@article{RusinaKiehl2010,
  author    = {Solvita Rusina and Kathrin Kiehl},
  title     = {Long-term changes in species diversity in abandoned calcareous grasslands in Latvia},
  series   = {Tuexenia},
  number    = {30},
  issn      = {0722-494 X},
  pages     = {467 -- 486},
  year      = {2010},
  abstract  = {The aim of this study is to assess the development of plant species diversity and species composition over a seven-year period in two calcareous grasslands abandoned for nearly 20 years and to find out which factors influence vegetation dynamics. In the Abava River valley, Latvia, different calcareous grasslands were studied, one on the south-west facing slope and another on the north-east facing slope. Vegetation analyses on permanent plots showed that dry calcareous grasslands can be resistant to deterioration for a long period of time – succession was slower than reported in many cases for Central and Western Europe. None of the studied communities showed a decrease neither in total species number recorded per community nor in average species richness per plot. Vascular plant species richness even increased by 3–4 species per 1-m² plot in the grassland on the south-west facing slope. An unexpected result of the research was that Calamagrostis epigeios did not expand in this grassland. This fact can be explained by the influence of disturbances (drought, tree cutting) and local differences in soil parameters and topography. In parts of the north-east exposed grassland, with deeper soils and better water availability, species diversity (Shannon index) decreased significantly in areas overgrown by Aegopodium podagraria.},
  language  = {en}
}