Abstract
Biodiversity, including plant species diversity, is threatened worldwide as a result of anthropogenic pressures such as an increase of pollutants and climate change. Rare species in particular are on the verge of becoming extinct. It is still unclear as to why some plant species are rare and others are not. Are they rare due to: intrinsic reasons, dispersal capacity, the effects of management or abiotic circumstances? Habitat preference of rare plant species may play an important role in determining why some species are rare. Based on an extensive data set of soil parameters we investigated if rarity is due to a narrow habitat preference for abiotic soil parameters. For 23 different abiotic soil parameters, of which the most influential were groundwater-table, soil-pH and nutrient-contents, we estimated species responses for common and rare species. Based on the responses per species we calculated the range of occurrence, the range between the 5 and 95 percentile of the response curve giving the habitat preference. Subsequently, we calculated the average response range for common and rare species. In addition, we designed a new graphic in order to provide a better means for presentation of the results. The habitat preferences of rare species for abiotic soil conditions are significantly narrower than for common species. Twenty of the twenty-three abiotic parameters showed on average significantly narrower habitat preferences for rare species than for common species; none of the abiotic parameters showed on average a narrower habitat preference for common species. The results have major implications for the conservation of rare plant species; accordingly management and nature development should be focussed on the maintenance and creation of a broad range of environmental conditions, so that the requirements of rare species are met. The conservation of (abiotic) gradients within ecosystems is particularly important for preserving rare species.
Highlights
Biodiversity, including plant species richness, is threatened worldwide [1], [2], [3], as a result of anthropogenic pressures such as an increase of pollutants [4] and climate change [5]
Responses were estimated for 973 species (783 common and 190 rare species, for an example see Figure 2)
The length of the range of a species may be an indicator for rare species
Summary
Biodiversity, including plant species richness, is threatened worldwide [1], [2], [3], as a result of anthropogenic pressures such as an increase of pollutants [4] and climate change [5]. Species occurrence can be limited by dispersal capacity, for instance when all habitat requirements are met but the species is not yet able to reach suitable habitat [10], [11], [12]. Human influence is another major factor that impacts on the occurrence of rare species; for example, through changes in habitats caused by construction of infrastructure and built development, water-related management or intensified agricultural land use [10], [13], [14], [15], [16]. Understanding the differences in habitat requirements between rare species and common species is likely to be an important factor in protecting rare species [6]
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