Ecology and Genetics of Cyperus fuscus in Central Europe—A Model for Ephemeral Wetland Plant Research and Conservation

Abstract

The ecology and species diversity of ephemeral wetland vegetation have been fairly well studied, but the biology of its characteristic species has rarely been investigated holistically. Here we combine previous results on the genetic diversity of a suitable model species (the diploid Cyperus fuscus) with new data on its historical and recent occurrence, its ecological and climatic niche, and the associated vegetation. Analysis of phytosociological relevés from Central Europe revealed a broad ecological niche of C. fuscus with an optimum in the Isoëto-Nanojuncetea class, extending to several other vegetation types. Overall species composition in the relevés highlight C. fuscus as a potential indicator of habitat conditions suitable for a range of other threatened taxa. Analysis of historical records of C. fuscus from the Czech Republic showed an increasing trend in the number of localities since the 1990s. It seems that recent climate warming allows the thermophilous C. fuscus to expand its range into colder regions. Isoëto-Nanojuncetea and Bidentetea species are well represented in the soil seed bank in both riverine and anthropogenic habitats of C. fuscus. Vegetation diversity has a weak negative effect and anthropogenic (compared to riverine) habitats have a strong negative effect on genetic diversity in this species.

Cryptic invasion suggested by a cytogeographic analysis of the halophytic Puccinellia distans complex (Poaceae) in Central Europe

“…In total, 1414 FCM samples were measured, 1153 of which met the CV cut-off criterion (see Supplementary Table 2 for an overview of all the measured samples). Raw flow cytometric data are available at the Zenodo digital repository ( Kúr et al., 2023 ). Chromosome counting confirmed the presence of five distinct ploidy levels, i.e.…”

“…is of great conservation concern. Wetland habitats are suffering from multiple threats including global eutrophication, climate change, immediate habitat destruction, and land use change ( Mooij et al., 2005 ; Petsch, 2016 ; Šumberová et al., 2021 ; Kúr et al., 2021 ). Among them, inland saline habitats have been especially destroyed in Central Europe during the 20 th century and they persist in just a few isolated areas.…”

Hydrology-Shaped Plant Communities: Diversity and Ecological Function

“…A hydrological gradient and a fluctuating water level present major driving forces, which determine the distribution of different plant communities as well as plant species composition within them. This was evidenced in various aquatic ecosystems, such as wet-meadows [12], marshes [4], intermittent lake [15], flood-forests [11], ponds [10], lakes [3,17], or rivers [6]. Waterlogged or flooded soil can become an inhospitable environment, which excludes the majority of species, while in the remaining species, it triggers the expression of various traits and mechanisms that enable survival despite oxygen shortage in the root zone.…”

“…Cyperus fuscus is a plant species that colonizes wet areas, especially disturbed places such as temporary ponds and ditches. The paper by Kúr et al [4] discussed the ecology and genetics of C. fuscus, which serves as a model for ephemeral wetland plant research and their conservation. The author presumed that plant community diversity may exert a direct effect on within-population genetic diversity, which may vary in different species regarding their competitive ability.…”