Structure and diversity of a metacommunity system in the Tuscan archipelago In: Guarino R, Bazan G, Barbera G (Eds.), Vegetation patterns in natural and cultural landscapes

In this work we analysed plant communities and entire floras from the seven major islands of the Tuscan Archipelago (Italy): Elba, Giglio, Capraia, Montecristo, Pianosa, Giannutri and Gorgona. Our aims were to test: (1) if plant species composition at the metacommunity level was more affected by local conditions (i.e. the abiotic characteristics at single sampling sites) or by the island where sampling sites were located, and (2) how island species pools influenced local species diversity. For these purposes, we assembled a large data set from all phytosociological relevés available in published and unpublished sources, from the year 1973 to the present day.