significant floristic impoverishment of arable fields was recorded in Spała Landscape Park.
2. Current transformations in agricultural practice within SpPK may contribute
to further recession of species which are vulnerable to changes in field ecosystems and
to expansion of weeds with a broad scale of tolerance to agroecological conditions.
3. The presented lists of expansive and receding species are local in character and
are related specifically to threats observed in the study period. Any changes in land
use and management procedures in agricultural land within the Park may lead to the
necessity of including more species in the list of threatened weeds.
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