Judit Bódis

Roadside verges as habitats for endangered lizard-orchids (Himantoglossum spp.): Ecological traps or refuges?

Alterations in traditional land use practices have led to severe declines in the area of semi-natural grasslands, thereby seriously threatening plant and animal species dependent on these habitats. Small anthropogenic managed habitats, like roadsides can act as refuges and might play an important role in conserving these species. Colonization of roadside verges by endangered lizard orchids (Himantoglossum spp.) has long been known, but few studies have systematically explored the suitability of roadside habitats for these orchids and the impact of roads on them. In this paper we present results of targeted surveys of three lizard orchid taxa on roadsides from eight European countries. During these surveys we searched for lizard orchids inhabiting roadside verges and recorded their distance from road, aspects of the roadside environment, as well as vegetative and reproductive characteristics of individual plants. We found large numbers of lizard orchids on roadside verges. Distance from roads was not uniformly distributed: orchids occurred more closely to roads than expected by chance. This suggests that regular management of roadsides (e.g. mowing) might enhance colonization and survival of lizard orchids. On the other hand, we also found that close proximity to roads negatively affects reproductive success, suggesting that the immediate vicinity of roads might act as an ecological trap (i.e. favorable in terms of colonization and survival but unfavorable in terms of reproduction). Nonetheless, the fact that significant and viable populations are maintained at roadsides suggests that traditionally managed roadside verges may allow long-term persistence of lizard orchid populations and may serve as refuges in a landscape context.

Turkish graveyards as refuges for orchids against tuber harvest

Abstract Harvest of orchid tubers for salep production is widespread in southwestern Asia and the Balkans and constitutes a major conservation risk for wild orchid populations. Synanthropic habitats, such as graveyards, are important refuges for orchids and other organisms and could offer protection from salep harvesting because of their special cultural role. However, little is known about the occurrence and factors influencing harvesting of salep in graveyards. During field surveys of 474 graveyards throughout Turkey, we observed 333 graveyards with orchids, 311 graveyards with tuberous orchids, and salep harvest in 14 graveyards. Altogether, 530 individuals of 17 orchid species were collected, representing 9% of the individuals recorded. Harvesting intensity was relatively low, and populations were usually not wholly destroyed. However, some species were clearly more affected than others. Salep harvesting risk of orchid species was significantly associated with flowering time, with early‐flowering species being more affected. A marginally significant positive relationship between harvesting risk and species‐specific tuber size was also detected. Our data suggest that graveyards might offer some protection against salep harvesting in Turkey, but they also show that some orchid taxa are much more affected than others. Overall, our observations add more weight to the conservation value of these special habitats.

A kockásliliom (Fritillaria meleagris L.) tüskeszentpéteri (Zalaszentgrót) élőhelyének tájhasználat története

In Hungary, Fritillaria meleagris is known as a species of riparian woodlands however it forms large populations on meadows appeared after woodland clearance too. We monitored one such population on the floodplain of the small river Zala in Western Hungary near Tüskeszentpéter. To explore the history of land use on this site we used the maps of Military Surveys of Hungary, aerial photographs and archive documents (1720–2016). The first written records of the settlement (Tüskeszentpéter) built in a meander of the river Zala are dated to 1301. By 1784, the studied area was covered by wet meadows and only small fragments of forests, as it could be seen on old maps. That time the main livelihood was animal husbandry which required a lot of hay to be stored for winter. These floodplain hay meadows were very productive. Between 1895 and 1930, after the regulation of river Zala flow most of meadows were transferred into arable fields. Small-scale farming almost disappeared by 1960s because of ‘collectivization’. Big hay-cut machinery started to be used and this way of land farming can be seen on the meadows nowadays too. Fritillary populations occur only in areas which have been continuously managed as hay meadows for 300 years. Over six years of observations (2012–2017) the number of annually flowering Fritillaria individuals varied from 630 to 5314. As traditional animal husbandry is no longer economical in Hungary, the maintenance of these historic floodplain meadows depends on different nature conservation supports.