Analysis of Species Indicator Values in Response to Spatial Environmental Variation of Differently Managed Agro-habitats

Abstract

This paper investigates species indicator values in response to spatial gradients of environmental indices (light, L; moisture, F; nitrogen, N; temperature, T) in different agro-habitats (crop fields and their boundaries of intensive/conventional farming, IF; organic farming, OF) of Lithuania. All plant species were classified according to indicator values of the Ellenberg scale of general abiotic environmental factors (light, moisture, nitrogen, temperature) available for Central Europe. Multiple Correspondence Analysis was applied to analyze the patterns of relationships between species indicator values and environmental conditions in six different agro-habitats. Variation of N-values (ranging from 2 to 9 and x point) was observed to be the highest between ecological gradients, thus indicating wide spatial dispersion of soil N deposition in the habitats. The presence of particular plant species with medium indicator values (L5-L6, F4-F5, N5-N6, T4-T5) suggests that IF crop habitats are favored for establishment of mezophytes. Crop and margin habitats in OF agro-habitats were found to possess a wider environmental gradient, ensuring higher biodiversity.