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Think globally, measure locally: The MIREN standardized protocol for monitoring species distributions along elevation gradients
  • +55
  • Sylvia Haider,
  • Jonas Lembrechts,
  • Keith McDougall,
  • Anibal Pauchard,
  • Jake M. Alexander,
  • Agustina Barros,
  • Lohengrin Cavieres,
  • Irfan Rashid,
  • Lisa Rew,
  • Alla Aleksanyan,
  • José Arevalo Sierra,
  • Valeria Aschero,
  • Chelsea Chisholm,
  • Vincent Ralph Clark,
  • Jan Clavel,
  • Curtis Daehler,
  • Pervaiz Dar,
  • Hansjoerg Dietz,
  • Romina Dimarco,
  • Peter Edwards,
  • Franz Essl,
  • Eduardo Fuentes-Lillo,
  • Antoine Guisan,
  • Onalenna Gwate,
  • Anna Hargreaves,
  • Gabi Jakobs,
  • Alejandra Jiménez,
  • Paul Kardol,
  • Cristoph Küffer,
  • Christian Larson,
  • Jonathan Lenoir,
  • Bernd Lenzner,
  • Miguel Padrón Mederos,
  • Maritza Mihoc,
  • Ann Milbau,
  • John Morgan,
  • Jana Müllerová,
  • Bridgett Naylor,
  • Ivan Nijs,
  • Martin Nuñez,
  • Rüdiger Otto,
  • Davnah Payne,
  • Niels Preuk,
  • Amanda Ratier Backes,
  • ZAFAR A. RESHI,
  • Sabine Rumpf,
  • Verónica Sandoya,
  • Mellesa Schroder,
  • Karina Speziale,
  • Graciela Valencia,
  • Vigdis Vandvik,
  • Michaela Vítková,
  • Tom Vorstenbosch,
  • Tom Walker,
  • Neville Walsh,
  • Genevieve Wright,
  • Shengwei Zong,
  • Tim Seipel
Sylvia Haider
Martin Luther University Halle Wittenberg

Corresponding Author:sylvia.haider@botanik.uni-halle.de

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Jonas Lembrechts
University of Antwerp
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Keith McDougall
Research Centre for Applied Alpine Ecology
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Anibal Pauchard
Universidad de Concepcion
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Jake M. Alexander
ETH Zürich
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Agustina Barros
Centro Científico Tecnológico Mendoza
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Lohengrin Cavieres
Universidad de Concepcion
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Irfan Rashid
University of Kashmir
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Lisa Rew
Montana State University
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Alla Aleksanyan
National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia
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José Arevalo Sierra
University of La Laguna
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Valeria Aschero
Universidad Nacional de Cuyo
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Chelsea Chisholm
ETH Zürich
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Vincent Ralph Clark
University of the Free State - Qwaqwa Campus
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Jan Clavel
University of Antwerp
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Curtis Daehler
University of Hawai'i
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Pervaiz Dar
Amar Singh PG College
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Hansjoerg Dietz
ETH Zurich
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Romina Dimarco
Instituto de Investigaciones Forestales y Agropecuarias Bariloche (IFAB)
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Peter Edwards
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH)
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Franz Essl
University of Vienna
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Eduardo Fuentes-Lillo
Universidad de Concepción
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Antoine Guisan
University of Lausanne
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Onalenna Gwate
University of the Free State
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Anna Hargreaves
McGill University
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Gabi Jakobs
ETH Zürich
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Alejandra Jiménez
Universidad de Chile Instituto de Ecología y Biodiversidad
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Paul Kardol
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
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Cristoph Küffer
Institute of Integrative Biology
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Christian Larson
Montana State University Bozeman
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Jonathan Lenoir
CNRS Delegation Nord Pas-de-Calais et Picardie
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Bernd Lenzner
University of Vienna
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Miguel Padrón Mederos
Universidad de La Laguna
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Maritza Mihoc
Universidad de Concepción
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Ann Milbau
Research Institute for Nature and Forest
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John Morgan
La Trobe University
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Jana Müllerová
Institute of Botany Czech Academy of Sciences
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Bridgett Naylor
US Forest Service
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Ivan Nijs
University of Antwerp
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Martin Nuñez
Universidad Nacional del Comahue
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Rüdiger Otto
University of La Laguna Tenerife
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Davnah Payne
University of Bern
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Niels Preuk
Martin-Luther-Universitat Halle-Wittenberg
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Amanda Ratier Backes
Martin-Luther-Universitat Halle-Wittenberg
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ZAFAR A. RESHI
University of Kashmir
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Sabine Rumpf
University of Lausanne
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Verónica Sandoya
University Yachay Tech
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Mellesa Schroder
New South Wales National Parks & Wildlife Service
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Karina Speziale
Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente
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Graciela Valencia
Universidad de Concepción
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Vigdis Vandvik
University of Bergen
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Michaela Vítková
Czech Academy of Sciences
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Tom Vorstenbosch
University of Vienna
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Tom Walker
ETH Zürich
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Neville Walsh
Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria
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Genevieve Wright
New South Wales Department of Planning Industry and Environment
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Shengwei Zong
Northeast Normal University
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Tim Seipel
Montana State University System
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Abstract

Climate change and other global change drivers threaten plant diversity in mountains worldwide. A widely documented response to such environmental modifications is for plant species to change their elevational ranges. Range shifts are often idiosyncratic and difficult to generalize, partly due to variation in sampling methods. There is thus a need for a standardized monitoring strategy that can be applied across mountain regions to assess distribution changes and community turnover of native and non-native plant species over space and time. Here, we present a conceptually intuitive and standardized protocol developed by the Mountain Invasion Research Network (MIREN) to systematically quantify global patterns of native and non-native species distributions along elevation gradients and shifts arising from interactive effects of climate change and human disturbance. Usually repeated every five years, surveys consist of 20 sample sites located at equal elevation increments along three replicate roads per sampling region. At each site, three plots extend from the side of a mountain road into surrounding natural vegetation. The protocol has been successfully used in 18 regions worldwide from 2007 to present. Analyses of one point in time already generated some salient results, and revealed region-specific elevational patterns of native plant species richness, but a globally consistent elevational decline in non-native species richness. Non-native plants were also more abundant directly adjacent to road edges, suggesting that disturbed roadsides serve as a vector for invasions into mountains. From the upcoming analyses of time series even more exciting results especially about range shifts can be expected. Implementing the protocol in more mountain regions globally would help to generate a more complete picture of how global change alters species distributions. This would inform conservation policy in mountain ecosystems, where some conservation policies remain poorly implemented.
26 May 2021Submitted to Ecology and Evolution
27 May 2021Submission Checks Completed
27 May 2021Assigned to Editor
28 May 2021Reviewer(s) Assigned
20 Aug 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
24 Aug 2021Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
30 Nov 20211st Revision Received
01 Dec 2021Submission Checks Completed
01 Dec 2021Assigned to Editor
01 Dec 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
14 Jan 2022Editorial Decision: Accept
Feb 2022Published in Ecology and Evolution volume 12 issue 2. 10.1002/ece3.8590