http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3583-3929
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Abstract
Bryophytes are some of the most sensitive biological indicators of environmental change. Springs have a significant presence of bryophytes and so are ideal habitats for studying their relationship with the environment. We tested whether bryophyte assemblages can be explained with macro-, meso- and micro-ecological variables (i.e. seasonal climate, altitude, water pH and conductivity) sampling bryophytes from 198 semi-natural springs distributed along montane regions in the north-eastern Iberian Peninsula. We tested the influence of environmental variables on bryophyte assemblages in springs using sparse Partial Least Squares. Our results show that variability in bryophyte assemblages is explained by seasonal climate (temperature and precipitation from winter, spring, summer and autumn and temperature and precipitation seasonality), altitude and water conductivity. The results obtained by the present study will be useful for predicting bryophyte diversity in springs using simple and easy to obtain variables such as climate, water pH and conductivity.
Acknowledgements
M.F.M. is funded by a postdoctoral subsidy of the University of Antwerp. The authors acknowledge the Institució Catalana d’Història Natural (ICHN, Projecte Fonts) and the Institut d’Estudis Catalans (IEC) for funding the project. Also, to all the volunteers of the Delegation of the Serralada Litoral Central, Grup de Naturalistes d'Osona (GNO - ICHN) and Lluçanès Viu for helping with the survey of the springs. The authors also thank all those people who helped us to find the springs.
Taxonomic Additions and Changes: Nil.
ORCID
J. Corbera http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3583-3929
F. Sayol http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3540-7487
G. Bagaria http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6465-2866
C. Preece http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6584-3541
A. Viza http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3089-0836
F. Sabater http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6767-231X
M. Fernández-Martínez http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5661-3610