Wet Meadow Plant Communities of the Alliance Trifolion pallidi on the Southeastern Margin of the Pannonian Plain

The article deals with wet meadow plant communities of the alliance Trifolion pallidi that appear on the periodically inundated or waterlogged sites on the riverside terraces or gentle slopes along watercourses. These plant communities are often endangered by inappropriate hydrological interventions or management practices. All available vegetation plots representing this vegetation type were collected, organized in a database, and numerically elaborated. This vegetation type appears in the southeastern part of the Pannonian Plain, which is still under the influence of the Mediterranean climate; its southern border is formed by southern outcrops of the Pannonian Plain and its northern border coincides with the influence of the Mediterranean climate (line Slavonsko Gorje-Fruska Gora-Vrsacke Planine). Numerical analysis established four plant associations-Trifolio pallidi-Alopecuretum pratensis, Ventenato dubii-Trifolietum pallidi, Ranunculo strigulosi-Alopecuretum pratensis, and Ornithogalo pyramidale-Trifolietum pallidi. Each association was elaborated in detail: diagnostic plant species, nomenclature, geographical distribution, climatic and ecological conditions, and possible division into subassociations. Results are presented in a distribution map, figures resulting from numerical analysis, and a synoptic table. The hydrological gradient was found as the most important factor shaping the studied plant communities. The article also brings new field data on this vegetation type, which has not been sampled for decades and is in process of evaluation to be included as a special habitat type in the Habitat Directive.

Automated summary

This article discusses the wet meadow plant communities of the alliance Trifolion pallidi, found on periodically inundated or waterlogged sites on riverside terraces or gentle slopes. It highlights the importance of the hydrological gradient in shaping these plant communities and provides new field data on this vegetation type.