Biology and Environment: Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy

Abstract:

Pinus sylvestris has undergone extirpation and reintroduction in several countries in north-western Europe. In Ireland, the species' native status is disputed and the conservation value of reintroduced pinewoods is unclear. To clarify the implications of this reintroduction for biodiversity conservation, we evaluated the level of floristic similarity between reintroduced and native stands. Plots recorded in reintroduced stands in Ireland and native stands in Scotland were compared using cluster analysis and Nonmetric Multidimensional Scaling. A synoptic table was prepared incorporating floristic data from native stands in south-western Norway. The reintroduced plots were classified in terms of the British National Vegetation Classification and compared with Irish fossil pinewood assemblages. Four groups were identified by cluster analysis; three were floristically similar to Irish fossil pinewood assemblages and three corresponded, to varying degrees, to extant native pinewoods in Scotland or Norway. Irish bog pinewoods corresponded to the EU Habitats Directive Annex I priority habitat bog woodland. This suggests that reintroduced P. sylvestris is an important resource for Ireland's native botanical and habitat diversity, given Ireland's low cover of native woodland. For practical conservation purposes, P. sylvestris should be retained and managed as a native species in woodland habitats in Ireland.