Species composition
In total we recorded 68 vascular plant species, out of which 62 species
occurred in the disturbed plots and 57 in the intact grasslands. Species
composition of the disturbed plots and intact grasslands were separated
along the horizontal axis of the NMDS ordination (Figure 2).
Characteristic species of the disturbed areas included
early-successional short-lived forb (Erophila verna ,Myosotis stricta , Polygonum aviculare ) and graminoid
(Bromus hordeaceus , Poa bulbosa ) species, and several
disturbance-tolerant perennial forbs, such as Achillea collina ,A. setacea and Plantago lanceolata. Intact grasslands were
characterised by perennial graminoids, such as Festuca
pseudovina , Elymus repens and Carex stenophylla . We
observed a separation between spring and summer vegetation in the
crane-disturbed plots, while the species composition of intact
grasslands was similar across seasons. There was no clear separation in
the vegetation between the two years.
The PERMANOVA analysis confirmed the patterns of the ordination. The
species composition of the disturbed plots and the intact grasslands was
significantly different (F = 40.11, p = 0.048). The vegetation
was different between the two seasons (F = 2.62, p = 0.001) but there
was no separation among years (F = 1.69, p = 0.131). The
interaction of disturbance ×year (F = 14.52, p = 0.001) and
disturbance × season (F = 15.52, p = 0.001) resulted in
significantly different species compositions, while year × season
interaction (F = 1.61, p = 0.101) had no effect on vegetation
composition.