Data on alpine grassland diversity in Gran Paradiso National Park, Italy
Samuel Hoffmann,
Laura Steiner,
Andreas H. Schweiger,
Alessandro Chiarucci,
Jonas Benner,
Anotnello Provenzale,
Carl Beierkuhnlein
Affiliations
Samuel Hoffmann
University of Bayreuth, Biogeography, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany; Corresponding author.
Laura Steiner
University of Bayreuth, Biogeography, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany; Büro für Ökologische Studien, BfÖS, Oberkonnersreuther Str. 6a, D-95448, Bayreuth, Germany
Andreas H. Schweiger
University of Bayreuth, Plant Ecology, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany; Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research, BayCEER, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany
Alessandro Chiarucci
Department of Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum – University of Bologna, Via Irnerio 42, 40126, Bologna, Italy
Jonas Benner
University of Bayreuth, Biogeography, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany
Anotnello Provenzale
Institute of Geosciences and Earth Resources, National Research Council of Italy, Via Moruzzi 1, 56124, Pisa, Italy
Carl Beierkuhnlein
University of Bayreuth, Biogeography, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany; Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research, BayCEER, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany; Geographical Institute Bayreuth, GIB, Universitätsstr. 30, D-95447, Bayreuth, Germany
The diversity of alpine grassland species and their functional traits constitute alpine ecosystem functioning and services that support human-wellbeing. However, alpine grassland diversity is threatened by land use and climate change. Field surveys and monitoring are necessary to understand and preserve such endangered ecosystems. Here we describe data on abundances (percentage cover) of 247 alpine plant species (including mosses and lichens) inside nine 20 m by 20 m plots that were subdivided into 2 m by 2 m subplots. The nine plots are located in Gran Paradiso National Park, Italy. They cover three distinct alpine vegetation subtypes (‘pure’ natural grassland, sparsely vegetated ‘rocky’ grassland, and wetland) in each of three valleys (Bardoney, Colle de Nivolet and Levionaz) between 2200 and 2700 m a.s.l., i.e. above the treeline. The vegetation survey was conducted in 2015 at the peak of vegetation development during August. The dataset is provided as supplementary material and associated with the research article “Optimizing sampling effort and information content of biodiversity surveys: a case study of alpine grassland” [1]. See [1] for data interpretation. Keywords: Alpine grassland, Species diversity, Plot data, Cover, Abundance, Vegetation survey, Vegetation monitoring
