Database Report

VIOLA -- Database of High Mountain Vegetation of Central Apennines

Angela Stanisci, Alberto Evangelista, Maria Laura Carranza, Ludovico Frate & Adriano Stinca

GIVD Database ID: EU-IT-019	Last update: 2020-11-09
VIOLA	Web address: http://www.givd.info/ID/EU-IT-019
Database manager(s): Angela Stanisci (stanisci@unimol.it); Alberto Evangelista (evangelistalberto@gmail.com)
Owner: EnviX-Lab, Dipartimento di Bioscienze e Territorio, Università degli Studi del Molise, Contrada Fonte Lappone, Pesche (IS)
Scope: The Database contains published and unpublished phytosociological relevés of high-mountain vegetation in Central Apennines (Italy). We considered only relevés and plant communities beyond the treeline (ca. 1600 m a.s.l.) in central Apennines. Each relevés is associated with an accurate site description. Moreover, each vegetation plot is associated with the corresponding habitat of Community interest (sensu "Habitats Directive" 92/43/EEC), where appropriate.
Abstract: The database of high mountain vegetation of central Apennines, hereafter called VIOLA (GIVD ID EU-IT-019), includes published and unpublished phytosociological relevés of high elevation habitats occurring in central Italy (Gran Sasso, Majella, Matese, Meta, Velino Mountains). VIOLA, digitised in to TURBOVEG, is the first standardised and exchangeable database on Mediterranean high-elevation vegetation of Italy. It includes 1687 relevés collected during the period 1955–2014, containing 670 taxa, and such numbers will increase as new vegetation data becomes available. The relevés are distributed above the treeline (between 1600 to 2900 m a.s.l.) and refer to the dwarf shrublands, the oro-mediterranean grasslands and high elevation scree and cliff vegetation. Most of the relevés are georeferenced to different levels of accuracy using information from toponyms, altitude, slope, aspect and, if available, GPS coordinates. We followed Conti et al. (2005, 2007) for the taxonomic attribution and nomenclatural updates of vascular plant taxa and, for solving synonymy problems, we also consulted other national and international vascular plants checklists. For each taxon, the cover/abundance value recorded in the relevés is reported. In addition, the Ellenberg indicator values, life form and chorotype are described. Where appropriate, the corresponding EC habitat (92/43/EEC Habitats Directive) is assigned to each vegetation relevé. Currently, VIOLA includes vegetation relevés belonging to 7 EC habitats (4060, 4070*, 6170, 6210, 6230*, 8120, 8210). VIOLA offers a sound baseline for carrying out a multitude of ecological studies, and is an efficient tool for analyzing EC habitat distribution over time. Moreover, it provides useful information on shifts in altitudinal distribution of plant taxa resulting from global warming (thermophilization process) and land use changes. The VIOLA database is included in the European Vegetation Archive (EVA, www.euroveg.org) and in the Italian national vegetation database (VegItaly, www.vegitaly.it, EU-IT-001).
Availability: free upon request	Online upload: no	Online search: no
Database format(s): TURBOVEG, Excel	Export format(s): TURBOVEG, Excel
Plot type(s): normal plots	Plot-size range (m²): 0.5 to 300
Non-overlapping plots: 1726	Estimate of existing plots: 2000	Completeness: 86%	Status: ongoing capture
Total no. of plot observations: 1726	Number of sources (biblioreferences, data collectors): 38	Valid taxa: 714
Countries (%): IT: 100
Formations: Non Forest: 100% = Terrestrial: 100% (Arctic-alpin: 100%)
Guilds: all vascular plants: 100%
Plot size categories (%): < 1 m2: 0.12%; 1-10 m2: 17.15%; 10-100 m2: 79.20%; 100-1000 m2: 1.85%; unknowmn: 1.68%;
Environmental data (%): altitude: 100; slope aspect: 89.40; slope inclination: 87.83; other attributes: The height of the plot goes from 1600 to 2912 (Corno Grande) on mainly limestone soil. The directions are North, South, West and East, the medium slope inclination of the plot is 26,70%.
Performance measure(s): cover: 100%
Geographic localisation: GPS coordinates (precision 25 m or less): 50%; small grid (not coarser than 10 km): 50%
Sampling periods: 1950-1959: 4.92%; 1960-1969: 9.33%; 1970-1979: 6.60%; 1980-1989: 9.04%; 1990-1999: 28.57%; 2000-2009: 39.63%; 2010-2019: 1.91%
Information as of 2024-04-25; further details and future updates available from http://www.givd.info/ID/EU-IT-019

Angela Stanisci* (stanisci@unimol.it)
Dipartimento di Bioscienze e Territorio, Università degli Studi Molise, Contrada Fonte Lappone, 86090 Pesche (IS), ITALY
Alberto Evangelista (evangelistalberto@gmail.com)
Dipartimento di Bioscienze e Territorio, Università degli Studi Molise, Contrada Fonte Lappone, 86090 Pesche (IS), ITALY
Maria Laura Carranza (carranza@unimol.it)
Dipartimento di Bioscienze e Territorio, Università degli Studi Molise, Contrada Fonte Lappone, 86090 Pesche (IS), ITALY
Ludovico Frate (frateludovico@gmail.com)
Dipartimento di Bioscienze e Territorio, Università degli Studi Molise, Contrada Fonte Lappone, 86090 Pesche (IS), ITALY
Adriano Stinca (adriano.stinca@unina.it)
Dipartimento di Agraria, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Via Università, 100, 80055 Portici (Na), ITALY
* corresponding author