THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONCEPT OF PLANT FUNCTIONAL TYPES WITH REGARD TO RARE SPECIES

A A Klimenko

doi:10.15421/201698

Abstract

<p>Plant functional type (PFT) is a description of the main functional and structural characteristics of plant species, which ensure its vitality and adaptive capabilities. In practice, researchers choose a subset of these characteristics, based on a specific scientific task. We assessed the level of biological and ecological individuality and diversity of the whole community of the protected plant species towards plant functional types in Sumy region (Ukraine). At present, there are 150 species of protected vascular plants in Sumy region. The selection of key parameters to evaluate PFT of the protected and rare plant species has a significant limitation. The phytosozological literature contains no data which are usually taken into consideration for the widespread plant species. The biological and morphological parameters included life-form (4 levels), age (3 levels), root system (3 levels), presence and type of underground metamorphoses of the vegetative organs (5 levels), type of reproduction (5 levels). The analysis has shown that Euclidean distances are not equal to zero for a couple or a group of plant species. Each plant species has its own functional type which is characteristic only for it. Some six pairs or groups of species with the closest Euclidean distances in the range from .10 to .15 were revealed from a number of 150 examined plant species. Overall, only 13 species were considered as the similar by their functional type. The remaining 137 species have significantly large differences in their structure, biology, and ecology parameters. This result is consistent with the principle of structural and functional individuality of each of the taxonomic plant species. Based on this fact, the system of rare plant species protection in Sumy region should be individualised in accordance with the functional type of the specific protected plant species and its requirements for the ecological-coenotic environment.</p>

Highlights

The Biodiversity Program (1991) and Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) were adopted at the international level in connection with a reduction in ecosystem biodiversity
The analysis has shown that Euclidean distances are not equal to zero for a couple or a group of plant species
All characters were determined from the analysis of geobotanical descriptions, field descriptions of species, herbarium specimens and mainly from literature data: The Red Data Book of Ukraine (2009), the Red Data Book of the Azov region (2012), special reference books and numerous publications devoted to the biology and ecology of plants

Summary

INTRODUCTION

The Biodiversity Program (1991) and Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) were adopted at the international level in connection with a reduction in ecosystem biodiversity. The allocation of PFG that based on a small number of subjectively selected parameters reduced the concept of plant functional types to the usual classification of plant species according to the types of life form, the peculiarities of the morphological structure or signs of adaptation to the habitat. As an incentive for the development of this direction, some researchers (Cornelissen et al, 2003, Pérez-Harguindeguy et al, 2013) had developed and independently published the standard procedures for registration and measurement of the plant parameters which give a fairly complete description of its functional type This is essential for the assessment of the plant species by morphological structure, branching of shoots, plant height, morphology and anatomy of leaves, quantitative parameters of growth, type of reproduction, method of pollination, evaluation of the selected biochemical and physiological parameters and some others. From our point of view, such ecological data should be an essential component in assessing the viability and sustainability of any plant species in phytocenoses and considered in the selection of the functional types of the protected plant species

MATERIAL AND METHODS

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Another cluster consists of two typical meadow species