Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Geobotanical Study of the Microforests of Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. badia in the Central and Southern Iberian Peninsula

Eusebio Cano
* ,
Carmelo Maria Musarella
ORCID logo ,
Ana Cano-Ortiz
,
José Carlos Piñar Fuentes
,
Alfonso Rodríguez Torres
,
Sara Del Rio González
,
Carlos Pinto Gomes
,
Ricardo Quinto-Canas
,
Giovanni Spampinato
Version 1 : Received: 15 October 2018 / Approved: 16 October 2018 / Online: 16 October 2018 (12:33:03 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Cano, E.; Musarella, C.M.; Cano-Ortiz, A.; Piñar Fuentes, J.C.; Rodríguez Torres, A.; Del Río González, S.; Pinto Gomes, C.J.; Quinto-Canas, R.; Spampinato, G. Geobotanical Study of the Microforests of Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. badia in the Central and Southern Iberian Peninsula. Sustainability 2019, 11, 1111. Cano, E.; Musarella, C.M.; Cano-Ortiz, A.; Piñar Fuentes, J.C.; Rodríguez Torres, A.; Del Río González, S.; Pinto Gomes, C.J.; Quinto-Canas, R.; Spampinato, G. Geobotanical Study of the Microforests of Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. badia in the Central and Southern Iberian Peninsula. Sustainability 2019, 11, 1111.

Abstract

We have studied Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. badia in the central and southern Iberian Peninsula. Here, the macrobioclimate ranges from Mediterranean-pluviseasonal-oceanic and Mediterranean-pluviseasonal-continental, thermotype from thermomediterranean and supramediterranean. The relevés were taken following the Braun-Blanquet phytosociological methodology. A statistical treatment was applied to establish a separation among Juniperus communities. To understand the presence of Juniperus communities in territories dominated by species of the genus Quercus, we applied the formula of Thornthwaite to calculate potential evapotranspiration. The general cluster analysis clearly separates two groups of plant communities and separates the different associations in each group. All plant communities growing on rocky crests and in steeply extreme sloping areas are significantly influenced by the soil. The Ombroclimatic Index does not explain the presence of plant communities influenced by substrate: so, we propose a new Ombroedaphoxeric Index which explains the presence of the Juniperus communities in territories with a thermotype ranging from the thermo to the supramediterranean belt. The areas of distribution of Juniperus species are expanding due to the spread of rocky areas: this phenomenon causes a rise in edaphoxerophilous areas and a decrease in climatophilous one. We propose four new plant associations and with this update on their structures and floristic compositions, it is possible to make an efficient form of conservation in both territories studied (Spain and Portugal) with specific cross-border-cooperation projects.

Keywords

Juniperion lagunae; cross-border cooperation; landscape evolution; cluster analysis; conservation; sustainable development; territorial cohesion; Ombroedaphoxeric Index; phytosociology; SCI areas

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Plant Sciences

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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