Main
Session.
Coordinator:
Edoardo Biondi
Abstract
There
is no doubt that phytosociology
in the first century of
its history plaid the role
of the real Plant Sinecology:
starting from the association's
level to that of plant landscape
unit. In all these, phytosociology
expresses a great ability
to integrate through the
bioindication, different
ecological levels, that
are consequent among them.
The session want to face
the issue of ecological
evidence of taxa and syntaxa,
series and geo-series expressed
according to concepts of
quantitative ecology with
examples regarding the biodiversity
hotspots in the Mediterranean.
The phytocoenoses that are
represented in phytosociology
terms have to be more enriched
in their real significance
and identified through the
weighting of the ecological
factors that determine the
diffusion limits and therefore
the representativeness as
bioindicator.
At the beginning of the
new millennium, in completely
different cultural and socio-economic
conditions from those in
which the phytosociology
was born, it is necessary
to move from the description
of phytocoenoses to their
ecological weighted characterization
as to our science it is
asked to work in terms of
applications in different
areas of sustainable management
of land and its resources.
We have seen that for the
first time with the application
of the various phases of
the Habitats Directive when
to phytosociology has been
asked not only to recognize
ecosystems that allow to
identify habitats and then
SCI areas, but also to participate
in the development of Management
plans, together with various
experts who traditionally
handle natural and semi-natural
environments.
In this context it is necessary
to give applicable answers,
by characterizing the identified
processes, especially in
quantitative terms. After
having acquired many knowledge,
absolutely essential to
let our discipline advance
as these form the foundations
of it, for example the syntaxonomical
and succession types, the
real application of our
science goes through its
quantitative representation.
So for example, the vegetation
dynamics, already extremely
important in the recognition
process for managing the
sites, become a considerably
higher value in the project
phase including the time
factor, becoming therefore
an absolutely predictive
model.
The session will express,
with different examples,
the necessity to interpret
in quantity terms the phenomena
that we have in the past
expressed mainly in terms
of quality.
Key
words: phytosociology,
plant sinecology, quantitative
ecology, syntaxonomy.
