Uniqueness matters: patterns of α and β-diversity highlight conservation priorities for plant communities in Italian agricultural landscapes

We aimed at highlighting the conservation priorities for the plant communities of different ecosystems across Italian agricultural landscapes through an analysis of their contribution to biodiversity. We carried out vegetation sampling in croplands, forests, grasslands, shrublands, wetlands. We compared the five ecosystem types in terms of plant community α-diversity, β-diversity, and species composition using analysis of variance and Indicator Species Analysis.