Data from: Wild boar (Sus scrofa) increases species diversity of semi-dry grassland: field experiment with simulated soil disturbances

• Main Authors: Horčičková, Eva, Brůna, Josef, Vojta, Jaroslav
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2019
• Subjects: Coronilla varia; Trifolium medium; holosteoides; Trifolium arvense; Viola arvensis; Sedum acre; Myosotis stricta; Centaurea scabiosa; Anagallis arvensis; vegetation composition; Potentilla argentea; Equisetum species; Veronica arvensis; Brachypodium pinnatum; Avenula pubescens; Myosotis sylvatica; Rumex acetosa; Lotus corniculatus; Sanguisorba minor; Acer campestre; Festuca pratensis agg.; Trisetum flavescens; Viola hirta; Arabis glabra; 5 years; Arrhenatherum elatius; Euphorbia cyparissias; Taraxacum sect. Ruderalia; Prunella vulgaris; Veronica serpyllifolia; Festuca rubra; Sus scrofa; Campanula persicifolia; Agropyron repens; Daucus carota; Poa compressa; Trifolium species; Verbascum species; semi-dry grassland; Fallopia convolvulus; Linaria vulgaris; Trifolium alpestre; Trifolium pratense; Convolvulus arvensis; Euphorbia esula; Alopecurus pratensis; Knautia arvensis; Linum catharticum; Epilobium species; Trifolium dubium; Verbascum lychnitis; Hieracium lachenalii; Falcaria vulgaris; Origanum vulgare; Trifolium repens; Viola canina; Lychnis viscaria; Thymus pulegioides; Pimpinella saxifraga agg.; Poa trivialis; Silene vulgaris; Chaerophyllum bulbosum; Astragalus glycyphyllos; Fragaria viridis; Fraxinus excelsior; Rosa canina agg.; Veronica chamaedrys; Barbarea vulgaris; Prunus spinosa; Ranunculus bulbosus; Ajuga genevensis; Crataegus species; Epilobium angustifolium; Prunus avium; Poa pratensis; Vicia cracca; Agrostis capillaris; Cerastium; Phleum pratense agg.; Dactylis glomerata; Verbascum nigrum; Arenaria serpyllifolia; Hieracium cymosum; Euphrasia rostkoviana; Allium vineale; Carex caryophyllea; Achillea millefolium agg.; Arabidopsis thaliana; Potentilla tabernaemontani; Vicia sativa; Dianthus deltoides; Tanacetum vulgare; Polygonum rurivagum; Torilis japonica; 9 years; Campanula rotundifolia; Cerastium arvense; Hieracium species; Vicia tetrasperma; Leucanthemum vulgare; Rubus caesius; Erysimum crepidifolium; Trifolium aureum; Campanula patula; Plantago media; Silene nutans s.lat.; Veronica officinalis; Briza media; Vicia sepium; Alchemilla species; Erophila verna; Clinopodium vulgare; Echium vulgare; Galium mollugo; Myosotis arvensis; Hieracium pilosella; Hypericum perforatum; Cynosurus cristatus; Festuca rupicola; Plantago lanceolata; Viola riviniana; Koeleria pyramidata agg.; Lathyrus pratensis; Veronica species; Calamagrostis epigejos; Pinus sylvestris; Chaerophyllum aureum; Geranium pusillum; Geranium sanguineum; Hieracium laevigatum; Veronica teucrium; Hylotelephium maximum; Geranium columbinum; Leontodon hispidus; Verbascum thapsus; Carex muricata; Rumex acetosella s.lat.; Scleranthus perennis; Anthemis tinctoria; Galium pumilum; Jasione montana; wild boar; Allium oleraceum; Trifolium campestre; Moehringia trinervia; Verbascum chaixii; Luzula campestris; Thlaspi caerulescens; Acinos arvensis; Vicia hirsuta; Fagus sylvatica
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.4521vq2; http://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.4521vq2

Background Foraging activities of wild boar (Sus scrofa) create small-scale soil disturbances in many different vegetation types. Rooting alters species composition by opening niches for less-competitive plants and as a recurrent factor becomes a part of the community disturbance regime. Vegetation responses to wild boar disturbance have mostly been studied in the boar’s non-native range or in native forest, rather than in open habitats in the native range. We investigate the response of open European semi-dry grassland vegetation dominated by (Brachypodium pinnatum) to native wild boar pressure in an abandoned agricultural landscape. Methods To describe the disturbance regime, we repeatedly mapped rooted patches during a 5-year period. Additionally, to study the vegetation response, we performed an artificial disturbance experiment by creating 30 pairs of simulated disturbances and undisturbed plots. The vegetation composition of the paired plots was repeatedly sampled five times in eight years of the study. Results Based on repeated mapping of disturbances, we predict that if the disturbance regime we observed during the 5-year period were maintained over the long term, it would yield a stable vegetation ratio consisting of 98.7 % of the grassland undisturbed, 0.4 % with fresh disturbance and 0.9 % in older successional stages. Vegetation composition on the artificially disturbed plots was continuously converging to that of undisturbed vegetation, but these disturbed plots still differed significantly in composition and had higher species number, even after eight years of succession. Synthesis Our results thus show that wild boar disturbance regime in its native range increases heterogeneity and species diversity of semi-dry grassland vegetation. : Experimental_disturbances_speciesVegetation composition data from permanent experimental plots (artificial disturbances and undisturbed controls). Plot size is 0.5 × 0.5 m. Cover of all vascular plants are on percentage scale.Natural_disturbances_speciesVegetation composition data from natural disturbances caused by wild boar and undisturbed control plots. Cover of all vascular plants on percentage scale. Plot size is 0.5 × 0.5 m. Columns: Date = date of the data collecting; Age = age of disturbance in years; Year_of_origin = when the disturbance was rootedRooted_areaData from repeated field mapping of natural soil disturbances caused by wild boar. Sheet “Rooting_rerooting_history”: Columns: Rooted area (m2) = area of fragment of disturbance with certain history; Enclave = spatial parameter; Rooting history = history of certain disturbance fragment given by rooting and re-rootings. Sheet “Size (m2)”: Areas (in m2) of all disturbances mapped in certain years.