Vegetation is crucial for stabilizing and developing coastal dunes. Different plant species exhibit different spatial distributions which reflect their environmental role and adaptation strategy.
This study aims to provide a fine-scale species-by-species analysis of vegetation spatial patterns on coastal dunes within the San Rossore – Migliarino – Massacciuccoli Regional Park (Tuscany, Italy).
A comprehensive vegetation dataset generated by an Object-Based Image Analysis (OBIA) algorithm applied to high-resolution ortho-images has been utilized. A Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of the study area was created to assess the impact of dune morphology on plant distribution. Moreover, a wave runup analysis was also conducted to understand the interaction between vegetation and hydrodynamic forces.
The research highlights how the vegetation threshold distance from the coastline, L_veg, is superimposed by the reaching distance of wave runup during extreme events.
Terrain morphology significantly affects the vegetation zonation: on taller and undisturbed dunefields, species zonation is clearer and more defined, whereas, on flatter and disturbed ones, spatial distribution is significantly fuzzier.
A positive correlation emerges between the abundance of a species and its degree of spatial clustering, indicating that less abundant species show more tightly clustered spatial patterns.
Modified Ripley’s L-function analysis revealed a multi-scale clustered pattern for most species under examination.
The present results may provide a solid benchmark in coastal ecology research for supporting natural-based conservation plans and eco-morphodynamic modeling.