<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>The article refers to a broader context of scientific debates on the effect of climate warming on shifts in species ranges and describes the recent changes in the distribution and life strategy of <italic>Hedera helix</italic> close to its eastern limit, in light of climate changes. European ivy is an ecotone species, occurring in fringe communities, in deciduous and mixed deciduous forests in fresh and moist habitats that are occupied by oak-hornbeam and riparian alder-ash forests in Central Poland. Since the mid-20th century, the ivy, a species rarely reproducing generatively, has become an expansive plant with a growing number of sites where flowering and fruiting individuals are encountered. We studied the distribution, habitat requirements and flowering of <italic>H. helix</italic> in Central Poland in the years 2015–2017 and compared to the situation in the mid-1970s. Climate changes in terms of average air temperatures and precipitation amounts for the past four decades were also assessed. Within the study area, 474 stands of naturally growing <italic>Hedera</italic> have recently been identified. Ivy was found to reproduce generatively on 121 of those locations. There has been an almost 10-fold increase in the number of fruiting ivy specimens since the mid-1970s of the 20th century. Changes in the species life strategy can be ascribed to the increase in both average air temperatures and solar radiation intensity observed for the past decades. Both enhanced fragmentation of woodland tracts and development of forest ecotones and forest canopy openings promote the expansion of <italic>H. helix</italic>, while its habitat preferences remain unchanged.</p></abstract>

The article refers to a broader context of scientific debates on the effect of climate warming on shifts in species ranges and describes the recent changes in the distribution and life strategy of Hedera helix close to its eastern limit, in light of climate changes. European ivy is an ecotone species, occurring in fringe communities, in deciduous and mixed deciduous forests in fresh and moist habitats that are occupied by oak-hornbeam and riparian alder-ash forests in Central Poland. Since the mid-20th century, the ivy, a species rarely reproducing generatively, has become an expansive plant with a growing number of sites where flowering and fruiting individuals are encountered. We studied the distribution, habitat requirements and flowering of H. helix in Central Poland in the years 2015–2017 and compared to the situation in the mid-1970s. Climate changes in terms of average air temperatures and precipitation amounts for the past four decades were also assessed. Within the study area, 474 stands of naturally growing Hedera have recently been identified. Ivy was found to reproduce generatively on 121 of those locations. There has been an almost 10-fold increase in the number of fruiting ivy specimens since the mid-1970s of the 20th century. Changes in the species life strategy can be ascribed to the increase in both average air temperatures and solar radiation intensity observed for the past decades. Both enhanced fragmentation of woodland tracts and development of forest ecotones and forest canopy openings promote the expansion of H. helix, while its habitat preferences remain unchanged.

Impact of climate change on ivy (<italic>Hedera helix</italic> L.) expansion in forests of Central Poland

Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, Department of Geobotany and Plant Ecology

Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw

Faculty of Biology and Environmental Sciences

Institute of Environmental Protection-National Research Institute

Interdisciplinary Centre of Mathematical and Computational Modelling of the University of Warsaw

Folia Forestalia Polonica

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Impact of climate change on ivy ( L.) expansion in forests of Central Poland

The article refers to a broader context of scientific debates on the effect of climate warming on shifts in species ranges and describes the recent changes in...

Impact of climate change on ivy (Hedera helix L.) expansion in forests of Central Poland

Published Online: Oct 07, 2019

Page range: 211 - 221

Received: Feb 18, 2019

Accepted: Jun 12, 2019

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ffp-2019-0020

Keywords
expansive species, forest habitats, ecotones, climate warming

© 2019 Leszek Kucharski et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Impact of climate change on ivy (Hedera helix L.) expansion in forests of Central Poland

Published Online: Oct 07, 2019

Page range: 211 - 221

Received: Feb 18, 2019

Accepted: Jun 12, 2019

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ffp-2019-0020

Keywordsexpansive species, forest habitats, ecotones, climate warming

© 2019 Leszek Kucharski et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Keywords
expansive species, forest habitats, ecotones, climate warming