# Temporal Floristic Changes (2005–2025) Along the Lower Stretch of the Tiber River (Central Italy)

## TL;DR

This study examines how plant communities along the Tiber River in Italy changed from 2005 to 2025, showing different responses to environmental pressures.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into the distinct temporal dynamics of aquatic and riparian plant communities in a single river system.

## Key findings

- Aquatic and riparian plant communities showed increased α-diversity over time.
- Riparian communities experienced greater species turnover with more generalist and alien species.
- Ecological traits shifted toward thermophilous, heliophilous, and nitrophilous species in both communities.

## Abstract

A multitemporal floristic study was conducted on the aquatic and riparian plant communities of the lower stretch of the Tiber River (central Italy) to identify any floristic changes in response to possible environmental pressures that have occurred locally over time. This investigation was carried out by comparing α- and temporal β-diversity, as well as biological, chorological, and ecological traits of plant assemblages present in permanent plots (n = 24) and sampled at two different time points (2005, 2025). Although both aquatic and riparian plant communities showed an increase in α-diversity over time (+94.1% and +56.5%, respectively), they generally exhibited different temporal patterns. The aquatic community showed a more stable floristic structure compared to the riparian one, with a persistent dominance of eutrophic and pollution-tolerant species, although local disappearance/rarefaction of some species was recorded. On the contrary, the riparian community showed greater species turnover, mainly due to an increase in generalist, ruderal and alien species, which over time have partially replaced those typically associated with riparian habitats. Ecological trait-based analyses indicated an increase over time in the percentage of thermophilous, heliophilous and nitrophilous species in both plant communities; the riparian community also showed an increase in xerophilous ones. Overall, the results indicate that aquatic and riparian communities exhibit distinct temporal dynamics within the same river system and highlight how long-term, permanent plot-based floristic monitoring is a useful tool in environmental studies.